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Philadelphia Daily News Michael Hinkelman column [Philadelphia Daily News :: ](Philadelphia Daily News (PA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sept. 12--ADINA LUO and Molly Liu, both 20, of University City, are Wharton School juniors who co-founded Black Box Denim, a custom jeans brand. Adina, a California native, does pitches, marketing, communications, branding and customer acquisition. Molly, who's from Ohio, designs, works with suppliers and tailors and keeps an eye on financials. The website is expected to go live in a month. I spoke with Adina. Q: How'd you come up with the idea? A: We met in our freshman year and wanted to do something in fashion. We started on custom handbags in early 2013, but when we went to manufacturers [in China] to see if it was feasible, it wasn't. But custom jeans were, and we pivoted. Q: Startup money? A: We were in the Wharton Business Plan Competition and won the $10,000 undergraduate award in spring semester 2013. We did a Kickstarter, raised more than $27,000 in a month and presold 200 pairs of jeans. Q: What's the biz do? A: We're B2C. You go online, pick your cut, wash and your measurements, then you get custom jeans in a black box. They're made in China, we get them back and ship them to you. Q: Describe the brand. A: High-end, but accessible, and have a tone that was a little bit sassy and a little bit chic. Q: Value proposition? A: They're custom-made per your measurements. Every pair is handmade from scratch. There's a real need for custom fit because there are fitting issues with traditional, mass-manufactured jeans that are designed to fit the largest person possible of any given size. Q: Your customers? A: They're 25 to 34 with disposable income, both men and women, about 70 percent female. Q: Your competitors? A: The main ones are makeyourownjeans.com. They have maximized SEO but don't deliver custom jeans because they're just looking to capture the customer once. There are higher-end jeans that aren't particularly executed well from a branding perspective, with a price point around $200, and established brands like Levi's [made-to-order] custom jeans but a price point around $400. Q: What do jeans cost? A: Right now, our price point is $150. And we have five shades of blue to choose from. Q: How big a biz is this? A: It's us and our team of suppliers, tailors and shippers in Guangzhou, which is the textile capital of the world. Q: Where do you see the biz headed in the next year? A: If we hit sales targets, the next thing is going out for a Series A round. That will depend on how many jeans we sell and the feedback we get. On Twitter: @MHinkelman Online: ph.ly/YourBusiness ___ (c)2014 the Philadelphia Daily News Visit the Philadelphia Daily News at www.philly.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |