Model Carol Perkins

Carol Perkins is an unsung figure of 1980s modeling.  While not the household name that another Carol - Carol Alt - was at the time, Ms. Perkins accumulated a very formidable portfolio that made her a major player in her profession.  But it's what she did after her stint as a model and an entertainer that made her a legend.

 

As one of the biggest stars in the Ford modeling agency, Ms. Perkins appeared in fashion editorials for Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, as well as for fashion stories in the New York Times' Sunsay magazine.  She later made her stage debut in a fire-eating segment in Penn and Teller's  Broadway show "The Refrigerator Tour."

Soon after that, in the early nineties, however, Ms. Perkins had a crippling, disfiguring form of brain cancer that almost killed her.  But when came out of surgery to have her tumor removed, she had a great idea for a second act.  Her pet had kept her going through the darkest days of her illness, so she decided to start her own pet-product company.

Her firm Harry Barker sells bedding, leashes, collars and toys for dogs what uses high-quality materials culled from recycled objects.  The Florida-born Ms. Perkins chose to return to the South to set up her company, which is now based in Charleston, South Carolina.

   

Harry Barker marked its twentieth anniversary in 2017, and Ms. Perkins, who named the business after her own dog, is widely acclaimed for her business acumen and her charitable contributions to the Medical University of South Carolina Children's Hospital for therapy dogs.  She is a shining example of how someone can start over and find even greater success than the astonishing success that came before. :-)

Here's a clip of Carol Perkins discussing her business with advertising executive and TV personality Donny Deutsch.