Growing up and wondering why people wore certain brands, Shaun Neff started his own clothing company just before going to college. He became successful because he knew how to place his product in the right place at the right time. During his presentation at ASC Action Sports + Culture Conference powered by Group Y, he gives us the story how he started Neff and some sound advice on how to run a business. Here are a few things he points out:

Authenticity is Key

From the beginning of building his company, he has stayed true to the same message. Remaining authentic to the brand and audience is key for success. He has only worked with athletes and musicians that fit with the brand and didn’t drive the business to places that he didn’t believe in. He was able to work with these icons of the industry because he built relationships with them. Essentially, these athletes and musicians had become one of the “homies”.

Find Your Niche

Being surrounded by Pro Snowboarders during college, Shaun knew he had the opportunity to get his products worn by these people. The trouble he faced was all the athletes had contracts with existing clothing brands and couldn’t endorse others. Shaun did his homework, read contracts and found out he could insert his brand on the athletes by being a ‘headwear’ company instead of a clothing company. This is how he found his niche.

Watch Trends

In mid 2000’s, Shaun knew how big electronic music was in Europe and he knew it was going to make its way to the US. He knew who the stars were and signed contracts between Neff and these artists. When electronic music boomed in the US, Neff was already part of the electronic culture, authentically.

Co-written by Andrew Mucci

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Founded in 2006, Group Y is the original and leading collective of professionals focused on youth marketing, action sports, entertainment and other progressive and expressive cultures. Our mission is to intersect influencers across industries and ignite ideas that inspire the current and next generation leaders and decision makers. Leveraging events, outreach, content and consultation, Group Y takes the work out of networking and strengthens the areas where industries overlap.

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