We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Ryan Munro. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Ryan below.
Ryan, appreciate you joining us today. Can you tell us a story about a time you failed?
Well, this one is simple. Back in 2018, I travelled to Glasgow, which was around an hour and a half away from my house, to take part in a pop-up shop that was held by another brand.
I couldn’t wait to tell people about the brand, sell some pieces to customers and put the sold pieces into the paper bags that I spent hours spray painting with homemade stencils a few days before. The excitement was unbearable!
The day came and I ended up standing for 7 hours and didn’t sell a single item. I think two people came up to talk to me the whole day and I walked away totally devastated and embarrassed.
It completely put me off going to pop-ups (I’d been asked a few times and turned it down) out of fear that it would happen again.
Fast forward two years and I was asked if I wanted to take part in a Christmas pop-up that was going to be hosted – things had been going well for Global and I thought why not? – I had two goals, sell one single piece and talk to as many people as I could about the brand.
I can’t even put into words how taken back I was by the number of people that came to talk to me, some familiar faces, some not. Such an overwhelming experience. It’s fair to say I sold more than one piece and more than surpassed the two goals I’d set!
Ryan, 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?
My name is Ryan, I’m a 23-year-old from Dundee (in the North-East of Scotland). I have always had a passion for art, design, and fashion from a very early age.
I first played with the idea of designing clothes at the age of 14, but as with any teenager, I got bored and left it in the past.
By age 17, I began working in design and decided to give it a go. I had nothing to lose. Just after I turned 18, I decided it was time to get things going, and started off with a small order for friends and family, and from there, it took off!
I take care of everything for Global, whether that is designing, placing orders, trips to the post office, or emailing customers and suppliers. I’ve done everything by myself from day one, and continue to over 5 years later.
I’m most proud of the fact I’ve continued to run a successful clothing-brand for over 5 years, and have no signs of stopping now!
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I had just begun an apprenticeship, and with no real expenditure at the time, I saved the money to pay for the first order. From there, I was relatively wise with the income I was receiving, 5 years on and I’m yet to take a paycheque from Global. I think that’s the great thing about having a full-time job alongside a side hustle, if you want to continue something you love and have passion for, don’t associate monetary value to it, because it becomes a job.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
When I first started Global the market was pretty un-tapped, there weren’t many brands in the area and I had picked the right time to start a brand. It was easy to build up a reputation, because there weren’t many to choose from, it was only a matter of when someone would place an order with the brand.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.globalcollect.shop
- Instagram: globalcollect
- Facebook: collectglobal
Image Credits
Mohammed Ammani – Model Alistair Meiklejohn – Model Andrew Arthur – Photgrapher