Timestamp: | Message From: | ---- | Message: |
| 2007-11-14 22:10:01 |  | Johnny Cupcakes | | Hello everyone |
| 2007-11-14 22:10:07 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | pardon my 9 minute delay |
| 2007-11-14 22:10:20 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I was having the most intense skeeball tournement |
| 2007-11-14 22:11:35 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | if you read "The Story" on my website, it will explain 88% of your questions...esp about how it all got started |
| 2007-11-14 22:12:34 |  | Rodney | | Please begin to submit your questions :) |
| 2007-11-14 22:12:36 | | Weird i Tees | | What has been your best Marketing idea? |
| 2007-11-14 22:12:47 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | My biggest challenge? Hmm... finding a place to make custom tags was one of them. |
| 2007-11-14 22:13:22 | | babyslanguage | | hi johnny!! How did you get into distribution chains and networks with buyers? |
| 2007-11-14 22:13:25 | | grandandroyal | | Johnny, were do you get your tags made...... |
| 2007-11-14 22:14:11 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I used a place called Apeks apparel for my tags. They are based out of Scottsville Kentucky. |
| 2007-11-14 22:14:36 | | element88 | | Did you have quite a few people helping you out when you started? Or was it mainly you trying to do it all? |
| 2007-11-14 22:14:43 | | grandandroyal | | do they put the tags on for you if you send them your shirts....? |
| 2007-11-14 22:14:53 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Best marketing idea would have to be... setting up my store like a bakery and tricking a large percent of people. |
| 2007-11-14 22:15:13 | | JPD | | Asking this for my wife: A lot of shirt designers seem to get discouraged early on. Did you get discouraged and if so, what did you do to snap yourself out of it and persevere (I love that word)? |
| 2007-11-14 22:15:44 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | but nearly 90% of the people who walk into my store, thinking it's a bakery, they end up leaving with something. So it's fun to keep the shop sorta disguised. |
| 2007-11-14 22:16:44 | | orale tees | | how much or your sales are made just by word of mouth? |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:11 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I started this brand all on my own. I dont drink or do drugs... so when my firends are out getting wasted on the weekends, I'm saving my money and putting time into my crazy shirt ideas. I would just keep recycling my money back into my shirts... |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:37 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | No college education, no courses, no investors, no crazy loans... |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:41 | | grandandroyal | | so how did you go about finding the perfect custom tag maker |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:46 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Just being smart with y money and time. |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:54 | | jlootchy | | What would you say is the key to your success in this game? |
| 2007-11-14 22:17:55 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I don't really advertise either. |
| 2007-11-14 22:18:01 | | babyslanguage | | If you had 10K - how, what and where would you spend the money to help jumpstart a company. |
| 2007-11-14 22:18:02 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I've tried it once or twice. |
| 2007-11-14 22:19:08 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I found my tag person randomly, a friend of my neighbors. |
| 2007-11-14 22:19:50 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | You can go to the Magic Tradeshow in Vegas though. They have a whole section of different vendors, tag people, jeans people, etc etc... |
| 2007-11-14 22:19:54 | | jrotem | | do you manufacture your own shirts or do you use balnks; if the latter, may I ask whose you like? |
| 2007-11-14 22:20:01 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | You just need to buy a days pass or something. |
| 2007-11-14 22:20:59 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I did get discouraged a couple times. People would make fun of my shirts and they'd think I was an idiot for thinking customers would really buy my designs. |
| 2007-11-14 22:21:23 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Now all those people are walking into my store, buying underwear for their girlfriends. Hahaha... |
| 2007-11-14 22:21:52 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | But I snapped out of it, I just have fun with my shirts. It's a fun hobby for me, and less of a 'job' |
| 2007-11-14 22:22:04 | | jrotem | | Do you participate in tradeshows other than Magic (Pool, etc)? |
