Welcome to Live Bearded, a brand rooted in the powerful ethos of brotherhood and a mission to help beardsmen look, feel, and be their best. Founded in 2016 by best friends Spencer and Anthony, Live Bearded goes beyond selling grooming products; it fosters a community where every customer and employee is treated like a brother. With policies centered around extraordinary customer experiences, including a lifetime warranty and a 365-day money-back guarantee, the brand embodies values of integrity, action, and gratitude. At its core, Live Bearded is a testament to personal growth, freedom, and the relentless pursuit of betterment, inspiring its community to embrace individuality and be their best selves in all walks of life.
Anthony Mink: In 2011, I dove into the online world full-time, driven by a dream to live on my own terms. My journey began in 2009, with the goal of escaping the routine of regular jobs. I was searching for something more, something that would give me control over my time and the freedom to travel and live as I pleased. So, I ventured into the realm of digital marketing, a path less traveled back then. I consumed every piece of information I could get my hands on, from social media courses to paid media strategies, all in pursuit of cracking the code to making money online.
Between 2009 and 2011, I was all-in, teaching myself the ins and outs of the Internet business world. I remember experimenting with Facebook ads and affiliate marketing, trying to connect the dots. This exploration finally paid off, allowing me to quit my job and sell everything I owned for a new life in Costa Rica. Those early years were a mix of adventures and relentless learning. I was living out of Airbnb, without a fixed home, but the freedom was exhilarating. That period was crucial; it helped me develop the skills I needed in traffic generation and online marketing. By 2015, after selling a few of my websites and pocketing about $545,000, I was ready to take a serious plunge into e-commerce. That's when the concept of Live Bearded began to take shape. My friend Spencer, a beard enthusiast, sparked the idea. We realized there was a gap in the market for beard products, and given my knack for selling to men, it felt like the right move. We started small, testing the waters with a simple product - wooden beard combs. The response was overwhelming, selling 500 combs in just a day and a half. From there, we expanded, building a community, gathering feedback, and eventually developing our line of beard care products. It was the start of something big, something that resonated with men everywhere.
Anthony Mink: After we sold the first 500 beard combs back in March 2016, Spencer and I realized we had tapped into something special. Spencer, coming from a real estate background with no experience in online marketing, was eager to learn and contribute. We knew if we were to make our mark in this crowded space, we had to stand out. We analyzed our competitors, Beard Brand and the Dollar Beard Club, each catering to different segments of the market. This analysis brought us clarity about what we wanted Live Bearded to represent.
Our friendship of ten years became the cornerstone of our brand philosophy. We asked ourselves, what if we treated every customer like a friend, like a brother? This idea shaped everything from our marketing to our customer service. We introduced a 365-day return policy, unheard of for products like ours, all to make the shopping experience as friendly and hassle-free as possible. Our aim was simple: make every customer feel like they're buying from a friend. This ethos wasn't just a strategy; it was genuine. We were building a community, not just a customer base. For the first few years, we hosted weekly Facebook Live sessions, engaging with our community, and fostering a sense of brotherhood. It was this authentic approach to business and community building that set Live Bearded apart right from the start.
Anthony Mink: When I started with affiliate marketing, Facebook was a whole different game. I had pages with a 100% reach, and clicks were dirt cheap. It was wild — I could drive traffic like crazy, and at one point, I had built up fan pages with a total of 10 million fans across different niches. But then Facebook changed the game. They tweaked their algorithm, and my reach nosedived from 100% to just 10%. That hit me hard. My income, which was comfortably in the six figures, plummeted. It was a wake-up call, really, about the dangers of relying too heavily on a single platform.
This lesson was a game changer for me and shaped my approach at Live Bearded. We couldn’t just rely on one traffic source. When iOS updates started affecting ad performance, I was prepared. We diversified our strategy, building a brand and a community that loved us, not just a customer base. About 50% of our business now has repeat customers. We weren't just surviving on Facebook's whims. We had email, SMS, and push notifications. We looked at our marketing holistically, balancing our budget across the board and keeping ad spending around 25% of our sales. This approach, not putting all our eggs in one basket, is what helped us navigate the changing digital landscape.
Anthony Mink: As a bootstrapped D2C owner, I can tell you that cash flow is always the biggest battle. We're entirely self-funded, so every dollar we make goes right back into the business. For the first 18 months, Spencer and I didn't draw a salary. We started small, paying ourselves just enough to get by, gradually increasing it over the years. But the focus was always on reinvesting in the business — more inventory, more growth.
