I grew up in Waterloo mostly, although I lived in Egypt for four years between Grade 3 and Grade 7. I come from a family of engineers. I knew I wanted to work on things that excited me and that the way to start was to learn about how other people had built businesses.
After Ivey I worked for a fund that invested in music royalties—two years in Toronto and two years in New York. It was a dream job, a marriage of creativity, business and finance.
Along the way, my partners and I identified a gap in the market between high-end basics and the Hanes and H&M stuff. I enjoy quality, but I don’t want to pay that kind of money for it. We decided that we were going to perfect these items that people don’t really think about, but that touch their skin all day.
The best cotton comes from Egypt, of course. But recently the government cut all subsidies to independent farmers. The industry was on the brink of extinction. I spent two and a half months living on cotton farms in Egypt, building relationships with the farmers. We promised the farmers a fair price to continue producing cotton. We hired agricultural engineers as consultants and even established a scholarship fund to help kids from rural areas study at an agricultural university.
We cut out the middleman and developed great partners at every step of the process—from farm to yarn to weaving to sewing, all within a 200-kilometre radius. I speak to all the partners at least weekly, sometimes daily. We actually ship from our warehouse in Egypt to customers in North America in three business days!
The marketing started with family and friends, and social media. Then Kotn got picked up on a few media outlets. We have a really interesting story and a great product, so the word travelled pretty fast. We sell online and through a few select retailers.
It’s one thing to dream about doing your own thing, but a whole different thing to actually give up your job and do it. You have to keep yourself focused and calm and not think about all the things that can go wrong. Every problem that comes up is an opportunity to think of a new way to do something.
Photo: Nation Wong
Art Direction: Greg Salmela, Aegis