| 2007-11-14 22:22:16 | | seibei | | so, you showed at POOL back in the day, right? What would you recommend for someone who's planning on showing there for the first time? |
| 2007-11-14 22:22:38 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | key to success is to have fun and take chances. |
| 2007-11-14 22:22:47 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Remember, you have to spend money to make money. |
| 2007-11-14 22:23:49 | | Rodney | | Let's wait until Johnny says "next question" before we send the next question through :) |
| 2007-11-14 22:25:05 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | If I had 10k to start with... I would: Get a catchy website name/domain. Get a great website master. Get an online shop. Come out with 8-10 solid t-shirt designs in both mens and womens sizes. I would buy heaps of flyers and stickers to promote said webtiste. Jakprints.com is a good source for all that promo stuff. I would then go on a road trip to popular cities. I would give out shirts to bands and stores and magazines... I'd just have fun with it and watch it grow. Just remember, things don't happen over night. |
| 2007-11-14 22:26:30 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Most of my sales are made by word of mouth. Again, advertising is lame. You could use the money that you were going to put towards advertising, and put that money towards a better website/webstore, getting a catalog/look book made, etc etc... |
| 2007-11-14 22:27:53 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I did do a tradeshow once or twice. Pool Tradeshow in Vegas. It was awesome and all. The best part about it was networking with other clothing lines. Making new friends, asking tons of questions, getting inspired, and more. |
| 2007-11-14 22:29:10 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | The last day of the tradeshow, I saw a bunch of kids wearing the same sneakers as I had on. I use to collect sneakers.... And when I saw all these kids with the same kicks as me - I said to myself, "Mann, I hate when I see other people wearing the same clothes as I have on.". |
| 2007-11-14 22:29:38 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I then decided to rip up most of the store orders I got, and I decided to make my shirts limited edition and exclusively sold through my online shop. |
| 2007-11-14 22:31:38 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | As much as I wanted the world to see all these clothes I created, I thought it was more important to build a strong foundation. Johnny Cupcakes is my name, my brand - and I wanted it to last a long time. When you put your shirts all over the place, it becomes just another fad. Everyone then has it and then doesnt want it anymore. Yea, making money is cool and all... but you need to ask yourself if you want longevity, or if you want to make a quick buck and move onto something else. |
| 2007-11-14 22:31:59 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | That was the turning point of my brand, and I am very happy with my decision. |
| 2007-11-14 22:34:05 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | People are willing to pay a premium for something that nobody else has. And when you make something limited, a little thing goes off in the back of peoples heads. Some will buy 3 shirts. One to wear, one to save, and one for a friend. They know that they can never buy the design once it is sold out, so they freak out a little bit. I've had kids camp out in front of my store 30 hours before a t-shirt release. Kids drove from Canada, New York, Florida, Virginia.... just because they want something that nobody else has. |
| 2007-11-14 22:34:37 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I've managed to turn Johnny Cupcakes into a brand, a lifestyle, and collectible/wearible art. |
| 2007-11-14 22:34:55 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Yea, "It's just a stupid cupcake". Some may say... |
| 2007-11-14 22:35:32 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | But guys think its funny, girls think it's cute. It's random, different, and all the little details I put into my brand definitely pay off. |
| 2007-11-14 22:36:13 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | People remember, appreciate, and talk about that stuff. Hence the whole word of mouth spreading and further promoting the brand. |
| 2007-11-14 22:38:50 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I do use American Apparel blanks. Yes, I can get my own shirts custom made and cut corners to make more of a profit... But so many people are already familiar with American Apparel. AA advertises on the back of 75% of the magazines out there, that my customers read. There shirts are easy to get a hold of. I make a lot of limited edition stuff, so it's nice to grab different colored shirts here and there. |
