Thomas Medina
Modesto, CA (USA)
Role(s):
Founder/Owner/Principal
Stud Life
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Startup
Location:
Modesto
Industry:
Apparel
Year Founded:
2010
Number Employees:
1-10 people
Business Stage:
Creation/Idea
Entity Type:
Sole Proprietorship
Description:
Business Description:
Stud Life began in 2010 as an artistic reflection of the punk rock, hip-hop, graffiti and house music scenes that have become prevalent throughout California. These strong urban influences have helped to guide the Stud Life brand. The Company has applied to trademark the name throughout the U.S., and fully expects this process to be completed by early summer, 2011. Using unique, one-of-a-kind graphics and custom photographic images, the brand is able to bring the urban culture into the fashion industry. The management team is even now on the lookout for new designs and new artists to incorporate into next year’s designs.
The “street fashion” collection that has been assembled by Stud Life is representative of the “Nothing But Top Shelf” attitude that symbolizes the modern Rock ‘N’ Roll lifestyle. Stud Life has built its reputation on delivering trendsetting, contemporary designs offered on a variety of quality clothing and fashion platforms. The Stud Life designs have proven quite popular in every market in which they have been offered, including a number of the larger retail stores.
Up to this point in time, the sales for Stud Life have been somewhat limited. The Company has tested the market by offering their fashion lines in small boutique stores. The members of the management team have approached a number of additional stores, many of which are quite interested in the lines. The primary difficulty in gaining increased sales has become the lack of product inventory. The larger stores will need Stud Life to be able to deliver much larger numbers of products with a short turnaround time
Sales/Marketing:
Stud Life will continue to expand the e-commerce sales market. In addition, the Company intends to set up at various fashion markets, fairs and trade shows to promote the brand. The retail sales noted in the financial projections come from the e-commerce sales as well as sales at these events.
Stud Life further intends to expand its wholesale operations. Currently the Company is selling to a few small boutique shops in the Los Angeles area. As funding is made available, the Company will seek out additional stores to market their product lines.
Key Success Factors:
Stud Life has a number of key advantages over their competition. The first is the high quality of the clothing that they are using throughout the line. A better quality material allows for a better finished product. The second advantage is the quality of the designs and the fact that Stud Life has developed growing brand awareness because of their focus on quality. Finally, the Company uses a water-based ink system that allows the image to bond to the fabric so that the ink does not simply sit on the surface. This makes the design much more wear-resistant and has the added benefit of being very environmentally friendly.
Key Risk Factors:
The full business Plan includes a number of risks that the Stud Life management team has identified. In each case, the team has taken steps to eliminate, or drastically reduce, the potential impact these risks might have on the Company’s growth. As additional risks are identified, the team, along with the support of the investors, will take appropriate steps needed to deal with each one.
Important Milestone:
The Stud Life Management team has developed a series of steps that they feel will be needed to be taken to bring the Company into full production. The team members have been reaching out to area stores in order to begin building the brand. Once Stud Life is able to guarantee a quick turnaround time, many of these stores have agreed to place orders.
Exit Strategy:
Stud Life intends to provide all investors with a solid Return on Investment. The specific payment schedule and rate of return will be negotiated at the time of investment. The Company is projecting to pay off all investors within the first 5 years from funding. Investors who choose to remain active with the Company may be permitted to utilize a portion of their return for an on-going equity position in Stud Life.