Today I spoke in LA at an event with Richard Branson as the headliner and Christian Audigier (Creator: ED HARDY shown BELOW) as the closer....what a lineup! The "Perfect Pitch 2009" seemed to be a huge success to me. With hundreds of aspiring entrepreneurs and investors in attendance I know that I was inspired by all of the success stories and information shared. I love these events. The greatest thing about these entrepreneur events is also the most humbling: hearing SO MANY incredible stories of success, over-achieving and ridiculous wealth creation--all under one roof. THAT is America at its best - no matter what Michael Moore says about it. Capitalism breeds unbridled innovation - God bless America. (GOTTA see the vid below though!)
I spoke on a panel with Apprentice (2nd Season) winner, Kelly Perdew. It was fun to rewind a bit and recant some of my experience from the old Rebel Billionaire days. I was reminded of just what a rare opportunity that was. God bless America. (Me and Kelly Perdew shown right)
One of the coolest entrepreneur presentations ("pitches") of the day came from the founder of Icon Aircraft. I was blown away by his concept for a "Sport Plane," meant to tap into the "Power Sports" market (Sport Cars, Sport Bikes, Sport Boats, etc)...but for planes. This plane is SICK. Checkout: http://www.iconaircraft.com/ It will only cost about $140k and anyone can fly it, on land or on water...and tow it home on a trailer.
Finally, in contrast, I leave you with this thought - which can only be expressed in this real-life, unplanned, un-scripted, spur-of-the-moment little video that I just had to record as I watched TV the other night. THIS is the antithesis of everything that I stand for. I mean, hats off to Bob for his entrepreneurship, but OH, America - don't give in to becoming the unabashed couch potato that this ad implies that you are....
I’m always showing you what we can do with Sactionals and
(what I think is) our wicked-cool LoveSac furniture.Here are some Sac’rs personal pads as (is always the case):
customers do it better….
This is one of our Colorado Sac’rs: Shane Moss.Shane clearly has good taste.Shane chose to go with our (now
extinct) Puppy Phur, which was discontinued in late ’07 after P.E.T.A. found
out just how many puppies went into making a seven cushion sectional like this
one.(Actually, this washable
LoveSac Cover is 100% faux and 99% puppy friendly….its just a joke….its not
even really my joke….I stole it from our FlatIron, Colorado store’s blog).
I really like the way that Shane chose to do a DOUBLE Chaise
Sectional.This is a position not
even shown in our video of 69 Sactional Positions, which, by the way, was NOT
an intentional attempt at college humor.We literally just kept shooting positions in the white room until we had
gone all day.When we counted them
up, guess how many we had!?Yeah – we had to just let it ride.BUT, the point is, even at that many, the seating possibilities stemming
from LoveSac Sactionals go on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on
and on and on and on and on and on on and on and on and on and on and on and on
and on and on and on and on and on on and on and on and on and on and on and on
and on and on and on and on and on on and on and on and on and on and on and on
and on and on and on and on and on, etc.
This second Sac pad is none other than Mr. Jackie Chan’s
place in Beijing China.You can
only barely tell (from the left side of the photo), but Jackie also owns a
seven cushion sectional built out of our extremely modular Sactionals, all with
Espresso PlushSuede Covers (our most popular fabric).Jackie picked up a GRIP of LoveSac gear while filming his
upcoming Hollywood release “The Spy Next Door,” in Albuquerque, New
Mexico.This film is sure to be a
hit, largely thanks to his on-set naps on the Sac in the on-set LoveSac store
shown in the film - - spoiler alert!
Needless to say, after experiencing the power of the Sac
himself on-set, Jackie raided our Cottonwood Mall location and flew home with
stacks of Sacs.Now, as you can
see, his whole entourage crashes on them after a long day of trying to keep up
with THE most energetic person I have ever met in my life.
Stores in China, you ask!?Yes, we’ve talked with him about it.Someday, it will come.
Finally, we have Hank, from Salt Lake City, Utah.I just happened to be at our Gateway location
the other day and as I was handling some biz at the counter, Hank walked right
up, and with confidence, bought himself a Sac for his upcoming college days….without
even flinching.These are my kind of customers! Hank: college will never be the same...
As it turns out, athletes from the NBA to the X Games use the LoveSac as a place of refuge and meditation before the big game, heated match, or sick trick. Long time fan of the Sac, Travis Pastrana invited me down to spend a little time with him (which means I get to winch him out of his foam pit) as he prepared for the X Games...."Oh, and bring my Sactionals with you." I believe were his orders. So I loaded up his order into my Navigator and delivered it myself, hoping to get a few Rally Racing tips out of him. I drove to Maryland to SAC TRAVIS PASTRANA'S PAD.
