The Story of a Brand Show

In part 2 of this feature, Christopher Hamze, Founder of TeeLaunch, continues to share how he started and built TeeLaunch and how after 130,000 installs, it continues to be one of the best ways to start and grow a Shopify business. 

 

In part 2 of this episode, Christopher shares:   - The vision of TeeLaunch - Custom products and their plant in Utah - Why the future is expanding into new markets including Corp, Gov, & Edu - How the quality of Print on Demand has changed and improved - Advice to entrepreneurs including  * Don't get over your head with debt  * There's a time for a strategic retreat  * Start Small  * Leverage your relationships  * Don't easily Give Up  * Find lessons in every failure   Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Christopher in Part 1 of this episode and hear them share the inside story of a brand.   For more on TeeLaunch visit:  teelaunch.com/story Visit the partners who make this show possible: Gorgias -  Gorgias.link/story Retention Science - RetentionScience.com

For the first two years of business, Christopher Hamze, Founder of TeeLaunch, lost money. People didn't understand the Print On Demand (POD) concept and after 2 years they were $750,000 in debt. At that point, they were discussing closing the business. 

  Then they got an idea to pivot from the local market and create an app that allowed people to print t-shirts on demand and sell them through Shopify. Each day after they launched, they grew exponentially and by the end of the year, they did nearly $2 million in revenue. $130 thousand app installs later, the rest, as they say, is history.   In part 1 of this incredible episode, Christopher shares:   - His entrepreneurial journey and why he is unemployable - Why everyone thought he was nuts for building an app when he did - Why if he had waited to build the app, everything would have been different - How he tried to become a lawyer to earn a steady paycheck but was drawn back into entrepreneurship - What's so important about the Customer Experience - Why transparency, small size, and accessibility is the TeeLauch advantage - Why it's so rewarding building a business that helps others become entrepreneurs   Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Christopher in Part 1 of this episode and hear them share the inside story of a brand.   For more on TeeLaunch visit:  teelaunch.com/story Visit the partners who make this show possible: Gorgias -  Gorgias.link/story Retention Science - RetentionScience.com

In Part 2 of this feature Ellyette Gheno, Founder of Bootay Bag, continues to share her brand's journey.   In this episode, Ellyette shares Her Entrepreneurial journey, The downtimes, Why having a network of entrepreneurs is critical, Why there's always a way out when trouble hits, What her "Humble Moment" is, Why the team is crucial, Why they now manufacturer and design in house, Why giving the customer more control is great (but has its downsides), and much, much more.  Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Elly in Part 2 of this episode and hear her share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Bootay Bag visit: https://bootaybag.com/   Visit our advertiser: : refersion.com/cf Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com

Initially, Ellyette Gheno, Founder of Bootay Bag, started the brand on a whim. She didn't go to college and didn't have any education on starting a business which basically meant she had no fear. She more or less thought she would sign up a few friends and make a few bucks each month. What she didn't realize back then is that she had hit upon a frustration that "real women" had about how they bought panties and at what price. Thus was born an affordable everyday panty subscription box.   In Part 1 of this feature, Elly discusses Why women didn't want to support a brand like Victoria Secret, Why community is so important to her, Why user-based content is a priority, How she created the "shittiest" website ever, Why she was glad she was naive and fearless when she started the brand, What her biggest regret is and why she failed, What lesson she learned about testing new products, Why it's so important to be focused on the customer vs the market opportunity, Why you need to know what to focus on, and Why luck plays a part in success, and much, much more.  Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Elly in Part 1 of this episode and hear her share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Bootay Bag visit: https://bootaybag.com/   Visit our advertiser: : refersion.com/cf Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com

In Part 2 of this feature, Francesco Urso, Founder of the Wolf Project, continues sharing with us the inside story of building a skincare company for men.    In this episode, Francesco discusses The pampering experience for men, The global trend of aging well, Why he chose the U.S. market over others, His funding journey, Why bootstrapping wasn't enough, Why it's important to have skin in the game, How to spend your first $100,000, Why you should focus on your core competencies and how to determine what those are, What areas should you spend time in, and much, much more.  Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Francesco in Part 2 of this episode and hear him share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Wolf Project visit: https://thewolfproject.co/    Visit our advertiser: : https://www.privy.com/cf Visit our advertiser: https://churnbuster.io/pod Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com

