We recently connected with Deantoine Nelson and have shared our conversation below.
Deantoine, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
Plain Clothed Millionaires is a unisex apparel brand desirous to encourage “Interaction With A Purpose” by designing affordable luxury apparel that is “Merchandise With A Message.”
We strive to create an appeal through fashion that we never know exactly who we’re interacting with simply by outward appearance, so make each interaction an “Interaction With A Purpose”. What we mean when we say interaction with a purpose is that we hope that not only the sleek designs of our apparel interests those who support us but by those who do support us they are agreeing that they too are forward thinkers, entrepreneurs, or entrepreneurs in the making as well as they believe that they too are just a few deposits away from being a literal Plain Clothed Millionaire. When individuals stop and ask them where did you get that shirt, shorts, hat, shoes, etc. from, our supporters will proudly say Plain Clothed Millionaires, aka PCM Brand and from our experience from testimonials our supporters help tell our story whenever they get to answer that question or even the most common question asked which is what is a Plain Clothed Millionaire?
Creating “Merchandise With A Message” is by design. We all have to wear clothes when we go outside into the world but with so many options available, we hope to get individuals interacting with one another even if it’s simply by admiration of one another’s choice of clothing that day. Interaction With A Purpose to us consists of more than just surface conversation; where did you get that t-shirt from? Plain Clothed Millionaires, ok kool thanks! We’d prefer interaction with a purpose! I really like that quote on the back of your shirt, are those your words? Thank you very much and no it’s not my words but I share the sentiment with the message. “My worst day of work for myself is still better than my best day of work for someone else.” As someone desiring to become an entrepreneur, I seen this t-shirt and had to have it as it reminds me there will be good days and not-so-good days on your journey to success, whatever that looks like but always remember what you put in for you, you’ll get the greatest reward from that investment. Oh wow, that’s kinda what I was thinking! I’m Joe by the way; what’s your name? A t-shirt with a relatable saying on it stirred two different types of interactions above. One that was surface information (basic, to the point, lackluster), and the other an Interaction With A Purpose! The acknowledgement of a saying solely due to it being on the back of a shirt, a relatable message that draws individuals in to want to share their thoughts on what its meaning is, and lastly two people who may had never considered engaging like they just did are now having Interaction With A Purpose (informative, engaging, dialogue amongst others and a warm introduction all from a piece of Merchandise With A Message.
I’m most proud of Plain Clothed Millionaires being a registered trademark ®️ Brand. So many amazing ideas/concept are birthed but not branded (protected in its highest form) meaning started but not having full ownership or rights to something because the business owner didn’t protect the intellectual property rights of the brand or services. Having accomplished this (which was not a walk in the park to say the least, but that’s for another story lol) has brought me tremendous joy as I’d like to keep the brand in our family or within the control of whomever will carry on the same or similar Mindset that we stand for as a brand which is success “Is More Than An Image, It’s A Mindset” and lastly if we’re going to interact have “Interaction With A Purpose.” I have children that I’d love to have a business they can learn in and gather practical lessons about work and the world of business in a company they’ll always have ownership stake in unless they choose to sell it which is a huge accomplishment in my eyes as a businessman and as a family head because there’s a huge difference between having a business and owning the rights to a business.
Our desire is to gain brand awareness that there exist a small apparel brand with big dreams of impacting the world not by inventing a new style of shirt or by reinventing a trend to gain exposure but rather we pride ourselves here at Plain Clothed Millionaires that creating “Merchandise With A Message” is what will help us appeal to the masses who choose to support us.
We offer unisex affordable luxury apparel which includes jogger suits, hats, socks, bomber jackets, winter outerwear, activewear, our own limited edition handmade Italian sneakers, custom denim jeans and so much more!
Deantoine, 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?
The story of Plain Clothed Millionaires started years ago based on two events I shared in two totally different places in the world but with the same individual in both events and one unanimous outcome.
A close friend and business partner and I were in the first scenario returning from a business trip and decided to extend the trip once back in Puerto Rico with a few more of our business partners to recap some of the trips highlights as well as take a brief moment to relax and reset before heading back to our respective cities of business. While here we stayed at a popular resort that accommodated celebrities, public figures as well as common men and women like my business partner and I. While awaiting the rest of those in our party to come down to the lobby to head to dinner, we decided we’d have a drink at the bar and discuss the trip one-on-one. We found ourselves waiting for what seemed like hours just for a staff member to acknowledge us and asked what we’d like to order. After surveying the area, we recognized some noteworthy faces which quickly lead us to believe that the majority of the focus was on catering to those of notoriety. One such individual who happened to be seated directly next to us noticed we had been overlooked as well and quickly called over someone to assist. With just a finger in the air somehow a staff member rushes to this individual to assist only for him to inform them he actually was simply helping us get someone’s attention since no one acknowledged us. After thanking this respectable public figure and offering to buy him and his guest drinks to show our appreciation (he humbly declined but really appreciated the offer by the way), we finally placed our order. Roughly 20-25 minutes later while getting ready to leave for dinner with the rest of our friends our drinks finally come, so we paid the tab, left the drinks, and walked out.