| 2007-11-14 22:42:20 | | Rodney | | Quick room reminder: this is a moderated chat. So please type your questions in the box and they will be added to the queue |
| 2007-11-14 22:42:43 | | Rodney | | When Johnny says "next question", we'll add another question from the queue |
| 2007-11-14 22:42:56 | | Rodney | | Right now Johnny is covering the questions that were already posted (thanks for that) |
| 2007-11-14 22:44:06 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Another thing about building a brand... People love a story. They also love homegrown brands. I think the whole story behind Johnny Cupcakes, lends a major role in my cupcake cult following. I started a multi million dollar company after dropping out of school, and hustling shirts out of the back of my beat up 1989 Toyota Camry. I literally had to pretend to go to the bathroom at work, so I could sneak out to my car and meet random people who wanted these shirts. I now employ 19 close friends, my Mom! Which is the biggest/most rewarding accomplishment. She does all my taxes, trademarking, registering, book keeping, and more. She's the best. |
| 2007-11-14 22:44:59 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I turn down a couple dozen stores every week, because I want to keep my brand a bit more exclusive. I want my customers to know what they are buying, and to know the story behind it. It is very important to me. |
| 2007-11-14 22:45:44 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I also turn down investors all the time. They are like rats. They see you making money, and it's all they care about. They no nothing about the branding strategies and longevity. |
| 2007-11-14 22:45:48 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Next question... |
| 2007-11-14 22:45:52 | | PinkFreud | | hey johnny,,.you have talent, drive and luck...can you make your own luck??? |
| 2007-11-14 22:45:56 | | mothertongues | | Any chances you took that didn't work out, that we can learn from too? |
| 2007-11-14 22:46:16 | | mothertongues | | What was your worst idea so far? Any big mistakes we can learn from? |
| 2007-11-14 22:46:33 | | WallyJ_26 | | Do u prefer doing your own designs or having artists help you with the design's???? |
| 2007-11-14 22:46:38 | | Rodney | | The questions will come through in sets of 3 |
| 2007-11-14 22:46:51 | | Rodney | | After 3 questions have been posted, we'll give Johnny a chance to cover them :) |
| 2007-11-14 22:49:48 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | There is NO LUCK involved. I hate hate hate when people say that I was lucky. I took the initiative to make shirts, to drop out of school, to quit my job, quit my band, break up with my girlfriend, etc etc... I've spent many sleepless night coming up with ideas, drawings, branding strategies, etc.. I am not lucky at all. I've taken lots and lots of risks. The people that sit around and call other lucky, or saying "I could of done that" - are the ones who end up sitting on their narrow minded bum bums for most of their lives. |
| 2007-11-14 22:52:31 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | A lesson I've learned, is that you NEED to get a sample of your shirt printed, before you go into production. I've ordered hundreds and hundreds of shirts before, that have come back in the wrong color ink, wrong placement, wrong sized image. Yes, it dous cost a bit more to request a sample, but it is very much worth it in the end. |
| 2007-11-14 22:53:37 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Also, do not rush. You need to take time with everything you do. I reccomend coming up with a dozen designs, and picking out the best 6. Ask people their honest opinions. Take a few little surveys. |
| 2007-11-14 22:56:45 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | And if you use paypal, get rid of that! It makes your brand look ghetto. You need to get a legit online storefront. For the first 2 years of my brand being online, I used merchline.com - They order and print your shirts, they keep them in their warehouse, they take care of order fufillment, customer service, they accepts credit cards, checks, etc.. It is very professional looking, and safe. Your customers will see that and only buy more. Yes, they do charge a fee... usually 25% - 30%, but you can add a couple bucks to your shirts which should make up for it. You need to use your time wisely, and worrying about all that onlie store stuff yourself, will just eat away at your time and creativity. |
| 2007-11-14 22:57:09 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | merchdirect.com is a cool site to check out too, as far as online shops go. |
| 2007-11-14 22:57:30 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-14 22:57:38 | | OriginX | | Where do you see your business in five years? |