So in what precious little time off I do have I end up working with foam, and fluffing....at least this time it wasn't fluffing Sacs. (and it certainly wasn't that kind of fluffing either). Travis' foam pit, filled with 40,000 pieces of cut-foam blocks (should've been Sacs), needs to be "fluffed" after each and every time he goes in on one of his attempts so that the next time the landing area will be as fluffy as the first time. All I have to say is this: I watched this dude wake up, throw on a T-shirt, jump on his bike, get a 30 foot run at the ramp and bust a double back flip as his warm up trick...a trick that he originated 3 years ago and hasn't been caught up with until this year, finally. This guy is truly the best in the world at what he does. Oh - and if you don't follow action sports, just tune in to MTV this fall for the 2nd season of his hit TV show "Nitro Circus." Who knows, you may even just spot a Sac there too. In the mean time, check out this little vid of this, the 2nd ever episode of SAC MY PAD...
Even if you have seen our patented twist on furniture, the Sactionals, you need to see this new video (below). I understand that at first glance Sactionals appear just "neat sofas" that can be moved around. But if you haven't seen them in real life, you will be surprised at just how tight they are and how good they look in person...the real thing seems to always exceed expectations. I've said it before and I'm saying it now: This product will eventually become the "default" furniture for American TV rooms. It is the only changeable, washable, FedEx-able, simple, extremely modular furniture that can be taken-home-today because of the way its small packaging allows it to be stacked/stored/stocked. Watch the video past the first section to the part where it gets into the Sactional Positions. Please leave a comment and let me know: what is YOUR favorite position? I wanna know.
I honestly believe that this product is good for people. It frees them from being stuck with their furniture in an elegant and affordable way. It is reliable and guaranteed for life. I believe it will be the single-biggest furniture concept in the country once discovered, and our patents help to ensure that, but for now we are small. We are not able to advertise. Unless people happen to stumble into one of our little stores and experience these for themselves, they will never know they have this option....and most people who do end up regretting that they, "Just bought other furniture." Often people even return their recently purchased sofas and come back to pick up Sactionals. So help me get the word out! Please forward this to your friends and family, because now LoveSac is small, but someday with your help, everyone will LoveSac. WATCH THIS VID (ALL THE WAY THROUGH)....
I just bought a LoveSac - a SuperSac - IT IS FANTASTIC. I wanted to write you an email, as everyone is amazed that we bought one. I am known for being frugal; very frugal. I was hypermiling years ago (when gas was under $2 a gallon), I maintain a body mass index of 18.5 to save money on groceries, and wear multiple layers of clothes when flying to avoid the new luggage surcharge. I personally do not see myself as cheap, what I look for is value for money - paying twice as much for groceries and getting diabetes does not fly with me, but spending $700 on something so comfortable, that I can share with my fiancé and really unwind is worth every cent.
It will not be too long before we return to Jeremy (in Natick - he is by far the nicest employee in the whole mall) to purchase a sectional. My biggest fear about investing in furniture is as young adults we are likely to move around before buying our own abode. What fits in this apartment might not in our next - one look on craigslist demonstrates that many people waste thousands of dollars because of this. This is not a risk with your sectional, I know I can spend good money today and not worry about having to throw it out in a year when we move.
Do keep up the good work, and as you roll out with new products Jeremy will see me back at your store (unless he has been promoted by then).
Cheers,
ABOVE: Jeremy, Natick Manager
Iain
THIS JUST IN (MARCH 17, FROM IAIN VIA EMAIL):
- just to update you we did go back to Jeremy and buy the sactional. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that it is the only way to go with furniture. I think we have had it for 2 weeks now, and it is FANTASTIC. Can't wait to get a big place, and buy more pieces!!!
Keep up the good work - really do love your products.
Iain
THEN, today my biz partner, Nancy, sent around a great article about how real "Value" is the new "big thing" in business today, and our Retail Director, Alex, asked the crew (via email) how LoveSac offers "value." A good response, by Dan, in Salt Lake City...
