Speaking to many entrepreneurs, you’ll hear a harrowing tale of big ambitions and bigger ideas. A narrative filled with sleepless nights spent chasing an unattainable ideal—anecdote after anecdote about failure and struggle.
BlueCotton’s story is not one of those.
We’ve made no secret of the fact that we started our business entirely by accident. It all began with a bad business venture, a huge credit card bill, and an inventory of nearly 1,000 unsold T-shirts. Twenty years later, BlueCotton is now thriving, offering custom t-shirts and embroidery to customers all over the world.
As you might expect, we’ve grown quite a bit over the years. You don’t go from a cramped college apartment to a global brand without bringing on at least a few new employees, after all. But one thing we take pride in is that we haven’t allowed that evolution to change who we are.
As you’ve probably guessed, that’s no easy task. Most businesses, when they experience significant growth, tend to lose something of themselves in the process. It’s usually not anything significant, mind you — they just become a bit more impersonal, a bit more about the brand than about the people.
This isn’t the case with BlueCotton. Now, as then, we are, above all, a family. We’ve managed to retain a friendly, welcoming atmosphere even in the face of enormous growth.
So how did we do it?
First and foremost, our leadership is deeply invested and involved in the direction of the business. For us, BlueCotton isn’t simply another job, but our passion. We want to see the business succeed, grow, and thrive.
We’ve also worked hard to maintain a company culture that puts our people first. We make a point of ensuring that every employee has a voice. We also focus on creating an atmosphere of cooperation, communication, and collaboration.
Finally, we try not to take ourselves too seriously. While we’ll never sacrifice quality, professionalism, or customer satisfaction in the interest of entertainment, we’re also not above simply letting loose and having a bit of fun. And we encourage our staff to do the same — just because you’re at work doesn’t mean you can’t have a good time, after all.
It’s easy to lose oneself to success. To forget about why you created a business, about the core values behind your brand at the beginning. To ultimately lose sight of what really matters in the interest of more sales, more customer acquisitions, more growth.
At BlueCotton, we’ve made every effort to avoid that pitfall. Our family atmosphere is and will remain a conscious and deliberate part of how we do business. Is it a lot of effort?
Most definitely. But if you ask us, it’s been more than worth it.