| 2007-11-14 22:57:55 | | KCINNV | | What do you think is the key to keepin people interested in and buying your shirts. esp since U don't do a lot of advertising (besides the appeal of your designs)? |
| 2007-11-14 22:58:09 | | Weird i Tees | | What is your favourite t-shirt? (Doesnt have to be your own brand) |
| 2007-11-14 23:01:28 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | In five years I see my products expanding into toys, sneakers, jewelry, lots of cut and sews. I will probably come out with a business/branding book. I also plan on writing a heap of childrens books. I'm not so sure about opening other locations. I can do it in a heartbeat, but it all goes back to exclusivity. People like what nobody else has. I've seen so many brands open up shops all over the place, then a year later the whole world is wearing those shirts and the value drops dramaticly. I'm perfectly content and happy with the way things are now... so we'll see what happens! I really would like to find a lovely wife, and have 2 or 3 kids. |
| 2007-11-14 23:03:56 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | People's interest is kept because they are intruiged, happy, and comfy with the brands story, backround, morals, and minor details that are put into everything. And again, they love having somehting that not many have. |
| 2007-11-14 23:08:45 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I also do special/absurd things here and there. For instance; Every October I release special, limited edition monster themed shirts that come packaged in actual cupcake mix boxes. The cupcake mix boxes have hidden monster trivia on them, the boxes and shirts are individually numbered, and they even have a scratch and sniff sticker on top of the boxes! Hundreds and hundreds of kids wait in line and a lot camp out for these gems. I hire a professional make up artist come to do us all up like monsters. I give out actual cupcakes that are all halloween themed with cummy worms inside, and I even go as far as renting out a real Hearse from a funeral home. Nobody else does things like this because it takes a lot of time, money, and it's just plain crazy. But to me, it's soo much fun! I love bringing out the kid in everyone. |
| 2007-11-14 23:09:57 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...Oh yeah, When you pull your shirt out of the special cupcake mix box, you have to dust sprinkles off of your bagged limited edition shirt. |
| 2007-11-14 23:10:43 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | My favorite shirt that I own, is this vintage Predator movie t-shirt from the 80's. It has Arnold on the front of the shirt. |
| 2007-11-14 23:10:53 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Next 3 questions.... |
| 2007-11-14 23:11:00 | | kneequa | | Have you ever created a design that you weren't fond of but your customers were? |
| 2007-11-14 23:11:01 | | Shuffy | | do you ever retire a design? and bring it back down the road as a collectible? |
| 2007-11-14 23:11:13 | | Rodney | | From Wally: Do you prefer doing your own designs or having artists help you with the designs? |
| 2007-11-14 23:11:50 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I have created designs that I wasnt fond of. But I just didn't print them. |
| 2007-11-14 23:11:59 | | WallyJ_26 | | what kinda of tshirts do u prefer>>>> as far as design on them |
| 2007-11-14 23:12:38 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I have retired and brought back a design, but with a different colorway so that the original collectors/customers still feel special that they have the original/older one. |
| 2007-11-14 23:16:24 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Creating designs, I like doing both. Since I'm trying to juggle heaps of things with my brand I usually do this process; I will go through my ideas, concepts, sketches/drawings - and scan/e-mail a chunk of them do different friends or artists who will then clean it all up on photoshop/illustrator. They will then send it back to me, I will make more adjustments at my office. From there, I pick out different pantone/ink colors and shirt colors. I create a 'tech pack' which clearly illustrates and lays out how and where everything should be printed. A sample shirt is requested, sent out, and either approved or declined. |
| 2007-11-14 23:19:58 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | A lot of tshirt brands try to print designs in the weirdest places. A lot of tshirt designers think the number of color/inks is what people are looking for. Or that having the location of the print be all crazy. It's not. Everything always goes back to basics. Most people want/buy/wear straight up shirts with a decent sized image on the front center. Yeah, it is cool to try new things sometimes... but don't get too caught up in it. |
| 2007-11-14 23:20:37 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I prefer American Apparel shirts to print on. |
