We’ve now grown from the two of us packing and shipping in that barn to a team. That was three years ago and I haven’t returned to medical school. We just went to work packing and shipping. We got a little warehouse, which was actually a metal barn in the backyard of somebody’s house. I packed everything up into a pickup truck. I was a broke medical student at the time. She said, “Oh yeah, sure, no problem.” So I took a year off. So I asked the dean of medical school if I could take a year off to help my friend launch this company. Then it just got too busy that I had to make a decision. We started to build an inventory management platform inhouse. That’s all that was needed, but eventually things got bigger and bigger, and I started helping Sidney out with more systems and infrastructure. At first, it was just a WordPress page with some very simple credit card processing. So we operated that and we kind of improved it. There’s been an explosion in subscription services since, but this was our unique variation of that. We haven’t changed the business model since. Yeah, even for the very first day it was immediately a hit. Everything would be included in the service and we’d try to do a better job the next month of styling you. Whatever you didn’t like, you would return and the postage would be included. Whatever you kept, we would charge you for. You would give us your credit card and fill out a style profile and then we would send you an outfit every single month. The concept was you would sign up with Nadine West. Immediately there were customers that loved the concept. So we built it and spent a little bit of money advertising on Facebook. I did it on evenings and weekends while I wasn’t studying for medical school exams. I’m more of the tech guy than he is so I helped him build the initial website just to see if the proof of concept was going to be worth pursuing. In my first year of medical school, my friend Sidney, who’s the co-founder at Nadine West, and we’d worked on some ventures before, he proposed to me an idea. So I took a detour from the typical business career and I went to medical school for a couple of years. Yeah, so actually during Kellogg, the reason for starting Ben’s Friends was because I had a brain aneurism that ruptured. Or you can thank God that this is only an audio podcast and you don’t have to look at us. Before we started recording we were both talking about how tired and old we looked on video so you can visualize the two young, young people meeting, becoming friends. I went to Kellogg’s business school with Scott, that’s where we first met and have been friends since back in 2005 I think. The way that I got here is unconventional, but I think there’s a lot of patterns that you can see, and a common thread running through both Ben’s Friends as well as the startup Nadine West. I don’t have a background in apparel or eCommerce. Ben maybe tell the quick background on Nadine West, how you got involved. Ben and Nadine West are also clients of Kruze Consulting so wanted to have them on. I’m actually a personal investor in the company. Ben started Nadine West probably three or four years ago. We’re going to talk about Ben’s real job, which is Nadine West. We also started Ben’s Friends, the non-profit for patient support communities together. Ben and I have been friends for many years, I think 10 years, 12 years. Knowing where to start is half the battle, and Nadine West makes it easy.Welcome to Founders and Friends Podcast with Scott Orn. These days, there are countless personal styling subscription services to choose from, but Nadine West sets itself apart with a commitment to more accessibility “in terms of price, sizing, and fashion,” and “no membership or styling fees.” Now, MSA readers can shop Nadine West's biggest sale yet: Receive $30 off and get free shipping when you keep every item from your box. Maybe, we can even introduce you to new styles.” We aim to make getting dressed fun, and easy. Your best friend is always here to help you look and feel your best! We'll send you outfits that match your style and budget. “The way we think about ourselves is, Nadine West is like your best friend, who knows you better than you know yourself. or at least dress you like one.įounded in 2013, Nadine West is a subscription service focused on “providing women with personalized stylish outfits at affordable prices,” they recently told My Subscription Addiction. Nadine West wants to be your best friend.
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