Del Mar, CA | San Diego County
A Better Straw, A Bigger Opportunity
Client: Lael Barry, Ecolux Goods SPC
Client Location: Del Mar, CA
AmPac Services Provided: SBA Microloan
A soggy paper straw was the unlikely starting point for Ecolux Goods.
The everyday annoyance led founder and CEO Lael Barry to wonder whether sustainable drinkware could be beautiful, functional, and something people actually wanted to keep.
Today, Ecolux Goods creates artisan-made luxury reusable drinkware, including its signature Sippers: antimicrobial, hypoallergenic, 22k gold-dipped solid silver straws designed as functional art and lasting keepsakes. From its headquarters in Del Mar, the company serves hospitality, casino, corporate gifting, and luxury retail markets.
From an Idea to a Business
Barry grew up in Mi-Wuk Village near Yosemite and spent more than 20 years as a craft hairdresser and salon owner before moving into technology and product entrepreneurship.
“I became an entrepreneur because I wanted the freedom to turn ideas into solutions and build businesses aligned with my values,” Barry says. “My background as a salon owner taught me how to recognize unmet needs, create meaningful experiences, and persevere through uncertainty.”
Ecolux Goods sold through its initial direct-to-consumer inventory, then Barry made a deliberate pivot: instead of competing for individual customers, she set her sights on hospitality groups, casinos, and corporate buyers who order in volume. It was a better fit for a product built to be a keepsake, but it came with a different set of financial demands. Larger accounts move slower and expect a supplier who can produce, package, and deliver at scale before the first invoice is ever paid.
The Financing Gap
Barry had primarily self-funded Ecolux Goods, relying on personal and business credit to get the company this far. She looked into traditional financing as the business-to-business (B2B) shift took shape, but conventional lenders were not well-suited to a business whose sales cycle had just gotten longer and whose capital needs were changing with it.
AmPac Business Capital stepped in with a $50,000 SBA Microloan over 84 months, structured to fund the working capital Ecolux Goods needed to operate at this new scale: building inventory ahead of demand, adding sales capacity, expanding marketing to reach hospitality and casino buyers, and covering the operating costs that come with managing bigger accounts.
“The AmPac loan provided critical working capital as Ecolux Goods transitioned from direct-to-consumer sales into the B2B market,” Barry says. “It allowed us to improve cash flow and invest in the infrastructure needed to support longer sales cycles and larger hospitality and corporate orders.”
“I felt incredibly relieved, validated, and grateful,” Barry says of the approval. “As an entrepreneur, you have to believe in your vision long before others can see it, so the approval felt like a meaningful vote of confidence in both my business and my ability to lead it.”
Turning Capital Into Capacity
That confidence translated directly into headcount. The financing funded a sales and business development hire dedicated to hospitality, casino, and distributor outreach, the kind of relationship-driven work that larger accounts require and that Barry could not take on alone while also running the rest of the business. Altogether, the loan supported four new jobs at Ecolux Goods.
The rest of the capital went toward the inventory, marketing, and day-to-day operating needs behind that growth, giving the new hire and the broader sales effort something to work with instead of a plan on paper. Together, those investments have helped Ecolux Goods build real relationships with hospitality groups, casino resorts, distributors, and corporate buyers.
A Business With a Broader Purpose
Ecolux Goods is a woman-owned and Native American-owned California Social Purpose Corporation. The company helps hospitality, casino, and corporate customers replace disposable products with reusable alternatives, while its social purpose includes supporting women in business and ocean conservation.
Barry’s commitment to entrepreneurship extends beyond her company. She mentors entrepreneurs and serves on the board of Warriors Healing Network, where she leads women’s programs supporting trauma healing for veterans and law enforcement.
As Ecolux Goods has expanded, Barry has also received recognition for her work. In 2026, she was named one of the 100 Women to KNOW in America, nominated as a San Diego Magazine Food & Beverage Rising Star, and selected as an honoree for the San Diego Business Impact Awards presented by the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation and JPMorganChase.
Support Along the Way
Barry describes her experience with AmPac as thorough, transparent, and supportive from the start, with the team taking the time to understand her business and where it was headed.
“I felt treated like a person, not simply an application,” Barry says.
She rated both her personal service and AmPac’s back-office team five out of five, and said the process was easier to navigate than she expected for a step this significant. “Securing a business loan can feel overwhelming, but your team made the process clear and manageable,” she says.
Looking Ahead
For Barry, the most satisfying part of building Ecolux Goods has been watching an idea born from a soggy paper straw take on a life of its own.
“Seeing people recognize our Sippers as more than straws, but as functional art, luxury keepsakes, and practical sustainability solutions, has been incredibly rewarding,” she says.
Her advice to other founders comes from the same instinct that took Ecolux Goods from a direct-to-consumer brand to a hospitality and casino supplier: know when to hold the vision and when to change the path.
“Do not confuse a slow season with failure,” Barry says. “Stay grounded in your values, listen to what the market is teaching you, and be willing to pivot without abandoning your larger vision. Perseverance matters, but so does discernment. The strongest entrepreneurs know when to keep pushing and when to change the path.”
Is Your Business Ready for Its Next Chapter?
AmPac Business Capital is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution and the Nation’s first faith-based SBA Certified Development Company. Headquartered in Ontario, California, AmPac serves small businesses across California, Arizona, and Nevada. Our SBA Microloan program provides financing for working capital, inventory, equipment, and marketing.