| 2007-11-14 23:20:44 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...Next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-14 23:20:48 | | kneequa | | Do you have celebrity clientele? If so who? |
| 2007-11-14 23:20:54 | | Weird i Tees | | In your opinion what are the keys to success in the early stages of starting a clothing line? |
| 2007-11-14 23:21:00 | | sunnydayz | | Have you ever thought of adding other baked goods to your designs to expand the idea? |
| 2007-11-14 23:23:07 | | Rodney | | A transcript of the chat will be available for later consumption :) |
| 2007-11-14 23:23:21 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Celebrity clientele; Kimoralee Simmons (sp*), Andre 3000, Gym Class Heroes, Jodie Sweetin, John Stamos, Mike Shinoda from Linkin Park, and a bunch others that I cannot remember at the moment. |
| 2007-11-14 23:23:41 | | Rodney | | We'll keep pulling questions from the queue for as long as Johnny's available :) |
| 2007-11-14 23:23:52 | | Bob-O | | Hey Johnny! Thank you for your time & all the great insight. Cheers! |
| 2007-11-14 23:25:28 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | In my opinion, the keys to success in the early age of a tshirt company, is; An easy to remember, catchy website. A simple, safe, professional looking online shop. Being able to put 110% into everything. Taking chances. Recycling your profits back into your company. And making sure you are having fun with everything. |
| 2007-11-14 23:26:35 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I have thought of adding other baked goods to my designs to expand the line. We'll see what happens though. So far I have years and years worth of Johnny Cupcakes designs already thought of, sketched up, and ready to go. |
| 2007-11-14 23:28:31 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I am available to chat for quite a while. Yes, I can get a goodnight sleep, however - I love teaching other people from what I've learned. It makes me very happy knowing that I took a few hours out of my day to change the thought process, business savvy and lives of other people. |
| 2007-11-14 23:28:50 | | Rodney | | It's much appreciated :) |
| 2007-11-14 23:29:06 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | And I wish that someone took time out of thier day, to teach me pointers and tips - when I was first starting out. |
| 2007-11-14 23:29:14 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...Next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-14 23:29:19 | | mrdavid | | how much money did you start with |
| 2007-11-14 23:29:36 | | BSApparel | | What sort of business skills did you find that you needed to aquire in order to expand your business over the years, and how did you aquire them? |
| 2007-11-14 23:30:08 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I started with my $150. paychecks from the record shop I worked at. It was a money recycling snowball after I kept making my shirts. |
| 2007-11-14 23:30:22 | | Rodney | | Any suggestions for starting a t-shirt line on a limited budget? |
| 2007-11-14 23:31:43 | | imadork | | Do you do only screen printing? or what all types of printing do you do? |
| 2007-11-14 23:31:50 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Business skills that I found I needed, was; Book keeping, learning how to do taxes, trademarking, health insurance, and all that other headachey stuff. My solution; Hiring my Mom full time to do all that. |
| 2007-11-14 23:35:23 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Suggestions on starting a t-shirt line on a limited budget; Create a myspace page for free. Get a catchy, easy to remember website/domain name. Order stickers, pins, and flyers to pass out for free. Take pre-orders for your shirt designs. Then eventually get a webstore from a comapny like merchline.com or merchdirect.com |
| 2007-11-14 23:36:44 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I mostly do screen printing. Some water based ink, foil, etc.. But again, it always goes back to simplicity. Basic screen printing seems to be the most effective way. |
| 2007-11-14 23:37:01 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ....Next 3 questions.... |
| 2007-11-14 23:37:08 | | Comin'OutSwingin | | As much as you can, can you explain your business operation in more detail? Particularly, number of employees, their job functions, etc. I know you do a lot of things yourself, but what have you found that you needed to hire other people to do? (Besides your Mom doing the headachey stuff)? |
| 2007-11-14 23:37:08 | | jrotem | | What is your opinion of the print-on-demand wave? Do you think a viable brand can be launched that way? |
| 2007-11-14 23:38:05 | | Shuffy | | would you recommend trademarking/copyrighting every design you produce |