Our product has a lot of the same value as hybrid cars in the sense that in some cases it is more expensive than some of our customers would have gone with but much cheaper in the long run. Our lifetime guarantee ensures this you will never have to buy another sofa ever if you so choose. Some of The most common reasons people replace furniture are because they are moving, our furniture is extremely easy to move with, the furniture gets old and worn out looking, our cover can easily be replaced, and probably more common than anything people get bored with the same old couch everyday, if you get new covers and switch the setup it would seem as though you spend thousands and bought an all new living room set for a fraction of that cost. my favorite question that people ask me is how are we doing in this current state? I always answer we are doing great let me show you exactly why and I'll lead into a sactional demo. the story about coffee with McDonalds and Starbucks made me laugh because you should never just forget the experience to get value. Lovesac is like Starbucks coffee served at McDonalds prices with an experience that tops either of them and rivals that of your favorite local coffee house one more like you see in the TV show "Friends" and we offer free refills. [Dan, shown extreme left, above.]
Dan Bostelman
Gateway Manager
WHAT CAN I SAY? I AGREE. SMART CUSTOMER. SMART MANAGERS.
The LoveSac Bus has been re-wrapped, re-pimped and re-deployed, this week to the world famous Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The Bus now boasts 24 Speakers (all by Kicker), 8 Sony Screens including one 40" HDTV, Live TV by AT&T Cruisecast, two mobile Wi-Fi routers, PS2, Guitar Hero, a bottomless fridge full of drinks and of course, all LoveSac furniture. Talk about a crazy weekend. But LoveSac was not just on the streets of Sundance, we were on the inside too.
Island/Def Jam, arguably the most successful record label of our age, was party-central on Main Street Park City, at the Phoenix Gallery, and ALL of the furniture in the building was by LoveSac. Sofas and cozy lounges for the gifting suites during the day were converted (by the legendary Sac'r, Charlie Tubb) to gigantic sectionals and VIP sections by night. Celebrities such as Mariah Carey, Nick Cannon, Young Jeezey, T.I., and many, many others were chillin' on LoveSac Sactionals and Sacs all through the night. [Celebrity photos yet to come.]
But, in all honesty, even with the celebrity guests the open bar (for those into that), and all of the "Movie Producers" to mingle with....the Party on Main Street Park City, inside of the LoveSac Bus, was more fun. All we did was roll up and down Main Street, watching movies, blasting the tunes, playin' a little Guitar Hero, and giving onlookers the occassional ride. People were swarming the bus, fighting to get on, get a piece of LoveSac Schwag, and just get in to the mobile party, on the LoveSac Bus.
One of the weirdest moments came after dropping off a couple of the Island/Def Jam Execs at their condo, a mile out of downtown Park City. There we were, on some dark suburban Park City Street, in the middle of nowhere, when I saw a couple of people huddled up on the corner, looking like they needed a cab to go to town. Good luck. So I got on the Bus PA (Fire-engine/cop siren) and told em to jump on board. We drove for 5 minutes, back to town, before someone in back, having chatted with them, shouted up to me "Hey, Shawny, you know who we picked up....PEDRO, from Napoleon Dynamite." That's right, LoveSac fan Effren Ramirez and his girl jumped on board and we rolled to his party. ACTOR EFFREN RAMIREZ ("PEDRO").
VOTE FOR PEDRO.
So the weekend just went on and on, and the celebs both on the bus and in the party just couldn't get enough of the Sac...but then, who can? I did get at least a half-day up on the slopes with a good friend of mine, Joe Loomis (white camo pants), including his buddies Rob and Benny. Joe is a fellow entrepreneur who just made an exit out of his first big company -- congratulations. Gotta love the risk-takers. They also make the best boarding buddies, and playing in general. It's always a party with weirdos like us around. Up at the Canyons we were on the slopes with Cameron Diaz and crew. We even ran into guitarist, Slash, at the restaurant on top of the Gondola. In true rockstar form, he was rockin' a black leather jacket, jeans, converse, and of course the hair. Let's just say I don't think he was there to ski.
At night, the festivities went on. LoveSac continued to own Main Street Park City. I don't think there was a soul at Sundance that didn't know LoveSac was there. But I am afraid we might have worn out our welcome, at least with the local authorities. Apparently we were breaking half-a-dozen laws, between our holding up traffic, stopping for pedestrians clamboring to get on in the middle of the street, calling thru the Federal (Police/Fire) P.A., and generally shaking the sidewalks with the alternator-melting sound system on the Bus. (From the outside it sounds as if the bus is going to fall apart). The Park City Chief of Police finally pulled us over and was fully ready to impound it (after our third warning), until Joe saved the day. We even got a bit of it on tape. Bad boys, bad boys, whatchya gonna do....
COPS STOP THE LOVE BUS.
