FUBU

“As we started to put the brand out there, we did about thirty million dollars in three months.”

“It worked it out, and you know, we would write 300,000 dollars in orders, and that's when I would realize how much capital I really needed.”

“Right, so what we did was we just found a place that made four X, five X, six X shirts, and we made 20 of those shirts, because We made twain them because we knew that if we gave these guys these shirts, these guys were normally bodyguards.”

“Jordache was our first license and they came aboard and they started doing ladies clothes. So now we're doing a hundred, say, a hundred and fifty million in men's. They're doing a hundred million alone in ladies.”

“And the deal with us was that they would finance the manufacture and manufacturing and distribution of our product, but we had to sell five million dollars worth of clothes in three years to keep the deal.”

“You know, and a hot brand lasts five or maybe six years, maybe seven years.”

“Like many businesses, I leveraged my credit cards you know, up until I think my partners and I, all of us leveraged our credit cards up to pay about 50,000 dollars with a very high interest rate, which is not the smartest thing to do.”

“I made 80 of them. It took me probably about three hours. I made 80 of them, and I hit that street corner, and I sold all of them.”

“I went to all the banks I could, and I got turned down by 27 of them.”

“So she goes out and she gets a 100,000 dollar loan on our house.”

“And to say that, I also have to say that through 89 and 92, I closed the business three times because I ran out of money.”

“So I went to all the banks I could, and I got turned down by 27 of them.”

“And the deal with us was that they would finance the manufacture and manufacturing and distribution of our product, but we had to sell five million dollars worth of clothes in three years to keep the deal.”

“I think we filled about 75,000 dollars worth of those orders until I turned around and I only had 500 dollars left in the bank, and I was about four months late on the mortgage.”

“And then one day I asked her to borrow 800 dollars. No, I asked her to borrow 500 dollars for this idea I had called FUBU. And she said no.”

“So I made 80 of them. It took me probably about three hours. I made 80 of them, and I hit that street corner, and I sold all of them.”

“But I had known my customers so well because of all those things that I was doing that as we started to put the brand out there, we did about thirty million dollars in three months.”

“So of course, you know, like many businesses, I leveraged my credit cards you know, up until I think my partners and I, all of us leveraged our credit cards up to about 50,000 dollars with a very high interest rate, which is not the smartest thing to do.”

“It's a brand that, to date, has sold over six billion dollars in apparel.”

“Through 89 and 92, I closed the business three times because I ran out of money.”

“So it worked it out, and you know, we would write 300,000 dollars in orders, and that's when I would realize how much capital I really needed.”

“What we did was we reduced Most of the distribution of it. I mean, we still obviously kept our categories, but we would really narrow down to just a couple of stores just to test the product and see how it's going. Cause we felt that it just needed to cool dow…”

“We'd have to stop the retailers. We'd have to not allow them to purchase because some of the kids would look at some of these big retailers and say, well, now FUBU's not cool anymore because it's in these big retailers.”

“Since those early days selling FUBU shirts on street corners in Queens, he's grown his net worth to an estimated three hundred million dollars.”

“It goes through cycles, you know, and a hot brand lasts five or maybe six years. Maybe seven years.”

“So she goes out and she gets a 100,000 dollar loan on our house.”

“A large retailer did ask me to take the picture of myself and my three other partners off the hang tag, cause it said we look like a gang.”

“So, I went to all the banks I could, and I got turned down by 27 of them.”