Hey guys, Nate here. I'm proud to announce that I'm now the Program Director of Scrawny To Brawny. From now on all of my blogs and articles will be posted on the brand-new Scrawny To Brawny Blog. So if you enjoyed what you read here, please go check it out. (It's awesome, if I say so myself.) I'm keeping the NGE website alive for resource reasons, but will no longer be actively updating it. The best way to get in touch with me is through leaving a comment on the Scrawny To Brawny blog or by posting on the S2B Facebook page. See you guys over at the new blog!
No Business Degree or Experience? No Problem.
Starting a successful business isn't as hard as you think.
Oh, it's still work. Lots of it. But you don't need a college degree. You don't need a business plan. And you certainly don't need a lot of money.
The best part is you can work on building your business with only a few hours of work per week – kind of like the guys at Humblecock clothing.
They wanted to start a t-shirt company, despite not knowing a damn thing about making t-shirts. Turns out they didn't have to know much to see a little success.
If done right, your small business—or "muse" as Tim Ferriss calls it—can provide you with extra income with a minimal amount of hours and money invested.
This post marks the first time (but certainly not the last) where I explore what it takes to make a living through unconventional means.
Humblecock Inc. consists of Jason, Kyle, and Rob. (Full disclosure: I'm a consultant to the company. But you probably already knew that.)
I recently sat down with them at a coffee shop to talk.
Nate: What kind of name is Humblecock? Seriously.
Humblecock: We were on a short three-hour road trip and talking about starting a t-shirt company for guys who were living life on their own terms. Guys who were successful in their sense of the word, but who weren't pricks about it.
You know, humble but still kind of cocky.
So Kyle says "Humblecock" which sounded completely ridiculous. We laughed and forgot about it for an hour or so.
Then we just decided to go with it, because, well, it just fit. And we thought it'd be cool to have the rooster insignia. Kind of like the horse on Ralph Lauren Polo. Or the Abercrombie moose. You know, something recognizable and cool.
But the name is serious and funny at the same time. Every time we deposit checks at the bank or pick up the tab on a business dinner, the servers always look a little embarrassed.
We make the people at Wells Fargo say the name out loud. Just for fun.
Ah, the simple perks. Did you guys know anything about making t-shirts before you started the company?
Not really. I (Jason) had a band a few years earlier and I worked with different companies for our merchandise and cheap t-shirts. But that's about it.
Luckily all of us had successful businesses or jobs before we started HC. [Jason is a web designer, Rob makes custom watch straps for luxury watches, and Kyle manages a gym.] So we weren't complete business newbies.
Still, there were some definite screw-ups and shit we simply weren't prepared for.
We'll get into that in a few. So, this isn't your guys' primary source of income?
Not yet. It could be if it keeps growing and if we decide to look for investors. But honestly we're happy doing it on a small scale right now.
We went into it knowing it be a cool side project. Something to do that didn't cost a ton of money to start and not a lot of hours to maintain.
What was your initial investment?
About $10,000 total. That covered our first run of shirts, custom hang tags, custom clothing tags, setting up the business (we're an S-Corp), paying the photographer for the first photoshoot, and a bunch of shit we shouldn't have spent money on but did because we didn't know any better.
If we had to do it over we could have started for $6,000, tops.
Have you put any more money into the company since that initial investment?
Not a cent. Each run of clothes pays for itself in a matter of days, and we just plug everything back into the business.
How much are you guys pulling in monthly and how many hours does it take you to run everything?
We generally net about $2,000 – 3,000 per month. Every month brings in more than the last, though, and we're growing at a decent pace.
To run everything? I don't know... Between shirt design, shipping, and all of that? Maybe 15 hours per month. Max.
And that's total. Not 15 hours per person.
Take me through the process of picking materials and designing the shirt to having it on your back.
1. First we have a meeting and decide what kind of stuff we want to run. Hats? T-shirts? A hoodie? From there we go through and pick the apparel we want off our fulfillment depot's website and request samples.
2. After we get the samples we make our final decisions on what style, feel, and color we're going to do. We decide how many we're going to run and what our size breakdown should be (how many Larges, Mediums, etc).
3. I (Jason) put together some artwork and email the rest of the guys to get their thoughts. This is the part I love since I get to be creative and play with fonts and other geeky things.
4. After everyone OKs the designs, I send high-resolution files to the fulfillment company. They send me back the proofs, and I OK the order.
5. After a couple of weeks we get our stuff and make sure everything looks good. Every now and then we'll have a few shirts that are misprinted or that don't look quite right. We always send those back.
