18 Aug 028: How Rob Kessler and his firm Million Dollar Collar are revolutionizing the global dress shirt industry
In this episode I meet Rob Kessler – founder, CEO and chief inventor at Million Dollar Collar. In the last 120 years, there have only been 2 significant, widely accepted enhancements to dress shirt design- Collar Stays & Non-Iron. According to Rob, Million Dollar Collar will be the 3rd because it cures the dreaded ‘sloppy collar’. Listen to the interview where I discuss with Rob how he got the idea and perfected the design after hundreds of different variations. Learn more about the way your shirts are made, how Rob is revolutionizing an age-old design, how he solved the distribution challenge and how he’s on the way to building a multi-million dollar, international organization.
1:14 – Background details on Rob and some of his work.
2:23 – How Million Dollar Collar works; “Placketitis” and how Million Dollar Collar cures it.
5:09 – Rob’s background in fashion with NEWD Clothing and leaving that success in order to pursue MDC full time.
7:20 – Pursuing challenges and new things in your career rather than just monetary success.
8:21 – Moments where Rob felt he had made a huge mistake in MDC; describing what the product actually is.
9:49 – Rob’s process in developing the product.
11:28 – Other challenges Rob faced in creating Million Dollar Collar.
13:32 – Addressing the problem of the product needing to be installed and different ideas he tried.
15:22 – Insights Rob has gained in dealing with different aspects of the fashion industry; what he learned from a failed Kickstarter.
19:10 – Fear of products imitating MDC, information on patents.
20:12 – The role of branding and social media in the success of the company.
21:56 – A look at Rob’s vision for MDC moving forward.
23:54 – How the concept behind the company has grown and how Rob sees it scaling up.
25:04 – Differences between MDC and other businesses Rob has been involved with.
26:51 – One of the best parts of the business so far.
27:45 – Challenges to growth for MDC and things he didn’t expect.
29:38 – Finding a simple, persistent problem and addressing that with a simple solution; advice for entrepreneurs in the same vein.
35:18 – The rapid fire questionnaire.
43:02 – Getting in touch with Rob and Million Dollar Collar.
Resources and Links Mentioned:
https://milliondollarcollar.com/