Initially for Francesco Urso, Founder of the Wolf Project, it was a fun project or exercise in building a skincare product that men could use. However, as he researched and realized, and with a little encouragement from his wife, he knew that the huge global trend of men buying skincare products was a business that was calling his name.    In Part 1 of this feature, Francesco discusses Why a face mask for men, How he got inspiration from the Korean and Japanese skincare markets, What his "Wow" moment was, Why face mask provide an unparalleled level of Hydration, What Hydration does for your skin and all the benefits, Why there's room for Men, Women, and Genderless products, Why he named it the Wolf Project, and why this product is gateway for more sophisticated skincare solutions for men as the growing trend continues and much, much more.  Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Francesco in Part 1 of this episode and hear him share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Wolf Project visit: https://thewolfproject.co/    Visit our advertiser: : https://www.privy.com/cf Visit our advertiser: https://churnbuster.io/pod Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com

Harper Wilde Co-Founders Jenna Kerner and Jane Fisher knew that there would be a risk embroidering a statement on their bras that included profanity.  They didn't know if anyone had ever done this before. However, in 2019 when 9 states passed laws severely restricting a woman's right and access to a legal procedure, they knew they had to act. They decided that their brand message had to mirror their company values, even if their stance would be controversial.   In part 2 of this fascinating episode, Jenna and Jane share What happened when they took a risk and took a stand, How they want to be about empowering woman externally and internally,  Why standing up for their values is part of their Brand Moat, Why making the most comfortable and softest bra in the market is key to that Brand MOAT.    Plus they share more advice for college graduates, advice for women (and men) when raising funds, Why their recycling program for Bras is important to the environment, How they are launching a nursing bra, and why humor and pranks are important for company's culture.    Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Jenna & Jane in Part 1 of this episode and hear them share the inside story of a brand. For more on Harper Wilde visit: https://harperwilde.com/ Visit the partners who make this show possible: Gorgias -  Gorgias.link/story teelaunch - teelaunch.com/story Retention Science - RetentionScience.com

Harper Wilde Co-Founders Jenna Kerner and Jane Fisher didn't start out wanting to build a brand much less one that disrupted the bra market.  They even spent most of their time, trying to disprove their business idea. However, the more they researched, the more they realized that it wasn't so much about the bras, it was more about empowering women of all sizes, skin tones and giving her a quality & affordable product and experience she deserved. So in the end, it was such a huge problem with a big opportunity in the market that they had to start the business. 

  In part 1 of this incredible episode, Jenna and Jane share their journey including Why women hate bra shopping, What they learned about the process of making & pricing bras, Why large manufacturers and retailers weren't looking to solve the problem, Why Victoria Secrets no longer speaks to the woman of today, Why it's important to have outside advisors, How they started with negative money (they were in grad school) and how they raised funds, What the rule of 10% is and why it was so crucial to their success, How they handle being Co-Founders and why it works for them, What mistakes they made, Why you should listen to your gut, and Advice to Graduates: Just put something out there! and much more.     Note: there is so much great advice, we can't list it all. So join us while Ramon Vela interviews Jenna & Jane in Part 1 of this episode and hear them share the inside story of a brand. For more on Harper Wilde visit: https://harperwilde.com/ Visit the partners who make this show possible: Gorgias -  Gorgias.link/story teelaunch - teelaunch.com/story Retention Science - RetentionScience.com

In this special episode, we interview Philippe Roireau, Head of BD & Partnerships for Gorgias, "the" help desk solution that gives "Super Powers" to your Support Team!    In Part 2 of this feature, Philippe shares Why large shoe companies love Gorgias, The magic that happens during onboarding including pre-loading accounts with relevant messages, How the Gorgias support team helps merchants, What is the Gorgias Moat? Why do customers connect with Gorgias, Their "follow the merchant" strategy, Trends in e-commerce, How Gorgias helps omni-channel players create a seamless experience, How Gorgias removes sources of friction, How customers are leveraging the Gorgias Machine Learning data to make better decisions, What the future holds, and so much more. Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Philippe in Part 2 of this episode and hear him share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Gorgias visit: Gorgias.link/story   Visit our advertiser: : https://www.privy.com/cf Visit our advertiser: https://churnbuster.io/pod Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com

In this special episode, we interview Philippe Roireau, Head of BD & Partnerships for Gorgias, "the" help desk for e-commerce brands and merchants.    In Part 1 of this feature, Philippe, discusses How Gorgias was founded, How a chance meeting with the Shopify founder changed their business, How their laser focus on Shopify led them to tremendous growth, How Phil started as a Gorgias customer, Why they look for staff that speaks the language of merchants, Why merchants love merchant stories, How merchants can scale customer service without adding more people, The magic of the Gorgias onboarding experience, and How to Transform Support into a Profit Center and so much more. Join us while Ramon Vela interviews Philippe in Part 1 of this episode and hear him share the inside story of a brand.   For more on Gorgias visit: Gorgias.link/story   Visit our advertiser: : https://www.privy.com/cf Visit our advertiser: https://churnbuster.io/pod Visit our Sponsor: https://www.retentionscience.com