6. Once we have our shirts we launch a pre-sale on Facebook and through different fitness, lifestyle, and tech blogs. We almost always sell out within a few days.
7. Finally we buy ourselves a nice dinner, drink some good beer, and claim that life is good. And then plan the next order.
What do you think have been your biggest "hell yeah" moments?
Well, our shirts are getting out to more and more people, which is great. Every now and then someone will post a photo on our Facebook fan page of them wearing the shirt and doing something cool.
We've also seen guys like UFC fighter Kenny Florian and a Playboy photographer wearing our shirts, which feels good.
What would you say are the "keys" to your success?
There are a few big ones that made the difference and ensured we wouldn't be a one-hitter-quitter.
The fact that we only sale our stuff online is huge. We don't have to worry about third-party mark-ups on our clothes or the problems associated with shipping large quantities to retailers.
We may eventually move into stores, but we wanted to kind of "test the waters" and see how we did online first. So far, so good.
Secondly, we use a lot of free or low-cost services that save us a lot of money and hassle. Things like BigCartel, PayPal, and Facebook. We just plugged are info into an existing system. In fact, our only marketing comes from Facebook and different blogs.
We haven't spent any money on advertising because our word of mouth is so good. We have guys who literally own every single one of our items. And we take care of our customers. We give a lot of discounts and throw in free shirts in some of the orders, and stickers in all of them.
Also, we don't do huge runs of t-shirts. At least not after our first order. We kinda messed up there when we ordered 124 of each shirt. (There were 3 styles.)
Now we do limited runs of 24 – 48. That insures a quick turn-around from the manufacturer to us and to the consumer. Plus, we don't have a ton of inventory as most of it sells out pretty quickly.
I guess the other big thing was the fact we didn't have to spend a lot of money on website building or design. Since I'm (Jason) a web designer, I just did it myself.
What's next for HC?
We're just gonna keep growing slowly and put out cool clothes that we want to wear. That's the ultimate test for us. If we think it's cool and like to wear it, we do it.
This a fun side project for now, as we all have our own businesses and jobs. But it could very well take off. Maybe we'll hit a tipping point, you know?
That'd be fantastic. But for now we're having a blast and like it the way it is. And if anyone's interested they can check out the Humblecock Facebook page and the Humblecock store.
Resources To Check Out:
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Got dreams of starting your own company or going out on your own to build a business? What kinda stuff are you working on? Let me know in the comments! I'll randomly pick one person to receive a free HC shirt.
And make sure to sign up for the newsletter below to receive cool tips, stories, and lifestyle/fitness strategies that don't go on the blog.
Comments for This Entry
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Nate,
This is so weird that you posted this today. I made the decision today to really put forward an effort to write a business plan and get my dream going. That dream is owning my own gym. A place where I control the tunes, the look, the policies etc. I have spent too long in a corporate fitness setting. Paying my dues is one thing, I'm ok with that. The scam of a gym membership. The egos. The other trainers...
I've had enough of the BS!
Hope all is well Nate.
GR -
Thanks Nate,
Always good to listen to other guys stories. Especially those that don't take the beaten path.
@ Greg, good luck bro. What your thinking IS what's needed so bad.
Tim -
I'm a graphic designer working in house for a small company doing fairly corporate design work, which I must admit, isn't very fulfilling creatively. I'd eventually like to freelance as an illustrator and design under my own brand and name. I'm carving out my own branding and business image in my personal time, so its slowly coming along
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Nate,
Great article man!
I started my training business about 2 years ago, and things were going pretty well, then a family friend named Vince DelMonte came out to Vancouver for a visit with his family and introduced me to the online fitness world.
I saw the life he was living, but also the value he was providing people, and I wanted in. I was busy training clients, but I could reach nowhere near the amount of people he did by simply training people one on one. I wanted to do both.
Pretty soon after that visit we went down to Bedros' event where Vince was talking, which was my first true introduction to the online fitness community, and I was blown away. Later that year (November '09) I started my blog and have been at it ever since.
I've written an ebook accompanied by 3, 12-week challenge-based workouts designed to help guys build their ideal body, from a looks perspective and a performance one as well. I just finished the sales page and will have everything up in a few days. I've put a lot of work into it, but I've loved every minute of it.
Along the way I've had a lot of help from guys like yourself who publish articles I've written and I really appreciate it. Probably the biggest surprise is the writing: I love it. I look forward to finding new article ideas and getting them up on my blog or handing them off to someone else.
