Growing up in a big family in the North-East USA, Nate Checketts always knew he wanted to create something innovative, but back then there wasn’t even a word being used for he wanted to do. He first thought he might be an inventor, but it was clear from pushing around his red-cart lemonade stand from an early age, that he also loved to sell. He’d sell anything if he could. It was inevitable he’d soon be walking the path of entrepreneurship. He tinkered around with a few failing ideas on the side of his full time job running sponsorship strategies for the NFL. One day his regular practice of journaling shed some deep understanding of what he had to do in life. While not feeling fulfilled in his role, he wrote;

 

“I want to lead a company that really matters, side note - that doesn’t necessarily mean I have to cure cancer”

 

At the same time, a Lululemon christmas present from mom - for all the family, triggered an idea; men are at a point of identity crisis right now, when it comes wearing clothes that make you feel good. This same kind of approach that was working predominantly in female branding, could be marketed at guys too. He and a few family members (having received a gift they weren’t too thrilled about) spotted the gap in the market for great quality activewear specifically for men. And NOT just a brand that is targeted purely at the athletic type, but one that could speak to every normal guy out there. The concept became even deeper when they decided to target men who want to achieve more, dads wishing to be better parents, guys open to self growth, men wishing to find purpose and work harder. Not just how good you are crossfit or how many miles you could run. They crafted something that was missing, clothes that are as comfortable as sweatpants but smart enough to wear on Wall Street.

 

“Everyone should feel tall, proud, and inspired, that’s when we decided to innovate, educate and inform our community that we was building. We needed to speak to the individual, other brands just weren't”

 

Story telling became a big part of their business startup using instagram and other social media platforms, NOT the little things like logo, name and email address, all these things that didn’t really mean much. They stood by a unique ethos; If all your clothes in the closet are clean, which ones are you picking out first - They wanted to be that brand!

 

Here’s what we get into on this episode.

• Taking the risk of dropping out of your full time job for something that is uncertain
• Not waiting on the idea or product being perfect before starting
• How two near fatal incidents nearly put the breaks on Rhone
• Turning what could have been a disaster into 100% commitment.
• The importance of focus
• Viewing yourself as unemployable
• Hiring people as crazy as yourself
• Getting comfortable with chaos
• The differences between seed investment and bootstrapping
• Being proud of what you do and letting the world see it

 

“To be successful you need have a succession of great years, To have great years you have to think about how you can have great days, you can do that with the 5-minute journal”

Hope you enjoyed this week’s episode with Nate Checketts , you can find out more about him here:

Rhone.com

Twitter

Linked in

Instagram

 

Find books and resources mentioned here:

• 4-Hour Work Week - Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss
• Let My People Go Surfing - The Education of a Reluctant Businessman by Yvon Chouinard
• Convertible Note  - Wikipedia description

Produced by Jason Sanderson - Podcast Tech

Full show notes: https://www.ikonns.com/podcast/episode18