Steve Abrams never planned to invent something to fight ticks. He spent most of his career in the food business, eventually becoming the CEO of Magnolia Bakery, famous for its cupcakes and banana pudding. After selling the company in 2021, he found himself with time to think about new projects. One idea had been in the back of his mind for years — a simple way to keep ticks off his dogs.
Years earlier, Steve had noticed something odd. After taking his Mastiff on long walks through the woods, he’d wipe the dog down with a microfiber towel to clean off drool and dirt. He started noticing ticks sticking to the towel, almost like it was trapping them. It made sense — microfiber is designed to catch small particles. He figured the tiny loops in the fabric might also be grabbing the ticks’ hooked legs. He couldn’t get the idea out of his head: What if there was a product that worked like that on purpose?
But the timing wasn’t right, and Steve put the thought aside while managing Magnolia. It wasn’t until after the bakery sale that he had time to take the idea seriously. Around the same time, his daughter Olivia was thinking about her own career path. She had just graduated from Lehigh University and had taken a finance job, but it wasn’t quite the direction she wanted. Steve and Olivia had always talked about business ideas together, so when Olivia mentioned wanting to start something of her own, Steve brought up his old idea for a tick-catching mitt. Olivia was intrigued, and they decided to give it a shot.
Steve knew the concept was promising, but they had to make it practical. He started researching ticks and learned more about how their legs work. Ticks don’t just crawl — they hook onto surfaces with tiny barbs. The challenge was to find a fabric that could reliably catch them without being too rough on human skin or pet fur. Working with a textile engineer and a tick expert, they started testing microfiber samples. Olivia joined the project full-time and threw herself into the development process. She had personal motivation too — as a child, she had been diagnosed with Lyme disease and still dealt with lingering joint pain. Making something to fight ticks felt personal.
After countless prototypes, they found the right material. The final version was a mitt made from a specialized microfiber fabric with loops just the right size to trap a tick’s legs. The design was simple: After spending time outdoors, you just swipe the mitt over your clothes, skin, or pet’s fur. Ticks that haven’t attached yet get caught in the fibers. To clean it, you toss the mitt into a dryer using a mesh bag that comes with it — ten minutes of heat kills any trapped ticks. The mitt is washable, reusable, and chemical-free.
They named it Tick Mitt and launched the product in March 2023. Olivia took charge of marketing and used her contacts to land spots on Good Morning America and The View. Their first batch sold out right away. People liked that the mitt was simple, non-toxic, and easy to use. Steve says he knew the mitt would work, but seeing it take off so quickly surprised him. Within the first year, they made about $450,000 in sales and were shipping internationally to countries like Canada, South Korea, and parts of Europe.
Olivia focused on making the product accessible. They launched an online store and partnered with retailers like Chewy and Orvis to reach more customers. They also offered a kids’ version (a smaller mitt that works the same way) and started selling multipacks for families. Customers appreciated that they could use the mitt on both their pets and themselves without worrying about harsh chemicals.
For Steve and Olivia, Tick Mitt is more than a product. It’s a practical way to protect people and pets from tick-borne diseases. They stay involved in tick awareness efforts, even serving on the board of Project Lyme, a nonprofit dedicated to education and prevention. Steve often says that starting this business with his daughter has been a new kind of adventure — different from running a bakery, but just as rewarding.
Today, Tick Mitt continues to grow. Steve and Olivia keep refining the product and exploring new ideas, like adding tick removal tools to their lineup. They still do much of the work themselves, from customer service to packaging, keeping the business grounded in family values. For them, it’s about making the outdoors safer without adding hassle — just a quick sweep after a hike, and you’re done.