Anyways, I've been at the blog for a year now, and am just about to release my first product online. I've always had the goal of getting a hard copy book published as well which is something that I'm going to work on next.
So, that's what I'm working on right now. I appreciate all the help with the writing as well!
- Chad -
This was such a great post. I am in the process of building my brand. I currently host a call in show every Thursday covers MMA,Wrestling,Video Games and Movies. I was doing in 2006 and lost the drive. I ended up starting it back up in 2009 and have been having a blast talking to wrestlers,MMA fighters and members of the video game community. I am also slowly working on a non for profit that I hope I can launch next year. The show is my main motivation. I do all my show work throughout the day even though I have a full time job and hit the gym. My goal is to take the show more mainstream and maybe get some sponsorship to help offset the costs. Also some merch to help increase brand awareness. Thanks guys for that big cartel link. Will come in handy real soon. Keep up the good work Humblecock crew. Props to you too Nate!!
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Hey Nate,
Great article, it is always great to see people doing what they love. Quick question, they mentioned their fulfillment depot, who/what is that? Link?
Thanks,
John -
Nice post Nate!
I'm in college right now studying Exercise Science, and I plan on getting my Master's degree in Exercise Science or Kinesiology, and becoming a trainer and strength coach along the way. I write a blog now and have been working with various fitness sites to get articles published.
My goal is to start writing a lot for as many sites or magazines as I can, hopefully more as the degrees and certifications start coming in, and try to get my name out there. I want to work for a few years at a training facility to learn from some other people, and hopefully by then with my name out in the industry and a few years experience I can successfully open my own gym, and use my writing skills to publish a few books.
Very high goals, I know, but you gotta aim high. Reading posts like this is inspiring; I don't have to wait until I'm super rich to start thinking of my "muse". Good stuff Nate, thanks again.
-Matt -
Intresting read Nate and good luck with Humblecock. My field is unique in the sense that most shop owners start out as technicians and go into ownership with little or no business background, myself included.
Integrety, drive, some balls and a charming smile go a long way in pulling you through!! That and keeping overhead on the low side until you get rolling..;) -
Had a seminar in college for Business Planing (especially for Biotech ideas, since that is what I'm studying) and developed an idea over the term now and actually think about developing it further, collecting money from investors and get it started. That's a bit a larger scale than the tshirt idea, but we're only students, so it's gonna be hard.
Would be cool, if I win the tshirt! Love the design. -
Nate, thank you for this. After those first few questions, I started to wonder about the other stuff that's in this post.
Tell the guys I said good luck! -
Awesome post, Nate. I agree, I think successful businesses really come down to determination and perserverance. Good business sense is usually just good common sense and knowing people. And always like Matt Damon said in Good Will Hunting, and it's for the most part true, sometimes you can tell people that went to the "high-end" schools: "You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for $1.50 in late fees at the public library."
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Awesome post, Nate. I've been sitting in on an entrepreneurship class this fall and it's really motivated me that I can definitely get a business off the ground. Something the size of HC sounds just about right for what I can do in the next few years, thanks for the motivation.
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I have been thinking of starting my own business but the problem is that I have always been thinking too big. Seeing how you can start with something small and expand changed my view of things. Thanks for the post!
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good post. Also great to see so many people with ambition to make things happen for themselves and not sit and wait. I would recomend to everyone to write out a business plan, it's a good guiding light and helps keep you focused and organized. Also visit SCORE its a great site for helping small businesses and its free.
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This is a great post. I've been having thoughts recently about turning my blog name into a brand that I can use for various merchandise and this makes me think that it just might work.
Thanks! -
Excellent post! I'll need to re-read this numerous times. I'm writing a book right now that serves as my "muse." I'm going to do it the Humblecock way and make sure the product is quality before it is created though. Time, time, time.
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Great interview, Nate. It's always insightful to hear from people who are making things work.
A couple of things really stood out:
1) They stuck with what they knew as the backbone of their business. Sure, they didn't know anything about t-shirts, but they knew exactly the target market they were going after. They ARE the guys that are successful on their own, but not pricks. So they knew what THEY would like for clothing and how to speak the language of their target market.
2) They didn't stress out about getting too big too soon. Instead each run pays for itself and helps the company grow. They've taken on no new debt. The company is growing at a pace they can manage and still have fun with.
Well done, guys, and I can't wait for those black hats!
Isaac -
Great article Nate. I liked the fact that the entire operation takes only 15 hours per month (max). After my day job; I am normally too tired to think of another job; but if it is only a minor time commitment; then something worth considering.
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Wow, nice! It's great to have insight from people actually running it.
