How he started the fastest growing activewear brand ever ($60M+)
About this episode
Lukas Pakter is the 24-year-old founder of Haus, an activewear brand that did 600k in year one, 1.5 million in year two, a little under nine million last year, and is pacing for 60 to 70 million this year. He also runs Trybe, an app that pays creators a share of the sales their Meta ads drive.
He covers giving 10% of the company to his mentor Hudson Leogrande of Comfrt, dropping his shorts from $60 to $39, getting better terms from new manufacturers, ordering for Q4, the hires that matter, and how uploading thousands of ads a month cut his acquisition cost.
Key takeaways
- Price for the bigger market. On Hudson's advice he cut his shorts from $60 to $39, which he says grows the pool of possible buyers from a million to 100 million.
- Volume beats ad fatigue. Going from 200 ads a month to 2,500 to 3,000 took CAC from $89 to $30, because fresh creative keeps the same audience from tuning out.
- Pay creators for results. Paying upfront for three videos rewards speed, so Haus pays creators a share of the sales their ads drive and keeps the good ones on the team.
- Make manufacturers earn the business. Suppliers kept pricing Haus like the small brand they first met, so pitching new factories is how he got better rates.
- Order small until demand is proven. A new jogger got 3,000 units instead of 20,000, while a new version of the best-selling tank got 30,000.
Chapters
- 0:00 Scaling a clothing brand to $60M+ & the craziest deal ever
- 4:26 The origin story: from failed side hustles to activewear
- 6:17 Risking it all: surviving near bankruptcy and cash flow issues
- 7:28 Finding a mentor: why he gave away 10% equity
- 14:14 The biggest mistake new clothing brand owners make
- 17:15 High ticket vs. affordable pricing: maximizing your market
- 19:45 How to source and negotiate with overseas clothing manufacturers
- 21:38 Meta ads strategy: dropping CPA from $90 to $30
- 23:44 Ad creative fatigue: why he uploads 3,000 ads a month
- 26:40 Why the traditional UGC strategy is broken
- 28:57 Launching Trybe: the app for Meta ads and UGC creators
- 33:29 Product development: building products customers actually want
- 36:50 Q4 prep: how to plan for holiday sales
- 41:26 Team building: the most important hires for scaling
- 46:04 Advice for founders stuck at $100K a month
- 52:04 Getting rich by creating value
Recorded in person in New York. Every guest runs a 7 or 8 figure brand, across every category. Hosted by Sam Jacobs, co-founder of Commercive.
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