This interview is big. Big on content and insight. Inventor and business owner Wayne Perry takes some time off to share an incredible story in which we learn about self-defense, fate, fight, sacrifice, sheer ingenuity, Oprah Winfrey and lots more. For those who aspire to take the entrepreneurial journey take the time to read this and turn yourself into a believer.
Hi Wayne ! I read about how you came up with the idea for Sinusbuster on your website. Wow ! Now that’s a story. Can you share a bit with our readers ?
It all started in 1995 when I was traveling the country (US) advocating street style self defense. I produced a self-defense video teaching people how to use ordinary items and dirty tricks to defend themselves from criminal assaults. One of my gimmicks for getting publicity was to be sprayed with real police pepper spray. I ended up on the Oprah Winfrey show and I taught Oprah how to use self-defense pepper spray. After that show, I was bombarded with appearance requests from all over the country. Suddenly I was getting sprayed with pepper spray for small tv stations around the country while promoting my self defense videos. I had suffered from chronic cluster headaches and allergy problems for 20 years, but I never had a headache attack during one of my self defense demos. Then one day I was about to be sprayed by a television reporter at a local FOX News affiliate, and minutes before I had to go on the air I was hit with a cluster attack. Since the show had to go on, I let the reporter spray me and within seconds I was on my knees and unable to see from the pepper. Then it hit me - my headache was completely gone and I never felt better. That was the moment I realized that hot peppers could stop headaches instantly, and the rest is history. I spent the next year perfecting an all natural capsaicin nasal spray that worked every time, and I kept the formula for personal use. It completely stopped my headaches and allergy problems like nothing else, but I never thought abut selling it until a few friends tried it with the same results. In 2003 I decided to bottle it commercially as Sinus Buster hot pepper headache nasal spray. Today we make a variety of capsaicin nasal sprays targeting allergies, sinus conditions, migraines, general headaches and colds.
Your main ingredient is capsaicin, the stuff we find in chili peppers ! Eating it alone is…explosive. How would you convince me to spray that into my nose ?
I would first tell you there is no lingering burn with Sinus Buster like with spicy foods. When you eat hot peppers the burning sensation lingers for a while because you’re coming in direct contact with the capsaicin, but with Sinus Buster the capsaicin is diluted thousands of times so all you feel is an exhilarating bite that lasts less than 30 seconds. Secondly, the discomfort of a headache or sinus infection is far worse than the hottest pepper and Sinus Buster really works fast. Besides, every other major OTC nasal spray is filled with chemicals, and Sinus Buster is completely natural. So why put chemicals up your nose when there’s a natural alternative that actually works better.
Good point. Did you start your company by yourself or with partners ?
I started alone at my kitchen table, but within three weeks the business took off so fast that I had to enlist help from my mother and a friend who are both my partners today.
How did you go about looking for financing ?
We have never gotten any financing. We started with $350 and a dream. The sales of Sinus Buster have built our tremendous growth from day one.
That’s pretty amazing. How did you come up with all the different formulas for Sinus Buster ?
Once I discovered that capsaicin could stop a headache and reduce nasal inflammation, I began to experiment with its’ effect on blood vessels and nerves. I started mixing other herbals with the capsaicin to see how my body would react. What I found by acting as my own guinea pig was that capsaicin has the ability to act like a carrier for other herbals. Capsaicin increases permeability of the (Blood - Brain - Barrier) allowing theraputic agents to enter the bloodstream and central nervous system simultaneously. our company has filed patents on certain methods using capsaicin to deliver theraputic agents in a nasal spray. What makes each Sinus Buster formula so effective is the intranasal application. Intranasal drug delivery is the most efficient and most effective, but many theraputic agents cannot be completely absorbed through the Blood-Brain Barrier. By using capsaicin as a delivery agent, our nasal sprays are able to deliver theraputic agents with far more effectiveness than other methods such as orally ingested pills or liquids. When you ingest a medicine orally, much of its’ theraputic value is lost as it travels through your digestive system, but with a nasal spray we can deliver big relief in tiny doses. That’s the basic premise.
Sounds like you did a lot of homework. Now I see you have a weight loss formula and a prostate formula. I’m very curious about how that works, especially the latter !