We dodged that bullet with a little smooth talking, having agreed to NOT STOP anymore on Main Street. No holding up traffic, when 100 yards up the road, SkullCandy founder, Rick Alden (maker of THE sickest head-phones in the world) jumps in front of the bus like a bug on the windshield demanding a ride. We somehow pulled he and his wife on-board in time to avoid incarceration, and drove them back down to their parking spot at the High School, partying all the way. You see, Park City is a town of about 15,000 people, normally, and expands to, say, 500,000 for the week of Sundance. Parking is a disaster....even worse for a 40' Bus. Rick is a good friend and fellow Utah entrepreneur. It's good to see SkullCandy blowing up like it has. It seems like only months ago we were experimenting slinging SkullCandy headphones out of our Salt Lake City stores just to help a brotha out. Now he has the national distribution of Best Buy, Target, and nearly everywhere else. Rock on SkullCandy. Their the real deal.
(SKULLCANDY CEO RICK ALDEN AND ME, center, his wife and Joe Loomis on the ends).
All in all it was a very successful Sundance Film Festival for LoveSac. A special thanks goes out to Island/Def Jam Records for having us, House of Hype out of LA for promoting the party, and especially to Charlie, Jordan, Alex, Chris, Kat, Sky, Tiffany, Jesse, my own wife, Tiffany, Joe, Rob, Benny, and all of the Sac'rs who worked their butt off (but especially Charlie) for pulling it off. NOT an easy task for a little brand like LoveSac to hang with (and out-do) the big-boys at Sundance. Now, the Bus rolls to the Winter X-Games in Aspen Colorodo thru Sunday, and then on to the Superbowl!! Keep an eye out. Find the bus and tell the Driver to "Show me your Sac," and he'll show you some love (in a good way--in the form of some LoveSac swag)....what were you thinking?
I'll leave you with some more pics and vids from the festivities, below.
From Park City, Utah...
-- Shawny D.
EFFREN RAMIREZ & SHAWNY D. ON THE BUS. PEDRO & THE LS CREW, PARK CITY
MORE PARTYING ON THE BUS....BUT CHECK OUT THESE ONLOOKERS, GAWKING AT THE LOVESAC BUS THRU THE WIND SHIELD. THIS IS SUNDANCE, 2009, PARK CITY, UTAH...
I received a number of emails from various customers in 2008 showing me how they've Sac'd out their own lives. Here are a few of my favorites...
This kid (right) was just hangin' out in our Natick (Boston) LoveSacStore when he felt the power of the Sac for the first time. So strong it made the hair on the back of his neck (and his head) stand up. oooooooooh.
Then you have international celebrity DJ (with a face for radio) Marcus Schossow, showing up in the Dallas Galleria LoveSac Store for his first Sac experience (below)....
Sherri Later, of Columbus Ohio writes (down/right): I absolutely love our sactional!!! It's comfortable, looks really nice and best of all it cleans up easily. This is the best couch (if you can even call it that) that I have ever owned, it is so low maintenance. I have dogs and it is so nice to be able to take the covers off and just wash them when they get dirty or have hair all over them. I also love all the different options there are for arranging it, they are endless. We have used it in so many different ways and even as a bed on more than one occasion. Thank you LoveSac for making such an exceptional product we absolutely love it!" Sherri Perry
Alejandro, from Texas, sent me pics of some girl jumping from Sac to Sac at his place (his wife!?)...
And last, but certainly not least, one of our seeimingly biggest fans, straight out of England, by way of Sherman Oaks, California, Mr. James Crofton, who writes:
So I am overwhelmingly happy with my love sac experience.
Back in 2005 I moved from London temporarily to Los Angeles on work assignment. I had previously agreed to rent a room from my good friend and SFV local Jon. Unfortunately the major renovation works due to be complete earlier in the year on his house were running a little behind schedule. Since I was assured the inconvenience would be kept to a minimum i agreed to put up with the noise and moved my stuff in.
I was provided with a clean bedroom. but it soon became clear that the room was simply to close to workers and I could not sleep near all the fumes and dust coming from the next room.
I moved in to the living room. This room became a multi use environment including junk storage, (see photo below), Living room and bedroom among other things. How ever it was all made so comfortable and manageable by a very versatile piece of furniture I acquired the week earlier.
NO MODELS. NO TRICK PHOTOGRAPHY. JUST REAL PEOPLE ROCKIN' IN LOVESAC STYLE. WHO KNOWS WHAT 2009 MAY BRING!?
My 2008 coast to coast drive in the LoveSac Bus ends in sunny California, at the California LoveSac Stores. I've met every Sac'r in the country, and, gotta say, I love em all. That really is my favorite part of operation Front Line. It's not the training; it most certainly isn't the remodeling and merchandising; it's got to be the Sac'rs--those that work for us and those who are just fans of the Sac. CHECK OUT SOME OF THESE WACK JOBS, from my visits to LoveSac Tyler Galleria in Riverside CA and Northridge CA...
