Read on Twitter
been staring into the abyss and chewing glass for a while now, figured I'd share a recent rough patch
tl;dr: 0 cash in the bank, piles of stuck inventory, all orders put on hold https://twitter.com/mahasr199/status/1335004895301275655
tl;dr: 0 cash in the bank, piles of stuck inventory, all orders put on hold https://twitter.com/mahasr199/status/1335004895301275655
china is the factory of the world, so when we saw what was happening with Covid we knew there was going to be a huge spike in demand in other countries (us).
we made a decision to position tons of rm in anticipation of this based on what we were seeing:
we made a decision to position tons of rm in anticipation of this based on what we were seeing:
1. factories in china would not be able to start back normally
2. their supply chains would be constricted due to ccp restrictions on travel, trade, etc.
3. our customers started shifting and moving more biz overseas
if you know china, 1+2 were obvious by end jan
2. their supply chains would be constricted due to ccp restrictions on travel, trade, etc.
3. our customers started shifting and moving more biz overseas
if you know china, 1+2 were obvious by end jan
so we pulled the trigger and got ready to grab all the orders that were now desperately flowing out of china.
customers were booking capacity and placing orders at record rates, thanking their lucky stars for factorydoge subsidiaries
everything was looking up
customers were booking capacity and placing orders at record rates, thanking their lucky stars for factorydoge subsidiaries
everything was looking up
then Covid started spreading globally
if you guys don't remember, mid marchish was when the shit really hit the fan, especially in the US
of course at this point all the rm that we had brilliantly positioned in advance was either already on the sea or arriving in house...
if you guys don't remember, mid marchish was when the shit really hit the fan, especially in the US
of course at this point all the rm that we had brilliantly positioned in advance was either already on the sea or arriving in house...
mid march is when shit hit the fan for us as customers scrambled to react to lockdowns and curfews being imposed around the globe.
by the end of march, all of our orders were completely frozen.
by the end of march, all of our orders were completely frozen.
had some of the grimmest calls around end of march.
there was a brand (v well known, your fav mainstream celebs have all been featured in their campaigns) who called us to say that all their orders were to be put on ice, good luck, and just try to survive
there was a brand (v well known, your fav mainstream celebs have all been featured in their campaigns) who called us to say that all their orders were to be put on ice, good luck, and just try to survive
by April we were staring down the barrel of a gun. we made a call to increase our rm and had the orders to back it, but customers got skittish and suddenly started backpedaling.
had to make a bunch of really shitty calls, including letting go portion of team
had to make a bunch of really shitty calls, including letting go portion of team
all my top level execs took pay cuts, I stopped paying myself
almost all my time was in calls with either banks or my board or my hr team.
would end the day with stomach pain.
the one positive during this time was finding time to work out in the sun. the only bright spot
almost all my time was in calls with either banks or my board or my hr team.
would end the day with stomach pain.
the one positive during this time was finding time to work out in the sun. the only bright spot
some of our customers completely understood the situation and did whatever they could to help. won't forget them. true ride or dies.
our cash was tied in inventory and we didn't have a clear path out
would spend hours every day going through cash burn situation. push on all sides: ask for leniency from our suppliers, chase down receivables, meet with banks, rinse and repeat ad nauseam.
would spend hours every day going through cash burn situation. push on all sides: ask for leniency from our suppliers, chase down receivables, meet with banks, rinse and repeat ad nauseam.
at one point we were running scenarios where we would need to close up our businesses
how many people would we need to let go
what legal obligations we would need to wrap up
who could we even go to as a potential suitor / acquirer
truly shit days
how many people would we need to let go
what legal obligations we would need to wrap up
who could we even go to as a potential suitor / acquirer
truly shit days
and then just as we would get close to shutting everything down, we'd get a small glimmer of hope
orders being released
stores being reopened
e-commerce numbers doing better than expected
etc.
orders being released
stores being reopened
e-commerce numbers doing better than expected
etc.
and that was just enough. just enough where it made more sense for us to be bullish and optimistic and keep fighting rather than shutting down
anyway, eventually we crawled out of the hole. we got into trading PPE (who didn't lol) and some other side things to bring in some rev
anyway, eventually we crawled out of the hole. we got into trading PPE (who didn't lol) and some other side things to bring in some rev
the orders eventually came back
we lifted pay cuts three months back. I started paying myself again a little afterwards. and we were able to hire back the colleagues who would have us (most understood the situation)
we lifted pay cuts three months back. I started paying myself again a little afterwards. and we were able to hire back the colleagues who would have us (most understood the situation)
we're super fortunate that we're not in an industry like tourism or airlines that have been completely decimated
I'm also fortunate that we had such a resilient team through this crazy shitstorm
and to be clear, 2021 still has a huge amount of uncertainty
I'm also fortunate that we had such a resilient team through this crazy shitstorm
and to be clear, 2021 still has a huge amount of uncertainty
but that's business and that's life. you hit rough patches. you eat glass and stare into abysses.
but you keep going.
but you keep going.
