Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Stefania Marzano. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Stefania , thanks for joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
Once I recognized the cultural similarities between the motorcycle and rugby worlds, I wanted to capture that in the name, specifically highlighting the social/party aspect. While the activities of riding a motorbike vs playing rugby vary quite a bit, they attract a similar type of personality and both take a lot of grit. You have to work hard and “earn your place” if you will – not just anyone can tolerate and enjoy 3,000 mile road trips or years of smashing into people. Not only do these people work hard, but they play harder and socialize in the same manner. I often times couldn’t tell you which I enjoyed more – riding bikes, playing rugby, or the socials/parties that occurred afterwards.
“Moto” is self explanatory; “rugger” is a nickname for someone who plays rugby; I choose “social club” in an effort to have a light-hearted, inclusive feel – if you ride bikes or play rugby, you’ve earned your place – Welcome to the Club.
Stefania , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I love how much fun you can have with fashion, even on a casual level. The majority of motorcycle brands focus mainly on riding gear or are t-shirt companies, which is great obviously, but I wanted to expand beyond that. Only in the last few years have some rugby brands come out that offer more than jerseys or playing gear, and even then the majority of their inventory are t-shirts. Everyone loves a good t-shirt, but I wanted to have more clothing/accessory options while still repping bikes or rugby.
I’m a tiny, tiny company so what I can currently produce is relatively limited, but growing. Some of what we offer in our casual line are jackets, crew necks, socks, and traditional rugby jerseys. Our “social wear”, intended to dress you up a bit, offers silk scarves, lapel pins, and cravats. The lifestyle line offers items to socialize with such as cocktail glasses, lighters, and coffee mugs. One of my favorite items is our “artist series” where we collaborate with an artist in the moto or rugby community and design something together. We currently have a one of a kind, hand-painted leather jacket for sale, done by a former rugby player and local tattoo artist, Sophia Culpepper, of Black&Grey Atelier. I’m building things one step at a time, so as we grow we will be able to offer and produce more goods. I’m hoping one day to be in full design and production of 100% custom items.
Almost everyone we work with is in the motorcycle or rugby community, from product and website design to our printers and artist collaborations and even some of the legal stuff. We do our best to keep as much local and within the US as we can, but also with cost in mind. Mark-ups are minimal, even for our pricier items. I want someone to feel really good about their purchase from us. I put in a lot of effort to find high-quality items and you will see that reflected in our prices, but I am also confident that customers see the longevity in their purchase and walk away with a solid item that they won’t have to replace for years or ever.
Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?
Years of savings – I got laid-off during COVID, so I finally had the time to establish the business and do all the research, registrations, etc. I used about $10k of my safety-net savings to get things off the ground. I was super picky about where I put the money, given the small quantity for a business. I tracked everything in a spreadsheet from the initial launch products to projected revenue, etc. I made sure not to over buy, kept small stock, and capped the initial spending so that I wouldn’t end up in debt I couldn’t pay off in a few months. Luckily, about 4-months after launch, I secured full-time work. A small portion of my paycheck still goes into the business account – if I’m short on income with the business, I supplement with my day job.
Another helpful resource is finding a credit card with no APR for the first year, but make sure you get it paid down before your year is up! I was able to front another $10k + on credit and then worked my ass off to pay it off before the 1-year anniversary, avoiding any interest charges.
My plan is to start small, literally a dollar at a time. As income increases, I can expand on products. I don’t know if this is the best strategy or if I’m even doing it right, but it’s been working for me so far.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
I’m still really small and growing, but being a rider and rugby player for over 15 years, each, naturally established my place in both communities. I’m now working most events instead of attending them for fun (working them is still really fun, but exhausting). I meet a ton of new people at vending events, whether it be a new customer, someone just passing by, or a fellow vendor. It’s a great place to get to know other brands and artists and fuel potential collaborations in the future. I enjoy getting the time to chat with the customers or just people in the community when they stop by the booth. Plus, almost everyone has a secret stash of beer in their cooler :) And if the event allows it, I usually pass out prosecco or bourbon, so it’s always worth swinging by and saying hello!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.MotoRugger.com
- Instagram: @motoruggersocialclub
Image Credits
Stefania Marzano and Dylan Lemeiux