I also like how they really don't fret it much. They like what they're doing and they don't take up any unneeded stress about it.
True humblecocks themselves XD
In the back of my head lies the idea to start my own thing sometime. I have quite enough projects as it is now, but I might as well get into it at some point!
Oh, and I dig the hoodie!
Cheers
Mat -
Nate, another great blog post I think it's great to celebrate people who do things that they enjoy. It gives us all a little bit of hope that we can end up doing something we like and make a living at the same time.
Keep up the great blog.
Bobby -
Another great read Nate. This past week or so , this idea has been crossing my mind repeatedly about venturing out on my own and establishing a business more so to see if I'm capable of taking the plunge rather than just for profit purposes.
The main area where I can see myself making an impact at this time would be web design and graphic design at this point in time as these are directly linked with my degree that I'm currently studying although eventually branching out towards various different areas.
It's awesome and inspirational to see guys with the same kinda premise go out and accomplish what I hope to accomplish in the next 2 or 3 years
Keep up the great blog Nate
Ciaran -
Sweet article Nate. Are you gonna right about how you make money?
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It was very cool to read how little risk was involved in starting this company. It is cool that these guys have a successful side business with such limited additional stress.
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Great article! Love my HC shirt.
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I like the post Nate. I've actually been looking into starting an online clothing company focusing on polo shirts. Any advice on how they found their fulfillment company?
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Interesting interview - its always great to get some insight from people inspired by the 4HWW to create a cool business.
The 4HWW book literally changed my life. I read it just before my college graduation, and over the next few months I developed an online "muse" related to college exams which now averages $2k income per month. Now I am gearing up to go travel the world while my college friends are scrambling to find fulltime employment.
Far too many people screw up the muse creation process because they come up with a "great" (probably not) idea and then try to find someone to sell it to, which is the opposite of what you should be doing. Find a good niche market first, and then develop a product the market wants.
The real key to muse success is to test market demand BEFORE you start investing tons of your money and time into the business. If your muse idea is going to fail (and 8 out of 10 will) then you want to know that quickly and inexpensively so you can move on to the next idea.
If you are interested, I have a post on my blog about how to create and test a high quality "muse" for $200 total (no extensive web design knowledge needed).
Keep up the great work Nate, After reading your book a year ago I've been following your blog since then and it just keeps getting better.
Also I am so incredibly pumped for the Four Hour Body and I vaguely remember you (Nate) saying that you were involved with it in some way? Is this true? You and Tim Ferriss working together is too much awesomeness to handle. -
Great post, Nate. Really good to hear from Jason how he, Rob and Kyle set HC up. It sounds fulfilling in many ways for them, beyond merely financially.
I am a playwright and solo performer. After reading the 4HWW two years back, I began teaching workshops in solo improvisation (in the sub-arcana of improvisation, there's only a handful of people in the country that do the particular kind of longform solo improv I do). These have recently broadened into creativity workshops for performers. I am having a blast and have begun to earn from my somewhat unique skill set.
I also fulfilled a childhood dream of sorts this year when i launched a webcomic called Donnie Rocket Toaster-Face. I drew as a kid and dreamed of someday having a syndicated comic in the newspapers like Charles Schultz or Bill "Calvin & Hobbes" Watterson. Modern technology has made it possible to do a similar sort of thing with webcomics. Now I post a weekly comic online and have found it marginally rewarding financially, but overwhelmingly fulfilling personally. -
Hey Nate,
Cool post, look forward to more of these in the future for sure!
As for me I wanna get a small business off the ground in 2011, well 2 actually. I want to start some kind of automated 4HWW type of thing, (just starting a second read through the book) to support my passion business which will be a video production business.
Right now I work for a major news station, or as I like to say "Big TV" it's almost like a factory, video comes in, minimal work and news goes out. No creativity, no nothing. I want to get into doing my own stuff where I can use my talents and creativity for all kinds of different projects, whether its a corporate training video or a wedding video.
Congrats to you and the HC guys, hopefully some day soon I'll be the one making you guys some kick ass promo videos :)
Cheers -
Nate, just found your blog and I love it. I couldn't agree more about the misconceptions about starting your own business. I encourage everyone to follow their passions and don't let anyone squash your dreams of during your own thing. When your heart is in it and you're doing it for all the right reasons (helping people in some way) the money and success will come. There will be work, lots of it, but it's not like work when you love what you do. Cool post about Humblecock as well...I really like that.
