We recently connected with Caleb Knight and have shared our conversation below.

Caleb, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

i think it starts with believing you can be successful. belief won’t get you there on its own but without it you honestly shouldn’t even start.

and then once you have that genuine belief you have to commit to it everyday regardless of the result.

i started my brand CAMPAIGN over 6 years ago. and for the first 5 years i worked at a store in the mall while also building my brand. and for those first 5 years i had almost nothing to show for. i had about 1,000 followers and a bunch of drops that didn’t even come close to selling out.

but for some reason i didn’t give up. and then everything changed.

Caleb, 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 feel like a lot of key moments from my life brought me here so i’ll keep everything short and sweet.

growing up i was always told to study and do well in school and get a job that was safe. stuff that im sure a lot of us are told.

i went to college for accounting because i was good at math and i hated it but i didn’t know what else to do and i felt like life was moving really fast and i just had to keep moving forward or i would get left behind.

however towards the end of my degree i felt even worse about where my life was going. i couldn’t imagine myself being an accountant. so i decided right then and there that i was going to give something else a shot.

i’ve always loved drawing and fashion had become another passion of mine as i got older so i thought having a clothing brand would be a fun way to combine both.

i decided to call it CAMPAIGN because it was literally just a campaign of me. i figured if i shared my life experiences and emotions in a very raw form people would relate to them. i don’t know i just think that if we shared how we felt more we would fine that we all have a lot more in common that we think.
i think the concept was strong but my branding wasn’t the best.

for the first 5 years i was just screen printing tees like everyone else and i saw pretty much no progress. one day i randomly decided to make myself a 1 of 1 custom hoodie and it completely changed my business.

i posted a video of my hoodie and people loved it so much that someone asked me to make them a custom hoodie. and then that chain reaction took off. and now everything i do is 1 of 1, hand painted, and hand dyed.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

i think most people over complicate social media so i keep it super simple because if i’m being honest it’s my least favorite part.

the most important thing is to do what you like and post everyday. for example 90% of my content is the exact same thing every time. i literally record a time lapse of me making peoples custom clothes. my camera angle is in the same spot every time, there is no fancy editing, i just pick a new song. yes im making something new every time and my designs get better but im not trying to come up with new content ideas everyday like everyone else.

now remember when i said it took me 5 years to just get 1,000 followers? well eventually my videos started popping off and i gained 16,000 followers in less than 3 days and my business blew up.

people see the “overnight success” but they missed the 5 years of grinding when no one would give me the time of day.

all i’m really trying to get across is that if you give up today, tomorrow could have been your day. you could have literally been 1 post away from your life changing forever. quit overthinking it and just create.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

the biggest thing anyone has going for them is being themselves. as a business owner a huge advantage you have over larger companies is you can put your face out there.

one thing i love to do for my customers is deliver orders personally if they are local. i even joke with my customers and say not even Jeff Bezos can promise same day delivery from the ceo. it’s little things like this that cost you no money but have an enormous impact on your relationship with your customers.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.campaigncincinnati.com
• Instagram: @campaigncincinnati