We recently connected with Reginald Bourdeau and have shared our conversation below.

Reginald, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?
Being successful has many factors. Having discipline, a great work ethic and ability to execute your ideas are all very important qualities in being successful not only when it comes to business but just a human-being overall.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
It’s hard to pin-point exactly what I do cause I have my hand in so many things. And having multiple revenue streams is something I pride myself on. But if I was to give myself one title I guess you can say I’m one of the partners with Fly Supply Clothing. Here’s the short long version of my journey: I started my graphic design and web design company well over 15 years ago. Pretty much fresh out of high school. I’ve designed for so many notable companies and individuals: Pitbull, Dwyane Wade, NFL, World Famous House of Mac, Atlantic Records, Miami Food & Wine Fest just to name a few. I was making pretty good money and living a pretty comfortable life however, after doing this for so many years I was in need of a new challenge. My friends started a clothing line and they asked me to help with the new design for their website. I came by to present the new layout and from there I never turned back. We became business partners and nearly 10 years later Fly Supply has been worn by pretty much every celebrity, athlete and entertainer you can think of. Rick Ross, 50 Cent, Rihanna, Giancarlo Stanton, Diddy, Lil Wayne, Future, Kyrie Irving, Jason Derulo, Chris Brown and Patrick Mahomes to name a few. In addition to having a strong online presence; we have also sold both domestically and to international retail accounts. We were recently just picked up by Foot Locker again for our 3rd installment. We’ve even been asked to be a part of their upcoming Black History in-store event at their new Wynwood Miami location. Outside of our own in-house styles Fly Supply Clothing has been a part of some very amazing collaborations with the likes of Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson, Lamar Jackson (NFL MVP), Udonis Haslem (Captain of the Miami Heat), Ahol Sniffs Glue (world renowned artist) etc. With any business, you have ups and downs but one thing I feel that contributes to my success is basically “trusting the process”. If everything was easy or came easy then everyone would be successful and you definitely wouldn’t appreciate it. Always look at the glass half full instead of half empty. Be optimistic and manifest your goals before executing them! Most importantly, physically write down your goals. Make sure they are attainable and realistic. Start with your short term goals, then midterm goals and ultimately your long term goals. For me this helps me to stay on track and to monitor my progress. The feeling of checking things off my list give me a sense of accomplishment.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
As cliché is this sounds, doing straight-forward and honest business since day one has allowed us to grow organically throughout the years. I take no short cuts or have paid to play. At our office there’s this term you can hear any one of us say at any given time of the day and that’s basically “keeping your FaceGood” or “keeping your face clean.” In other words, moving with integrity and honesty will always outlast everything else.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?
The initial capital for our business basically came from each one of us. All 4 partners had jobs/careers but we all made a commitment to leave our gigs and focus on Fly Supply Clothing on a certain date. KP, who I went to high school with made the first leap of faith and quit his job. When he did that…that’s when we knew it was real and it’s GO TIME! During the first few years we didn’t even pay ourselves. Whatever profit we made from hand to hand sales or from online sales we just re-invested back into the company. It was a hard decision for each one of us to leave our jobs but making this sacrifice for each other and betting on ourselves ultimately paid off in the long run.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.flysupplyclothing.com
• Instagram: @flysupplyco
• Facebook: Fly Supply Clothing
• Twitter: @flysupplyco
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/FlySupplyCo
• Other: Flagship store: @airplanemodemia | 371 NW 170th St. Miami, FL 33169

Image Credits
Photographer: https://www.instagram.com/directorbryan/