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I'm a speech-language pathologist and I work full-time in long-term care, but my drive to enter this profession stemmed from my own struggle with stuttering throughout my life. My goal is to be a board-recognized stuttering specialist and to work for myself.
Stuttering is very small in grand scheme of communication disorders, so I have the opportunity to become very successful in a niche area. Per hour, private practice stuttering therapy can earn me $100 per hour, and at least $300 for an evaluation.
I was inspired last year, as a lot of people were, reading 4HWW and attempting to apply to my own career, and this is the best way I can do that.
For the past three years I've saved money for my new house and spent hours renovating it, and at long last my office is complete and I'm ready to pursue my passion.
I've invested probably close to $800 between insurance, continuing education, testing and treatment materials, and recording equipment, and eventually more on the way when I get an online presence going. Some of my most exciting plans for me personally involve telepractice and Skype. I'm officially open for business and I've reached out to former professors for referrals.
And Nate, I've taken a lot from you over the past couple of years, as far as targeting a particular audience. I'm 28 years old, and during support group meetings for the National Stuttering Association I try to be a role model to some of the teen members of the groups. Most SLPs are female (like 96%), so being a younger male in this field and somebody who deals every day with what these kids have to, being the "Nate Green of stuttering therapy" is something actually realistic.
And by the way, tell HC to make blue hats again. I wanted to order one but they said the only are getting black ones. -
@ Patrick G. - I bet you've heard of it already, but there's about to be a big Hollywood movie out with Colin Firth. It is about King George VI overcoming stuttering to broadcast a famous radio broadcast during WWII. I think it is called "The King's Speech" or something like that. Anyway, be on the look out for it.
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@ Brad,
Yea I have heard of it and it's supposed to be great, and may be nominated for an oscar by all the reviews so far. Thanks for the comment. -
Amazing to see how many other people have also been inspired by 4HWW. I was tiptoeing around the idea of starting my own interior design business until October when I got laid off from my job. A friend of mine told me to "drop whatever book you're reading, you need to read 4HWW immediately". Not only is SwoopDesign actually happening (SwoopDesign: Before your girlfriend does it for you.), but I'm in the early planning stages of producing and launching my own ski fitness DVD. The most important thing so far has been learning to be honest with myself about what I'm good at, what I know, and what I need other people's help with. Learning new things is great, but doing everything yourself is profoundly unprofitable. Thanks for loading my RSS feed with positive ideas and motivation, Nate!
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There's some really awesome stuff here - thanks for commenting!
The free shirt goes to Rich and his radio show. (Check your email, Rich)
Everyone keep up the great work - it's very inspiring.
-Nate -
Nate,
Thanks for allowing me to share a portion of my story with you and your readers. It is very hard work trying to make a dream profitable and I know many that quit. I just want to tell everyone that every minute spent researching,networking and working on your dream will pay off. Either in the form of profits,new relationships or groundwork for a better idea. I will forward you my info Nate and I you or the guys ever need anything that I can assist in by all means drop me a line.-Rich -
Great writing. Good luck to all of you
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Great pose, Nate. This serves an inspiration for those who want to start a business whether they finish college degree or not. For starters, I'm planning to start my own business where it involves gym training. Little by little, I could achieve my dreams to be successful on this one.
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Thanks for the great interview. I am in the process of starting my own outdoor fitness company. I like how simple these guys have made their process.
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I started my own electric guitar business last year, 10-32 guitars (http://www.10-32guitars.com/about.html). I'm finalizing production processes now and will begin shipping later this year. Certainly not the kind of business that only takes 15 hours a month, but I love the work. Ive managed to set personal bests in lean mass and bodyfat percentage during the last 12 months as I built the business as well. Now if I could just start pulling in enough cash to quit this boring day job...
Check out some axes at the following links:
http://www.facebook.com/1032guitars#!/pages/10-32-Guitars/141413155873980
http://www.hankshermann.com/hsv/
http://www.10-32guitars.com/cgSix.html -
I have watch straps made by Rob, he told me about Humblecock, I brought the shirts and some as a gift, I was looking to buy again and stumbled across Nate! Great read, love training and life....
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Wonderful journey and experience!
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Grappling with the details of so many different individual policies can lead to a strong urge to pick the next one that sounds halfway reasonable. But halfway isn't good enough.Grappling with the details of so many different individual policies can lead to a strong urge to pick the next one that sounds halfway reasonable. But halfway isn't good enough.
COMMENT RULES: Critical posts are fine, but if you're rude I'll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your personal name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. But most of all, have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Tim Ferriss for the inspiration.)
Greg R. 5:40pm Dec 8, 2010