Nothing dawned on me at this moment because I was more focused on good times with great people, so we proceeded to dinner and ultimately enjoyed the remainder of our trip.
Fast forward roughly three months later, the same business partner and friend from the first scenario and I were meeting in Manhattan for lunch to discuss upcoming business expansion together. Unlike the first scenario in Puerto Rico which is a heavily tourist area, NYC was my business partner home so of course, I assumed home court advantage aka appropriate accommodations or service especially since he recommended the place for lunch and raved about it before we arrived. To his and I surprise it was dé·jà vu all over again! We waited to be seated for over 30 minutes; once seated we waited an additional 20 minutes to simply be provided water and asked if we’d like to order appetizers or look at the menu, then the icing on the cake was receiving an entirely incorrect meal for myself and being practically argued down that if they brought it out to me, I must have ordered it (I’m allergic to onions, peppers, and mushrooms) all which contained every sort of food I can’t eat on the dish they brought for me. To simplify matters and to avoid any further inconveniences to us we paid the check although never even consuming the lunch and left the restaurant (5-star restaurant) and had lunch elsewhere.
At this point, my wheels are spinning, and I’m so confused at the treatment this gentleman and I are receiving while together? Two different places (Puerto Rico and Manhattan), two different times (3 months between both events) yet the same two people involved (Him and I), same outcome in both… Horrible Service!!! I’m accustomed to being with this gentleman and receiving all but red-carpet treatment because of his accomplished businesses he owns and operates as well as his notoriety whenever we’ve been together prior to these two scenarios so receiving these outcomes baffled me honestly. I looked for a common denominator in both scenarios and then I had my aha moment and it all started making sense!!!
In both scenarios, my business partner and I were together and I was expecting others to somehow know, admire or respect him for his accomplishments in the world of business like I and others do because we know him personally, but the individuals in both these scenarios that were assigned to service us knew nothing of my business partner accomplishments because he didn’t have any flashing lights all around him nor did he have a huge entourage or any specific signs that he was a person of influence and should be treated accordingly and that’s when it hit me!!!! My friend received treatment according to his or I outward appearance although he was extremely successful having run his business for years earning him millions of dollars annually but most importantly helping change the lives of young men and women all across the United States of America. I couldn’t get these three words out of my head; my friend is a Plain Clothed Millionaire! Nothing stood out to the individuals responsible to serving us about my friend and that it may be in their best interest (primarily for tipping purposes) to provide him the best service possible as this is the gentleman who taught me the fine lesson of tipping! Great experience, tip well! Horrible experience; tip well! He always taught me tipping is usually viewed as a gratitude for the service received but in his eyes, a tip can easily display to a waiter or waitress that the person you served is someone of influence and perhaps a public figure (although no outward signs are given in just simple dress and grooming) by the generous amount they may receive. I never forget the value of that lesson till this day!
My friend or for that matters hundreds or thousands maybe even millions of individuals exist that like my friend prefers the more subtle style of dress and grooming to actually attract less attention while out and about doing normal everyday things yet these individuals are Millionaires or Multimillionaires to say the least!!! Being a person of influence or public figure comes with a lot of notoriety, whether desired or not, and some individuals of success choose to wear plain clothes to be as inconspicuous as possible when doing everyday matters like you or I even though in fact they are extremely successful and well off from a financial or social stance at least. These individuals may not get noticed as much when they dress just like you and I, but in fact they are Plain Clothed Millionaires!