Honestly, managing cash flow felt like a constant juggling act. It's like, cash is the oxygen for your business, right? And in the beginning, we had to pay for everything upfront — no terms, just straight up 50% before and 50% on delivery. It took us years to build relationships with our manufacturers and get to a place where we had better payment terms. I remember thinking, "Why are we always strapped for cash?" It took me a while to realize that it's a common struggle for anyone who's bootstrapping their business. There were many months where I had to choose between paying myself or buying inventory, paying salaries. It was all about finding that balance between fueling the business and keeping my own life afloat.
Anthony Mink: Motivation, man, it's a funny thing. It evolves. In the beginning, for me, it was all about the money. I wanted to be successful, to make a lot of cash. But you reach a point where money just isn't enough. That's when the shift happens. Now, I've got a team of 18 incredible people. They're not just employees; they're passionate about this company. They see their future here. That changes your perspective. Now, my role is more about stewardship and leadership. It's about growing the company, not just for my sake but for theirs too. They have careers to develop and lives to build. My job is to make sure Live Bearded is a place where they can do just that.
But it's more than just being a boss or a leader. It's about having a vision. As an entrepreneur, and as a CEO, you've got to paint a picture of the future for your team, something compelling that they want to be part of. For me now, it's about realizing my own potential. Sure, money was the initial drive, but now? Now it's about seeing how good I can be, the impact we can make, the kind of company we can build. Every day, I wake up with this 'day one' mentality. It's about making the most of every single day, never settling, always striving to be better. This mindset has been shaped by my life, by the loss of my brother and my father. These experiences they're a constant reminder to make the most out of every day, to commit fully to this journey of entrepreneurship, and to show up every day.
Anthony Mink: 2023 has been a challenging year, no doubt about it. From a revenue standpoint, we're up 20% year over year, which is great, but it's not the whole picture. We made some significant investments in our team and growth, believing they were the right moves. But the truth is, while our revenue increased, our profit actually decreased by about 15%. This is a tricky situation in business. When your sales grow faster than your profits, you risk running into sustainability issues. We've had to navigate these cash flow challenges throughout the year.
The thing is, there was a moment earlier this year when we felt like we had everything figured out. Our inventory was in a good place, we had a healthy amount of cash, and business was booming. But then, everything changed in June. Suddenly, we found ourselves struggling, and we ended up losing $108,000 over the summer. It was a tough pill to swallow, especially since we were investing in growth. But here's the thing – this year has been a learning curve. We've built a strong team, and I've taken a unique approach by sharing our Profit and Loss statements with everyone each month. This transparency has helped create what I call a 'profit culture.' Everyone understands their part in the company's financial health. When we lost money, it was hard, especially for those who might not see the big financial picture. But we faced it head-on. I decided we should celebrate this loss, learn from it, and grow stronger. And that's what we did. Now, we're looking forward to 2024 with a united team, better chemistry than ever, and a shared excitement for overcoming tough times and continuing our growth.
Anthony Mink: Starting a D2C business? Brace yourself, it's going to be tougher and take longer than you think. If your goal is to make quick money, D2C isn't the way to go. In today's world, pretty much everything is commoditized to some degree. You might have a unique product or technology, but generally, the market is saturated. The key to standing out is building a brand and a community. For Live Bearded, it took us five years to really understand our potential and get our product development cycle right. It's a lengthy process, and with the loss of easily accessible data, it's even more challenging. You've got to provide real value to your customers, something that'll bring them back.
When I first jumped into D2C, I was aiming for quick success, and quick money. But that mindset led to some of my biggest mistakes. Short-term gains often lead to long-term pains. It's all about building a brand and a community – these are what give you the resilience to withstand market changes and data losses. You need a long-term vision.
And let me talk about positioning – it's crucial in marketing. For instance, we had this sample pack, initially marketed just as a $10 deal. It sold well initially, but then it started to lose its appeal. We needed a new angle. So, we shifted our approach, focusing on a common pain point – men feeling embarrassed about their beards. We created an ad that directly addressed this, and it worked wonders, halving our customer acquisition cost. The lesson here is clear: understanding your audience's pain points and effectively addressing them in your marketing can drastically improve your results. So, focus on the problem-solution aspect rather than just listing features and benefits. That's the essence of effective marketing in the D2C space.
