We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brice (Dupah) Pickens a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Brice (Dupah), looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I knew there was a market for quality beard care. When I started on my journey of growing my beard, I had plenty of obstacles. During my journey, I would use my wife’s shampoo and conditioner. Some worked great but it still wasn’t right. And as I started to meet other gentleman with beards, it would irritate me to see the lack of time and effort put into the care of their beards. So then I started to research and buy other beard products which turned out to be really expensive. I would always get compliments on the grooming of my beard, the texture and the fullness. And that gave me the idea to come up with my own products.
Brice (Dupah), love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Well first off, I can tell you what sets me apart from other beard companies. I’m an advocate for healthy beards. I’ve heard that there were beard company owners out here that don’t use their own products… shame on them. The business of started my own brand wasn’t hard at all. I founded and created my own media company which operated for more than 10 years. So I had the discipline of operating a business partner it’s true diligence. Customer service and making sure our customers/clients are satisfied are of very high importance and someone buys our products and tell me how our product may have helped to soften and/or moisture their beard, how much they truly like it and that they may tell others about it, that makes my day.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
You’ve heard the old cliché “behind every great man is an even greater woman” (ok I changed it up little bit but you get the point lol). Initially, money from 9 to 5, and from my media company helped get the business started. But my wife also helped me with funding to the business started and actually moving in the direction of becoming a legit business. She has always believed in my entrepreneurial endeavors. She knew how serious I was about launching my own beard products and she stepped right in where I needed her to make my vision a reality.
How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.
E-commerce has definitely been a journey within itself. Of course I started out seeking my products “word of mouth”, keeping stock in my trunk. But yes we also have an e-commerce website (perfectionbeardcare.com). I have to admit, it has been some growing pains involved. The good thing about having a website to sell your products is that it’s accessible to people far away from that I may not be able to reach with just a short drive but the con is the shipping prices. That’s one of the most complaints that I receive from from people to support our brand, is the price of shipping, which in some instances I have no control over. But with having a business you ever stop learning and I am still learning.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.perfectionbeardcare.com
- Instagram: Perfectionbeardcare
- Facebook: Perfectionbeardcare