No store visit without someone ridin' a Sac full speed down the main hallway of the mall. (wait till you see the video, coming soon to the in-store DVD) After 3 grueling days and a nearly full remodel of the LoveSac Tyler Galleria Store, the Manager, James, wasn't the only loopy one. But thanks to a hard working staff, the store turned out great, and we had some crazy Mexican Food getting adventures that last night on the LoveSac Bus.
Besides the typical store visit I had a little visitor of my own. Bud and Keenan, from Home Break Surfboards, brought me my long awaited custom LoveSac surfboard. A "fish," just as requested, facilitated by their new partner (and my partner of 7 years), Mr. Jon Coltharp--manager of the LoveSac factory since 2001. Check this bad boy out...
We'll come back to the surfboard later--I promise. First, we had some serious training to do with the Tyler Galleria Staff...
In search of the best Mexican Food of the Inland Empire, we headed up Magnolia, further into Riverside. We found the natty natty Mexican food, and some other wierdos along with it...
All in all, the Tyler Galleria Crew were definately keepin the vibe alive, and it was a laugh a minute to be with em. It's good to see that LoveSac is still alive and kickin' in California, even if it a shadow of what we once were....LoveSac is back in black and we are about to blow it up again. So on to the Northridge store--just above L.A., for my final Front Line visit.
The Northridge LoveSac Crew (right) were definately, once again, a unique crew of Sac'rs. I like it! They all pitched in as we tore their store up from the floor up, and in just a few short hours, it was like a new place. We replaced every light bulb, killed those life-sucking flourescents, moved the behemoth fixtures, and makd the place look like new. Then we busted out some wicked sales training on the LoveSac ice-queen (this woman just wanted nothing to do with the Sac), and we met a nice little LoveSac family too. Check out these two videos of Chris, Sue, and their cute daughters--who ultimately get their way...
With some lousy Pizza Hut Pizza on the Bus, and one final Guitar Hero throw-down in the parking lot of the Northridge mall, my Operation Front Line, 2008, was finished. Yes--that west-coast Pizza was making me miss home and the good old Colony Grill, in Stamford, Connecticut, with the bombest thinnest, spiciest, best pizza in the United States of America, and I knew it was time to be on my way. So THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU, Staffers, fans of the Sac, customers, to everyone who made my 2008 tour as wierd as it was...thank you so much. YOU make LoveSac what it is. YOU keep us weird, and we like it. YOU deserve a MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, HANUKKAH, KWANZA, or whatever it is you're into. So have one.
I, on the other hand, was not about to leave California without trying that surfboard. So I have have reached the end of the line. From Boston to So Cal, LoveSac is still spreadin' the Love coast to coast, and the vibe lives on into 2009. Signing off from Huntington Beach, California.....watch this....
src="https://lovesac.typepad.com/.a/6a00e5501c846a883301053687ee01970b-250wi"> Ride the Love. Happy Holidays.
My 2008 LoveSac Front Line store tour has brought me to Las Vegas, Nevada. Tiffany and Lucky (my wife and new baby) were able to come on this leg, thank goodness. I love it when they can come with. It make it all better. I have to say, sin city has some of the biggest LoveSac fans I've seen in the country. Check out all this great footage...
So finally, it is time to move on to the last leg of the tour! California, here I come. I can't wait to get out to the Tyler store and Northridge store. Best part: I am meeting Bud, the one-legged surfer, to get a hold of my LoveSac custom surf board. Cannot wait. Me and EZ hit the road...
On my travels to the Front Lines of LoveSac each winter I get the pleasure of meeting many loyal LoveSac customers who know and love our product. It really is a pretty cool feeling to meet people who have chosen to spend their hard-earned money on products I've invented who not only have the product, but who really "get" the product. That is to say, there is truly so much more to LoveSac than just what meets the eye. Just today, in fact at Fashion Place Mall, I was crawling around on the ground re-wiring their cash & wrap when I overheard a customer who was working on picking out a new Cover for her Sac.
It turns out that she has had her Sac for years and years. It was originally purchased to help her handicapped child get comfortable. We find that there are numerous maladies which the Sac can literally be theraputic for. Now, the woman finds herself sleeping in the SuperSac every single night for at least half of the night because her hips bother her so much...but in the warm durafoam cradle that the Sac provides, there is no pain. As she said, "it is more than just furniture," to her.
That said, there were two women who came in to LoveSac at Flatiron Crossing (Colorado) while I was there last week. Check out what they had to say about their LoveSac furniture....
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