Hardware Podcasts

Cotopaxi: Davis Smith

How I Built This · 4 May 2020 · 1h 05m

What this episode covers

Davis Smith, founder of Cotopaxi, recounts his journey from selling pool tables on eBay to launching a socially conscious outdoor gear brand. He details the painful failure of his second startup, baby.com.br, and the lessons learned about co-founder dynamics and market selection. Smith explains how he structured Cotopaxi as a B Corp with a mission to eradicate poverty, securing funding from Kirsten Green despite the unconventional 'give-away' model. The episode highlights Cotopaxi's unique marketing strategy involving 'Questival' events and live llamas, as well as its supply chain innovations using remnant materials.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies and companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Cotopaxi, Pooltables.com, baby.com.br, Warby Parker, Tom's Shoes, Patagonia, REI
Also
Kirsten Green, Stefan Jacob, Kimball Thomas, Steve Gibson

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