At this point, the concept was firmly fixed in my mind, but I had no idea exactly how I wanted to bring it to the masses and tell this story. At the beginning of this story, I mentioned the concept was from years ago, 2010 to be exact but Plain Clothed Millionaires didn’t become an apparel brand until January 13, 2020, so what happened in between then and now? I look forward to answering in question form as the interview proceeds 🙂.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
The idea/concept originated in 2010, but I didn’t execute action until 2019 and ultimately incorporating the brand January 13, 2020. The long gap between 2010 and 2019 was due to my focus being on my primary business during this time which was M.I.C. Marketing, a direct sales, and marketing company. The idea/concept was in my head but again I didn’t really know how I wanted to tell that story so I remained focused on running my primary business and this idea/concept took 2nd place in my priorities. In mid-2019 I revisited the idea/concept of a Plain Clothed Millionaire but still had no definitive way of telling the story in a way I felt others would want to hear and support it. Again, an aha moment occurs while preparing to move homes. Moving reminds you of how much stuff you’ve accumulated over the years or held onto over the years with most of it being completely useless in some cases while others you simply forgot you even had it all awhile. Looking through my personal items (clothes, shoes, belts, designer Eyewear, etc…) I realized I have supported some of the world’s biggest fashion houses over the years and not one of them most likely even know I exist honestly. I had a few items but by no means was I spending enough money weekly, monthly, or annually to fall on any of these fashion houses radar as a VIP (Very Important Person Spending Money or Attracting Money they leave that last part out in VIP). This is when it hit me; I’ll make Plain Clothed Millionaires an affordable luxury apparel brand! I like fashion, I owned some pieces of fashion from practically every one of the most popular fashion houses in the world, and I know quite a few fashionable men and women that I can bounce ideas off of so an apparel brand we became!!!
Once the idea was firmly established (January 13, 2020 incorporation date) the mission began to design, create marketing and launch the brand to the masses! Our online store launched March 19, 2020, which was just one day before the residents of Ohio went on a mandatory stay-at-home order due to the global pandemic of Covid-19 leaving our business as an open and shut business literally. Due to the restrictions of stay at home as well as not being able to have more than 10 people gathered together in any one given place once restrictions subsided (months later) by then we never had the privilege of hosting a Grand Opening at our Showroom in Reynoldsburg, Ohio nor were we allowed to attend prearranged pop up shops to gain brand awareness of our new apparel brand and most importantly we had little to no social media presence as a brand new company as we relied heavily on the ability to bring people out to our Showroom, meet and greet, participate in community events that would help us gain brand awareness and possibly new customers of the brand but none of this was possible due to Covid-19.
We had designed, took some initial photos of the merchandise we were set to release, choose our web developer, and built out our online store, and essentially in one day we launched and shut down all at the same time.
We did remain open as an online store since inception but because we had little to no real substantial social media presence, we struggled to get exposure much needed as a new brand. No one was familiar with us when we first launched the brand so interaction with the public was a huge part of our marketing strategy to get the word out and raise brand awareness but none of this was possible due to covid-19 and how rampant it was becoming at that time.
Rather than completely losing hope for our new brand we quickly pivoted to targeting awareness via social media. Most probably are saying that should have been your first thought or method but for me social media was foreign language. What I mean is that in my previous business social media had relevance, of course, but it wasn’t the lifeline of our industry; ADVERTISING was! As long as the worldwide web didn’t shut down in that industry you could use online platforms to promote your business or services, and that’s what I did. Social media wasn’t a difference maker in regards to it hindering my growth personally or even stifling the growth of my business because I wasn’t on social media or even too familiar with it being honest.
I quickly had to change my mindset because this old way of thinking was not going to work in this new industry I was partaking in which is e-commerce which heavily relies on social media presence and awareness. Making adjustments in real time helped us begin creating a social media presence and learning how social media really adds value to brand awareness in future customers learning to trust your brand based on a brands social media’s.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
There are so many things books, videos, audio files etc… that was impacted my entrepreneurial thinking and mindset. John C. Maxwell played an intricate role in my developing basic leadership skills and mindset. Becoming a person of influence by John C. Maxwell in specific I feel really helped me understand how entrepreneurs operate and only once we understand what stage of entrepreneurship we’re in then can we adapt, adjust, overcome and reach the potential desired. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne is another amazing piece of literature I’ve received that help teach me the deeper meaning behind the law of attraction and how it works. The greatest salesman in the world by Og Mandino was actually gifted to me by the same business partner and friend introduced at the beginning of this interview. This by far was one of the most precious gifts he gave me as the content in this book built character within in and helped shaped my thought process from that point forward. There’s so many others I can name but these I’d say were key in helping my entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy.
Contact Info:
- Website: pcmbrand.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/OfficialPCMBrand
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/PlainClothedMillionaires
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deantoine-nelson-89288537
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/PCMBrand
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCqQH6VvQuWlPdop7MtdfaYQ
- Other: https://linktr.ee/pcmbrand