| 2007-11-14 23:38:32 | | Rodney | | The first thing on your JohnnyCupcakes.com site is a splash page, then it goes to your blog. Do you feel this hurts your ecommerce usability at all, or do you think it helps with your overall branding goal? |
| 2007-11-14 23:39:50 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Print on demand seems like a safe way to go about some things, especially starting out. I think a brand can be launched that way. Threadless has that feature where you can put down your email address if you want to be notified when a certain shirt is released. You just need to do some research or the age olde trial and error, before starting a brand that way. |
| 2007-11-14 23:43:59 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Besides my hiring my Mom to do all that headachy trademarking, book keeping, taxes, & billing stuff - I've found that I needed to hire other people to do; Customer service, phone orders, e-mails, printing out and filling online orders, inventory, ordering and re-ordering new and existing designs, production management(making sure everything is printed correctly), and someone to tie up all the loose ends. |
| 2007-11-14 23:45:15 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | To an extent, I would reccomending trademarking most of your designs before you produce them. It all depends on if you're just starting out or not, where you're selling them, etc.. |
| 2007-11-14 23:51:51 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I purposely had my website go straight to my Blog. Some may think it's not a smart move and that I should stay focussed on directing people to my ecommerce store. I would have to disagree with that(well, at least fo my brand). People love reading about my day to day life. My customers love it, and all the new visitors love it too. It's different, refreshing, shows that I'm not some business robot that needs to be oiled. It makes people feel as if they know a bit more about Johnny Cupcakes. People now check my website on a daily basis just to see whats going on in my life. It's really building a wholesome, comfy, fun atmosphere and fits perfectly with my brand. |
| 2007-11-14 23:53:59 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | If you notice, my splash/intro page to my website - changes everytime it is refreshed. Not many know that, and when they visit more than once & see new images up there - they think that I am updating the website more than I really am. And the people who do know about it, will sit there and keep hitting refresh - which essentially gives more hits to my website. |
| 2007-11-14 23:54:33 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...Next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-14 23:54:42 | | Shuffy | | on the day , that you realized that you were THE BOSS/business owner and had to start hiring employee . . in what way do you show your employees that you really appreciate them and their team work . . |
| 2007-11-14 23:54:43 | | hjsmyth | | Do you feel that customers have a threshold on pricing. |
| 2007-11-14 23:56:04 | | Rodney | | What do you think gave you the "drive" to go from "crazy t-shirt idea involving cupcakes" to actually putting it into action? What's that "thing" that makes you "move"? Is that something you think people can "learn"? |
| 2007-11-14 23:56:56 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | To show my employees that I appreciate their hard teamwork, I; Pay them well, offer health insurance and benefits, take everyone out to the movies or dinner, I give special bonuses here and there, I make everyone feel as if they are part of a family(which they pretty much are!). |
| 2007-11-15 00:00:02 | | Johnny Cupcakes | ------- | I feel as if my pricing is pretty good. You need to take into the account all your time, efforts, ideas, details, shipping, and more. Also, you need to set your price a bit high. Some may think it's silly, but it's true. Consumers will almost rather pay $40 for a tshirt, than $20. They feel like they're getting something special for the higher price, they know not everyone will be wearing the more pricier shirt, and it makes your brand more sought after & valuable. |
| 2007-11-15 00:01:13 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I've been doing this succesfully for about 7 years now, and I have a good handle/knowledge/feeling on the whole pricing aspect. |
| 2007-11-15 00:05:06 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | The thing that gave me the 'drive' - is seeing and knowing that people get excited about my concepts and creations. It is an honor to know that someone is spending their hard earned money on your product, and that it's making them happy! I've seen over 40 different people with actual Johnny Cupcakes tattoos on their bodies. Knowing that I am employing all my friends and family, happily - is a great feeling. Also, I get e-mails every day from people all over the world that get inspired and motivated by my story. Knowing that I'm changing the lives of other people, in big and little ways, is very motivating & rewarding to myself. |
