Crowdfunding has the potential to change the way we look at careers. Today you can quit your job. birth an idea and actually build it.
The story of badass socks starts with two friends who quit their jobs at LivingSocial, spent 12 weeks learning web development at dev bootcamp and launched one of the most successful fashion campaigns on Kickstarter ever. As of today, Nice Laundry has exceeded the goal of $30,000 and 500 backers.
Phil Moldavski and Ricky Choi have a vision to revolutionize the way men think about socks.
For Ricky and Phil, unique socks are the subtle accessory that help them exude confidence daily. Why should men open the sock drawer and see black and white when the world is full of color? More than simply color, they want men to feel empowered to represent who they are. They created packs of 6 pairs of socks titled “Dreamer”, “Wild Child”, “Exec”, “Cheif”, “Ladie’s Man” and “Visionary”. It’s clear to see that these two have a background in marketing (they met on the marketing team at LivingSocial). In a simple and creative manner, they crafted a powerful story into a piece of normally boring clothing. On top of this, they added a feature that helps you give back to society. With each purchase, they send you a box to send your old socks back to be recycled. Best of all, where it normally costs $12-40 per pair in retail establishments, you can get a full set of 6 pairs for only $34.
The reality is that this story may never have happened without crowdfunding. In order to get into production, they are required to fulfill a minimum order. Crowdfunding as a tool is changing the nature of the way businesses are started. It is a marketing tool that anyone can tap into. Like the internet itself, crowdfunding is helping to democratize the world; the internet is breaking down the barriers to entry for any career path: a comedian can start with a youtube channel, an activist can rally others around an idea on Causes and two young entrepreneurs can start a company to make badass socks on KickStarter.
While I believe in the power of crowdfunding, it still requires imagination, creative marketing and excellent execution to make dreams come true. Crowdfunding, like any other way to raise money, is a marketing campaign. In order to get money, teams have to sell both their idea/product as well as themselves. Since this is the case, I will make my final pitch: get your pre-order for badass socks at Nice Laundry and Follow me on Twitter to read my newest articles.
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