Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Price.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
*How to honor the extraordinary people in my life and in the lives of others* was a theme that landed on me in the Summer of 2016. My wife and I were about to celebrate our second daughter’s first birthday and I was feeling humbled and inspired by how we’d brought her into the world (a magical homebirth) and all the steps we took to create her (super clinical, IUI and IVF experience with a known donor that culminated in pure magic.)
That donor – quite literally gave us the gift of life and I was like – thinking forward to what we would get him as a Christmas present – and how I could BUY (or make?) something that was going to honor him the way we wanted to? There was no *thing* out there that could say all that we wanted to say.
So – the idea of “Awesome Humans” (him, specifically) stewed and rolled around in my brain through the fall… In November… And then… November 8th, 2016 – well… not to bring up old shit, but – Hilary didn’t win. And we cried. And we mourned all that momentum we thought her presidency could bring. *sob sob*
The next weekend at a pretty depressed brunch with our dearest friends, I told them about this idea for “Awesome Human” merchandise that folks couldn’t purchase for themselves… These would be products that people could only buy as gifts because we wanted to start a wave of gratitude. I told them I needed a bright light and that I thought this could help and inspire me and other people. I told them I wanted to encourage people to slow down and think more about gratitude…
I told them how I wanted that for myself – and well, EVERYONE. I had plans to make shirts with this “slogo” (not a typo) on it that said “You Are An Awesome Human” and they’d be customizable and they’d be a billboard to anyone who saw one… A reminder that THEY TOO are awesome. And just as I was finishing up and feeling really sad and full of this heavy idea I’d been carrying around – but at the same time – feeling light for having finally shared it, I looked up and realized we all had tears in our eyes and in that moment I knew it was an AWESOME nugget and that I was RIGHT about something… So I made it real, really fast.
I already work with artists and makers all the time (I also founded The Eddy – an unconventional marketing agency based out of Switchyards Downtown Club in Atlanta: www.theeddy.design). I already knew folks who printed t-shirts (Fallen Arrows, Danger Press). I knew folks in packaging (Thank goodness for Uline dockside pick-up in Atlanta). I worked tirelessly on the design independently and with a designer to perfect it… Simple as it is, even the lettering and type-setting had a serious evolution.
I quite literally put the ideas for a cohesive brand together inside a couple of weeks and then we starting producing shirts locally – CUSTOMIZABLE shirts no less, where you could have your message printed inside the necklines – and we began promoting the idea to anyone who would listen. By Thanksgiving, we were pre-selling so much holiday merch that I started getting a discount with my shirt vendor. We sold to individuals who were honoring loved ones. We sold to companies who were honoring team members. And we numbered that first batch of shirts #01-100 and sold them as a limited, first/INAUGURAL, limited edition.
Oh – and our beloved donor received #01 as a Christmas present with an AWESOME custom tag.
Another benchmark of success for me: I sold one to someone I didn’t even KNOW inside of a week. I was bursting with gratitude. It could have all ended after the holiday rush of 2016 and I would have felt full-up-to-the-brim with joy.
But it didn’t stop. In 2017 we expanded to more stuff (turns out humans really like stuff): posters, bandanas, enamel pins, stickers and car decals. We started placing giant instances of our slogo anywhere we could (legally). We switched up our shirt printing process for quality purposes (fastest learning curve EVER) and moved the customizable component off of the shirt and onto the packaging (best / hardest decision EVER). We stopped pre-selling and decided to buy enough shirt stock to get us through the year – another limited batch. Within 2017 we sold most of it – including batches of shirts to two brick and mortar stores in Atlanta and Ellijay. (We still have a few left/mostly tank tops so we’re planning a big push this Spring.)
In 2018 we want to print a new third batch of limited edition shirts in two new colorways (now taking suggestions) and we’re working with a giant non-profit and one locally owned business to facilitate building-sized murals of the mark. The focus now is staying open to opportunity and looking for ways to grow this thing without feeling like we’re SELLING anything at all. Because it has never been about selling… It’s always just been about goodness and gratitude and all things light and lovely. And I hope you love it and seek it out and share it with someone who has changed your life. That is all.
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?
I do insist on a certain level of EASE in my life – but I’d be lying if I said the whole thing has been easy. Our first shirt printing process (DTG or Direct to Garment printing) posed a number of logistical nightmares including a few shipments of shirts where the print quite literally WASHED OFF. And not just the tiny text in the neckline – but like, THE WHOLE MARK washed off. And I’m a bit of a perfectionist. That was REALLY hard for me. But we replaced every shirt that was brought back to us (offer is still open for anyone in that first batch of 100 that never got around to reaching out!) and we quickly pivoted and began silkscreening all of our shirts, posters, and stickers. They’re now buttery soft and will last forever. For real.
Choosing garments was huge for us. I wanted to be body-inclusive (xs-3xl) but we nailed it with the tees and tanks we chose. They’re soft and wear really well. Keeping this whole thing anchored in Atlanta isn’t important to the project but it is important to me to support locally. We do use as many local vendors as we can and we’d like to keep that up – but that comes at an actual price. LOL Other than that – there actually IS a lot of ease around this thing and we are doing our best to stay in that space above-all. So far, so, SO good!
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about You Are An Awesome Human – what should we know?
We’re a purposeful, purpose-led project of gratitude. We don’t care much about “selling” – but that has been a means to grow our audience and impact. We currently make and sell t-shirts for humans from infancy to infinity as well as posters, decals, stickers, bandanas and enamel pins. We aim to spread gratitude and be a ripple. Our shirts are sold pre-packaged in AWESOME silkscreened boxes – also printed right here in Atlanta – and they have a customizable mad-lib on them that are filled out from sender to recipient. Those have been – wow – SO inspiring.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Our intention to do GOOD over doing well.
This project isn’t paying any bills (trust me) – but it is fueling us and inspiring us to do more good and to let that melt out over our community – into the lives of others and we hope it just keeps spreading!
Pricing:
- Products range in price from $7.50 to $39 and they all come with the very same, ooey-gooey goodness and gratitude!
- Our pre-packaged shirts that sell for $39 each are worth every penny – as in, we’re seriously not even making much money on them after all the details we’ve labored over!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.youareanawesomehuman.com
- Email: hello@youareanawesomehuman.com
- Instagram: @youareanawesomehuman
- Twitter: @anawesomehuman
Image Credit:
Switchyards Downtown Club Community, Chil Creative
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.