| 2007-11-15 00:07:15 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ....Next 3 questions.... |
| 2007-11-15 00:07:43 | | paulo | | What printing style did you originally start with, and which one is your most popular? |
| 2007-11-15 00:08:32 | | jrotem | | You are in NY and/or Boston, yes? Do you think location greatly affects success? or does e-commerce make that a non-issue? |
| 2007-11-15 00:08:56 | | MindTrix | | Johnny, do you plan on doing any environmentally conscious clothing in the future? i.e. organic cotton or pvc free plastisol and water based inks etc? |
| 2007-11-15 00:10:32 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I'm not sure how many designs I release a year? 50-80? ish? |
| 2007-11-15 00:10:55 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I originally started with silk screening, and that is the most popular still. |
| 2007-11-15 00:12:21 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I do plan on doing some environmentally consious free clothing in the future. It's not what my brand will be based around - but I will probably introduce a couple special shirts. I do plan on coming out with a global warming shirt with a melting cupcake on it. Proceeds will go to a global warming charity. |
| 2007-11-15 00:15:15 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I am in Boston. Locaton is VERY important. You need to spend money to make money, and being on the most expensive street, definitely pays off. Ecommerce is equal or better than the shop. And both the online store and the actual store, compliment eachother with sales and growth. The internet is a crazy thing. And amazing thing. It's unbelievable that the internet was invented in our lifetime. Sorry...I just still cannot get over how useful the internet is. |
| 2007-11-15 00:15:36 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-15 00:15:42 | | WallyJ_26 | | planing to do any other things....real bakerys , resturants etc........ |
| 2007-11-15 00:15:57 | | milestogo | | when and if you ever did an initial line sheet, for pool, etc, what did you set your prices at? hello by the way |
| 2007-11-15 00:16:21 | | sunnydayz | | Johnny What things in life have you been able to do that you would not have without your success? |
| 2007-11-15 00:16:38 | | hiGH | | How many tshirts are you moving per month? |
| 2007-11-15 00:17:03 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I am not planning on opening any restaraunts or bakerys at the moment. I am very happy, comfy, and content with life right now. I do plan on having kids once I find that special lady. And that will be a new job on its own! |
| 2007-11-15 00:18:46 | | Rodney | | 2 hours so far and still rollin' folks :) The chat will be saved for later consumption. Keep them coming! |
| 2007-11-15 00:19:54 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | When I did the tradeshow, I set my line sheet/wholesale prices pretty cheap. I then met and networked with my neighboring clothing lines at the tradeshow, and found out that my prices were way to low and I should raise them, so I did. I typically made my wholesale prices, half of my own retail prices. If I sold a shirt for $40 online, I would sell it $20 at wholesale. |
| 2007-11-15 00:23:00 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | The things in life that I could not of done without my success, are; Employ my family and friends, buy a house, buy some vehicles, purchase and colletct vintage arcade machines, travel, eat real food and not fast food, dress nicely, send my parents off on nice vations, give awesome gifts to my firends on Christmas, and lots more. I am still the same person. And I still don't drink, party, or do drugs - so I'm saving heaps of money to raise a family with...some day in the future. |
This is where we had technical difficulties :) The chat server went down for maintenance for a few minutes. |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:39 | | hiGH | | wow.. what happened? |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:41 | | BSApparel | | ahh! |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:48 | | grandandroyal | | cupcaker bounced |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:51 | | sunnydayz | | hey what happened to the chat room |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:55 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | back! |
