Today we’d like to introduce you to Maximilian Armstead.
Hi Maximilian, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Dons Market was originally started on December 13th, 2021, with our first product released the day after Christmas. I’ve always enjoyed designing clothes but didn’t have much funding able to source having my own brand. I saved up throughout covid along with an internship I was a part of the prior summer with Crewcial Partners. The person who inspired me to start my own brand was definitely Virgil Abloh. He was an artistic director for Louis Vuitton while also owning the famous Off White brand. His designs along with collaborations with other brands was very inspiring. In the fashion space, there aren’t too many people of color so seeing his accomplishments in the space is what pushed me to start. Starting out the brand, it was definitely very slow in sales. Even if you have a great product, you then have to make your clothing “cool” and hip to the streetwear community. My brand really started to grow when I get my clothing in the hands of Jared McCain, a top 25 HS basketball recruit committed to Duke University. I sent him a pair of my Oreo Mesh Shorts and he posted it on his Instagram story. In 24 hours time, I had over 70 orders from my website of people wanting them and they became a huge sellers. A few other celebrities seen in my clothing are Mookie Cook, Dusty Stromer, Kaliii, Elliot Cadeau, and Dylan Harper. Just in under a year I have turned my clothing brand into a 5 figure business striving for 6 with over 4,300 instagram followers on the dons market instagram page.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Definitely not at all. The biggest struggle was the hardest which was actually getting sales. What I have learned is the importance of marketing and building anticipation into a release. You can’t release something without getting it out into the people for at least 1-2 weeks. I think at the beginning as well a struggle I had was confidence in myself. I wanted my brand to be successful but at the same time, I didn’t have the patience. Nike didn’t become Nike overnight. It took a while for me to learn that everyone has their own journey and that my time will come.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Dons Market?
I am the CEO and founder of Dons Market. Dons Market is a streetwear clothing brand specializing in shirts, hoodies, trucker hats, shoes, beanies, etc. Being a dog represents being the best at whatever you do. Whether you a cook or an artist, you do your job the best than anyone. What sets me apart from others are my prices at the quality of clothing your getting. My clothing isn’t considered “fast fashion”. All my garments are heavyweight with a durable print to last a lifetime. Sometimes brands charge cheap prices, but the quality isn’t their. At Dons Market, we take pride in quality over quantity. Our best-selling product was our Oreo Mesh Shorts. I want my reader to know that when you shop with us you aren’t just a customer but your family and a part of the Dons Market community. It’s more than just a transaction but a connection. I have helped countless customers in assistance in starting their own clothing brands or selling items online, a lot of people don’t do that.
Any big plans?
Overall within the next year, I want to grow my instagram community to 10k followers, get an NBA players in my clothing, along with getting my customer base to 1,000. I also want to participate in more in-store shopping opportunities and pop-ups in the ATL area. The overall plan in the future is to have my clothing in a luxury store. Such as Saks Fifth AVE, Nordstrom, Macy’s, and Neiman Marcus.
Contact Info:
- Website: donsmarketofficial.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donsmarketofficial/
