In today’s episode, Cody and Justin are joined by Taylor Offer from FEAT Socks.
This 26-year-old has been making millions since he was 22 from selling socks.
Yes, you heard us right…Socks. But FEAT Socks aren’t your average socks and Taylor isn’t your average entrepreneur.
Taylor gave up a prestigious investment banking internship to follow his dreams and create a business.
There was failure and even an unhealthy amount of success. Today Taylor has streamlined business and his life and ready to show you how.
Listen and read below to hear his amazing journey.
Episode Summary
We welcome Taylor from FEAT SocksThis business now makes millions annuallyFrom a young age, Taylor was fascinated about price arbitrage — this is where you can buy something and sell it for a big markupTaylor doesn’t remember one moment that made him interested in moneyHe was more focused on value even as a childGoing into college he was only focused on a lucrative degreeHe got a coveted internship in bankingThen realized how unhappy everyone in this business wasThat made him realize that entrepreneurship was going to be his pathPeople were hard on him for dropping his coveted internshipHis first business venture was a marketplace for college kidsIt was called Market Loco and got over 500k hits in a monthThe infrastructure costs were too expensive, so it failedHis next venture was making custom print t-shirts for frats / sororitiesHe started door-to-door but did a huge cross-country spreeIt was really successful at the beginning and seemed too easyThen one of his orders got ruined by the manufacturer on a $7k orderTaylor realized custom business was really toughGreat quote – “There’s a million ways to get it wrong, and only one way to get it right”He meets his soon-to-be business partner his senior yearHis partner parker had done $1M+ in custom lacrosse jersey salesThey brainstormed and settled on crazy socks as the next ideaThis would become FEAT SocksThey sold $2k worth of socks out of a backpack on campus the first dayOver their senior year they sold 20k pairs of socksThey were making these by hand with a heat pressEventually they hired out college friendsImagine college kids in an unheated workspace, drinking and making socksThey really grew their list through Instagram and FacebookThings really turned when they got their angel investorOvernight they get $250k as seed money and FEAT Socks is legitThen through some connections they get Aly Raisman as an influencerIt was during the Olympics and she sells $500k worth of socks and FEAT Socks goes viralOriginally, they were going to give away 50% of the company for $50kInstead they raised the $250k at a $1.5M evaluationThen we start talking about how the business got away from themAt age 23 they are making millions, move to LA and hire 20 entry-level employeesThey get a 5k square foot warehouse all decked outTaylor and Parker get named to Forbes 30 under 30 and life seems perfectThen, their logistics company misses Christmas delivery dates for a ton of customersThey also spiraled into depression and worked 16 hour days all weekTaylor just broke down one day and took a one way to ThailandHe saw these poor kids in the streets who were happyThat moment made him really realize what was importantThey also realized they had $75k in overhead — this caused them to let go of more than 75% of their workforce and to automate everythingIt was cheaper, better quality, and way less stressfulFEAT is now very successful with only 1 hour of work per day for the foundersWith FEAT Socks running on its own, they started a marketing companyTaylor actually has like three other businesses going on (serious entrepreneur!)He feels like he’s happy but always finding the balanceOh, and not to mention Taylor was featured in a Justin Beiber video! (Check it out here at 4:34)Key Takeaways
Don’t get greedy: Taylor was lured to the a major only because of how much money it would make and almost ended up miserableAlways be ready: Taylor constantly had 6 pair of socks ready to sell. That’s what made FEAT Socks successfulMisery isn’t selective: It would be easy to be jealous of Taylor but realize that depression can come calling for any of usCall to Action
Go automate your life and reduce some stress.
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