The capsaicin works on several levels in each product. In addition, the other herbals also target each specific health issue. In the Sinus Buster Weight Control formula, the capsaicin reacts with the olfactory nerves and the central nervous system to decrease hunger pangs similar to the way Hoodia does. The capsaicin also boosts metabolic activity and aides the body in burning fat cells. The other herbals such as Green Tea, Licorice Root and Ginseng all work to increase thermal activity to boost the metabolism. The Prostate formula uses proven herbals such as Saw Palmetto and Africanum Pygeum along with the capsaicin which acts as a carrier. The capsaicin also increases blood flow throughout the body which aides the prostate. There have been numerous independent studies supporting the use of each herbal ingredient in all Sinus Buster formulas, and by combining these ingredients with capsaicin our nasal sprays deliver each theraputic ingredient directly into the body.
You’ve been on the Oprah Winfrey and Maury Povich shows. Did that help at all ?
I did all those shows back in the 1990s while I was a self defense instructor, and they certainly helped me to deal with media exposure Sinus Buster gets today. The biggest influence was from Oprah Winfrey who actually inspired me to create the world’s first hot pepper nasal spray in 1995. Thanks to the exposure of my self defense workshops on Oprah’s show, fate allowed me to discover the medicinal power of hot peppers. Without that exposure on Oprah, I may never have discovered my initial invention. I really believe that certain things are meant to be in life, and teaching Oprah how to use self defense pepper spray allowed fate to lead down the road to invention. While necessity is the mother of invention, fate is the father.
Nice. How successful has your business been since day one ?
When I started this in my kitchen selling the first bottles of Sinus Buster on eBay, all I wanted was to make $500 a week to support my family, but within 2 weeks I was selling four times that. Within 6 months after launching the business, Sinus Buster was featured in the Wall Street Journal and on the Howard Stern Show. Within the first year Sinus Buster went from eBay to being sold in over a thousand stores and dozens of websites. Sinus Buster was a winner from day one and stores called us - we didn’t call them. Of course the road was not an easy one and it was no get rich quick scenario, but we saw the potential from the very first week in business.
For some time now, it seems everyone is enamored with “natural products”. You seem to be riding that wave quite smoothly. Can you comment ?
Yes - natural is in. Consumers have gotten wise to the fact that a health product doesn’t have to be filled with chemical medicines in order to work. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. Many chemicals are less than safe and they tend to mask your health symptoms which leads to rebound effects and unhappy customers. The consumer trend toward natural is also part of the new “Green Thinking” we see in society. Whether it’s natural medicines, natural foods and natural living in general, the trend toward natural will continue to grow because it’s the wise path for all of us. Now you see natural sections in all kinds of supermarkets and big box stores. While it is helping the marketplace, it’s also making things harder for the small traditional health food stores. They now have to compete with the grocery chains, drug stores and (supermarket health food hybrids) such as Wholefoods Market and Publix Greenwise. Natural is in and it’s here to stay and that’s a very good thing for American consumers.
Have you devoted yourself totally to Sinus Buster or do you still keep a day job ?
I had to quit my day job in 2004 about three months after selling my first bottle of Sinus Buster. Today we have product distribution in thousands of stores around the world and I actually need to clone myself several times just to keep up with the growth of our Sinus Buster brand.
What consequences to your personal life has the move towards entrepreneurship brought about ?
The past five years have been all about the business. I have averaged 90 hour work weeks for much of that time. Though I do try hard to get quality family time and personal time, the business has controlled my life and I’ve made many sacrifices on behalf of this venture. My partners have also made the same sacrifices because Sinus Buster has complete control of our lives. It’s a once in a lifetime larger than life product and we wouldn’t have it any other way. The task is enormous, but so is the payoff.
What are the 3 toughest challenges your company has faced so far ?
1: Starting with only $350. 2: Educating consumers, doctors and retailers to understand that Sinus Buster is the real deal and not some gimmick. 3: Building a brand from the ground up while creating a brand new market category.
Can we expect new innovations from you in the future ?
Absolutely. We are constantly developing new product applications in a variety natural health categories, and as our company grows we will be pushing the limit even further.
What advice would you give to a young person with entrepreneurial ambitions ?
Be prepared to fail and be prepared to fight. People will tell you it can’t be done and others will stand in your way from day one. You will encounter many bumps in the road, but if you are a true entrepreneur then you will fight on. Protect your ideas from the start because there are many unscrupulous business sharks out there who will attempt to prey on your innovations. Patent, trademark and copyright all your creations from the start - no matter what it takes. If you have something unique and good, people will try to take advantage of you for their own monetary gains.
A big thanks to Wayne Perry for the interview. If you want to learn more about his invention and journey or if you just want to kick some sinus ass check out the Sinus Buster website.
