Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Madden.
Hi Mark, 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?
My story starts as a kid – always having a love for music and fashion. Fast forward to college, I decided to take the “safe route” and major in finance. As a result, my corporate career of almost 15 years has always been in financial services. When the pandemic hit, I finally had the time to start a business, which is something I’ve always wanted to do. Naturally, I chose a clothing company, GREY AREA Brand, because I felt it would be the easiest and most rewarding.
My ultimate goal is to have an online store full of items that are reflective of my personal aesthetic with a heavy focus on quality materials and fit. It’s almost been one year since launching and I am extremely proud of what I’ve been able to do so far, and look forward to seeing even more progress/success in the future.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It most definitely has not been a smooth road. I’ve experienced typical startup mistakes (overspending, etc.), extremely long shipping delays from my vendors, and worst of all – issues with various print shops.
Quick story: Two days before my first pop up shop, one of the two print shops I was using burned to the ground with over $15k of my inventory inside. The owners disappeared and I was unable to recover anything from them. I did not think to get business insurance prior to that so that was a major L that still hurts til this day. On top of that, the other shop told me the day before my event that were unable to finish my order in time. Although I was able to still pull it off, those types of curveballs make you wiser.
Despite the setbacks, God blessed me in so many other ways that I was able to keep pushing forward.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My primary job is in the Financial Services industry. I’ve been with the same company for my entire 15-year career. They continue to promote and invest in me.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@greyareabrand.com
- Website: www.greyareabrand.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forgreyarea/?hl=en and instagram.com/markbymark_
Image Credits
Will Sterling (@sterlingpics) and Raphael Simien (@thecamkilla).
