Today we’d like to introduce you to John Richards.
Thanks for sharing your story with us, John. So, let’s start at the beginning, and we can move on from there.
I started IGWM on accident. I was working a really good job in sales (selling custom screen printed shirts to bands, organizations, small businesses, etc..) for about three years. I was a top salesman at the company I was working for and had worked my way up to having a great salary, health benefits, 401k, all of the things your parents would be proud of – especially at the age of 23. Well, towards the end of my time there, I got extremely sick – and caught a viral infection called “Noro Virus.” It kept me bed written for a few days, and after about a week, I returned to work, but still never felt 100%. A couple of months went by, and still never felt 100% – I honestly felt like it never really went away. Within those two months, I went from weighing 215 pounds to around 153 pounds. I wasn’t sleeping and would throw up if I ate certain things, and it was a never ending cycle of being sick. Well, on my 23rd birthday, in March – I finally decided to go to a doctor. And to make a long story short, they diagnosed me with Type 1 Diabetes – and immune disease that causes your pancreas to produce no insulin. The disease is often compared to Type 2 Diabetes, but the difference in the two is that Type 1 has no mercy, and you can’t do anything about it. It is not diet related, and it isn’t something you get for being unhealthy. Your pancreas just simply stops working – and in my case, the viral infection I had was what ended up killing my pancreas. So, at the age of 23, I am having to take 4-5 shots of insulin a day to survive. Two months after my diagnosis, I was let go from my job, and lost all health benefits that were covering my cost of supplies like Needles, Swabs, Lancets, Insulin, Doc visits, etc.. and was stuck with a nice fat bill shortly after I was let go. The cost for all my supplies without insurance was around $3,000 a month, and even with insurance, it was around $2,000. I had to figure out what to do and how to cover my medical bills that I just recently inherited.
I was looking to the creative side of my life – and my wife (girlfriend at the time) just got back from a trip to Nicaragua, and brought back a coin she really liked and asked if I thought there was a way to make it into a piece of jewelry. I didn’t know how to at the time, but I told her I would figure something out. So I started researching and found a way to turn a coin into a ring. I posted it on Instagram and started getting messages from people wanting me to take their coins, and turn them into rings. I thought to myself: “If I can make X amount of rings, that would mean X amount of money, and that would cover my medical bills and living expenses.” And low and behold, the lightbulb turned on in my head, and I met that goal of mine. I started making these coin rings on my back porch for people – and it started to take up most of my working days. I went on and did this for a couple of months, and decided to give it a name. And then IGWM was born. We started making coin rings, and eventually, I used my knowledge in screen printing apparel into the business and started printing shirts that spoke to people in a way that reflected my story to motivate people and inspire people to do their own thing. Fast forward to now, five years later – and we have 4 full-time employees, our own warehouse and shop (soon to be a retail store), and are carried in stores across the nation.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not. At. All. There are definitely seasons where things are smooth, but for the most part, we are still learning as we go – there is always a new challenge, and something to work through. Cash flow, invoicing, merchandising, advertising, all of that is stuff we have learned along the way and have failed in at some point. It is always a fun journey, and always will be – but still to this day as insulin prices have almost increased 1000% since I was diagnosed, it has been the constant and remaining challenge. It is a very expensive disease, and paying for it is no fun. Balancing budgets for everything above, and also having to calculate what I need to pay myself for medical supplies every month to make sure I don’t die on everyone is always my biggest challenge.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about In God We Must – what should we know?
In God, We Must is a lifestyle brand that caters to those who have a “Pioneer Spirit” a phrase we use as our motto which means “the willingness to endure hardship, in order to explore new places or try new things.” We specialize in custom coin jewelry and apparel, but offer more than just those two things! We are mainly known for our Graphic Tees as of the last year, specifically our “Y’all” t-shirt. However, our Statehood Quarter Coin Rings are something that we are known for and are proud of as well. Everything we do and make always has some motive behind it that related to the Pioneer Spirit, and that is what I am most proud of; influencing people to take a chance, risk it all, sink or swim, and following their passions and dreams. I was forced into this, and was unhappy at my job beforehand – and I have never been happier. I took a risk and decided to just roll with the punches, and now I own and operate a lifestyle brand. Fear is an illusion, and we try to remind everyone of that. We always tell people that you do not have to buy anything from us to support us, all we want is to influence people to have a Pioneering Spirit, and to influence others to take it on as well – to venture out, and ultimately be happy.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Determination, and overcoming the fear of the unknown. Everything else that is related to any form of success will always derive from overcoming fear (for me). It’s hard, but it’s possible… and every step you take seems to get a bit easier as time goes on. There are a lot of failures that come with success, and a lot of success that comes with failure – and we just choose to learn from it, and press forward.
Contact Info:
- Address: 675 Metropolitan Parkway SW
Suite 4146
Atlanta, GA 30310 - Website: www.IGWM.co
- Phone: 678.902.4496
- Email: hello@igwm.co
- Instagram: @ingodwemust
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/ingodwemust
Image Credit:
Dave Crawford of Loud + Clear
Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition, please let us know here.