| 2007-11-15 00:27:59 | | BSApparel | | phew! |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:03 | | hiGH | | woo.. that was harsh! |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:05 | | Comin'OutSwingin | | that was fun! |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:07 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | lets wait a couple minutes for people to come back in |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:08 | | sunnydayz | | now I lost the answer to my last question hehe |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:12 | | hiGH | | thank you for taking the time johnny |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:27 | | BSApparel | | yeah really, this has been amazing so far, thank you so much |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:28 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | what was your last question again sundayz? |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:34 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | anytime |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:36 | | MindTrix | | It will still be archived right? |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:46 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I'm having fun and will stay up as long as it takes...or at least try to |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:49 | | WallyJ_26 | | what do u drive now Johnny???? |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:53 | | hiGH | | correct mind |
| 2007-11-15 00:28:59 | | MindTrix | | cool thanks |
And we're back to the action... |
| 2007-11-15 00:33:04 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ....next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-15 00:33:29 | | MindTrix | | Hey Johnny, it is Zach from MindTrix, My question is do you have other brands in your B&M store(s) or do you ever plan to in the future? |
| 2007-11-15 00:33:36 | | Rodney | | Unfortuntely, the questions that were in the chat queue were deleted when it went down. |
| 2007-11-15 00:33:51 | | Rodney | | So guys, please resend any questions you may have |
| 2007-11-15 00:34:18 | | Rodney | | I have a few of them saved |
| 2007-11-15 00:34:35 | | Rodney | | From Bob-O: what, if anything would you do differently now. Maybe something that has streamlined your processes? |
| 2007-11-15 00:35:03 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Nope, I dont plan on carrying other brands in my shops. |
| 2007-11-15 00:35:49 | | sharps | | do feel it important to include your logo in all your designs? do you do this so that you are recognized or is it the brand loyalty you have created that is really selling them |
| 2007-11-15 00:37:35 | | mrdavid | | johnny what is the biggest mastake you made |
| 2007-11-15 00:38:07 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | I have mixed feeling about having my logo on or not on all of my designs. I try to mix it up, and I feel as if my brand is easily recognizable that I can go without the logo. But most people want the logo on everything. They want to purchase things with the logo on it, so I do try to include it on most items...even if it's just a tiny tag with my logo on it. |
| 2007-11-15 00:39:10 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | The biggest mistake I made, was considering wasting years of my life at college. Luckily I decided to drop out after only a few weeks. |
| 2007-11-15 00:39:43 | | Rodney | | That last message was for the moderators :) Members, feel free to keep the questions flowing |
| 2007-11-15 00:40:56 | | BSApparel | | You obviously spent endless hours creating a brand, or image, for your company. How important do you think it is for a t-shirt company to produce products that all fit into a specific "theme", rather than a more broad line of products who's theme may not be as specific? Is branding extremely important? |
| 2007-11-15 00:43:15 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | Branding is important to me, because my name and comapny is based around a theme. Although, it is not necissary at all. Threadless is a very succesful example. They have piles and piles of random shirts, which sell out quickly! Most t-shirt lines are not brands or focussed around a certain theme. |
| 2007-11-15 00:43:53 | | Johnny Cupcakes | | ...next 3 questions... |
| 2007-11-15 00:44:13 | | triplej | | Hey Johnny. Love your stuff!...Will you ever do your own screen printing in-house. If so, what's your plan...if not...why? |
| 2007-11-15 00:44:40 | | AdriaticBlue | | Thank you for the opportunity to chat with you and learn more about the man behind the company. I am very tickled by the whole bakery display case with your shirts at the store...that is very unique and admire that you like bringing out the kid in everyone! I am proud of you and wish you continued success. -->> Question: What is one thing you suggest someone do, beginning tomorrow, to go from dreaming about a business to making a powerful first step to starting the business?<<-- |
| 2007-11-15 00:45:59 | | milestogo | | any early monetary mistakes that you wish you could take bakc? -greg/az |
| 2007-11-15 00:46:12 | | Johnny Cupcakes |
