TCM #038: Is launching a profitable DTC brand in 2024 a myth or reality?

Can you still in 2024 successfully build, launch, and scale a DTC brand?

And by successfully I mean – profitably.

There are 2 versions of this story...

1) The short (ish) version:

In late 2023, I decided to test my mettle by launching a new DTC brand in public.

The question was simple: could I replicate my past success today?

I planned to white label a product and document every step of the journey, from conception to launch, all in public. To manage costs, I invited sponsors with a strict rule to only partner with those I authentically believed in and could talk about transparently.

No BS.

Today, the project has grown significantly (putting it mildly) from its small initial concept. We're a team of 6, we've got a factory and are just weeks away from launching. We've got a dedicated group of integrated partners and a (hopefully) robust strategy to launch and grow.

This is mildly terrifying. I have no clue how this story is going to end.

2) The long version:

In October of last year, while at an event, a question was seeded into my brain – did I still have what it takes to launch a new DTC brand, and could I do it in public?

The number one question I get on advisory calls and in DMs is:

"How do I do this? How do I grow? I get the theoretical, but how in the real world do we do this?"

Having documented (behind a paywall) everything about building my last brand back in 2021 – for what was only supposed to be a 3-6 month experiment that I completely expected to fail – 3+ years on the brand is still alive and kicking.

But given how much the market has changed, I wondered if I was in fact still capable of doing it again.

Was it pure luck? Did I actually know what I was doing? Could I replicate the results again now after all the impacts of iOS 14 + Meta + global financial shifts?

There was one way to find out...

I approached a couple of good friends in the space in Nov '23 and told them my plans:

• White label a product
• Document everything
• Build it all in public
• Bring on sponsors to help me facilitate the cost of editing and distribution (sponsor criteria: I wouldn't shill just anything; I had to use the product, believe in it, and wouldn't allow competitors.)
• I knew going in that copycats would rip off my product within weeks

I figured – worst case, even if the brand failed after 6 months the audience would have (hopefully) learned a ton about what works and what doesn't, and that sponsors would have gained a ton of exposure and content from it.

Win-Win.

In early Dec '23 Taylor Davies agreed to help me as an advisor and lend services from Oddit where they could.

If I was crazy, there were at least now 2 of us in this madness.

In late Dec '23, I sent out a sponsorship deck (that was brutally long – apologies to those who had to suffer it!) to service providers I knew and wanted to work with.

The response was overwhelmingly positive and there was one thing we all agreed on:

"There is so. much. BS. in this ecommerce/DTC space; we need authenticity & transparency."

Sponsors got it almost immediately. In some cases I think they saw it clearer than I did.

We enter 2024

As Jan '24 progressed, myself and Taylor started pulling together a list of products we were interested in, brands that inspired us, and spaces we saw where we could add value to the customer, cut costs, and deliver a better service.

Somewhere around late-Jan/early-Feb '24 Taylor mentioned he had a conversation with Ali and Geoff from Petra Brands a year earlier. Should he reach out? They had factories and more ideas seemingly than they could possibly execute.

Ali and Geoff got it immediately and wanted in.

From Jan-May '24 is somewhat of a blur.

Before I knew it the team had grown into a powerhouse:

• Me
• Taylor
• Ali
• Geoff

We had a factory and the factory owners were now coming on as equity partners, as was Oddit.

We quickly added:

• Shaun
• Cam

Vested interest + a moat

All parties (Tom, Oddit, Petra) now had a vested interest in seeing this brand launch and succeed. Now it really mattered that this brand was successful and didn't flop after 6 months.

And we had an enormous moat.

With Petra Brands coming on board we now had:

• Access to the lowest COGS in the industry
• Insanely low MOQs
• The ability to produce high-quality and highly customized products within 24-48 hours

We also had an operator with 10+ years of experience (that's this guy) and Oddit, who brings a wealth of brand, design, CRO, marketing and business experience.

What does that also mean?

• We have a high AOV (we're estimating $400+ ish)
• We have a high margin that should allow us to be able to spend a healthy amount on marketing (more on this later)
• We have a ton of experience on our side

So where are we today?

Holy heck... in no particular order our integrated partners are:

• Oddit
• Petra
• Replo
• Junip
• Recart
• Fermàt (you're finally going to know what they do)
• Presidio
• Kynship
• Archive
• Omnisend
• Superfiliate
• BRND Labs
• Wonderpack
• Creative OS
• Inkfire
• Jansy
• Redo

This is extraordinary.

We initially thought we'd launch this in January as a very simple white-label product with a brand wrapped around it.

It's morphed and grown a tad.

We're finally weeks away now.

We've got months' worth of call recordings that we're working through.

(Side note: we're still trying to find a knock-out video editor – if that's you or you know someone, please hit reply.)

In the coming days and weeks, there will be a lot more I can start to share with you about:

• What the brand is (reply if you want a sneak peek!)
• Our Go-To-Market strategy
• How the heck we're doing any of this, plus how the tools & services above play key roles in the business

I can't wait to unveil this.

My only goal with this is to keep it as real, transparent, and authentic as possible.

DTC Unscripted is delayed, yet so nearly here.

Love ya'll. The support from everyone these past 5 months has been ridiculous. 💙

If you want to stay updated, you're already in the right place! I'll be sharing more very soon here and on the socials.

Talk soon,

Tom