027: Beard Brand's Eric Bandholz on growing to a 7-figure turnover since 2013. By delivering on a vision

Eric Bandholz launched Beardbrand in 2013 and is now a 7-figure business. Beardbrand is a range of products for looking after a beard (strangely enough!), the majority of the products are designed by the Beardbrand team, with a few best of breed exceptions. The products are available from their 2 international online stores, and various retail distributors.

Click to Tweet: Check out Eric Bandholz talking about how Beardbrand was cultivated on the @eComMasterPlan #podcast

About the business

eCommerce Business Structure – Online Only with some wholesale
Product Range Scale – Fairly niche
On a Shopify platform
10 people in the business across 4 departments
- Operations
- Wholesale
- Marketing & Sales
- Creative
They outsource the elements they feel are not core to their business:
- Fulfillment
- PR
- Digital Marketing
- Web Development
Based in the US, sell globally
Key widgets in the website:
- Yotpo – for reviews
- ShippingEasy – for fulfilment
- Zendesk – for customer service
- Stitch Labs – for inventory management
- Recharge – for recurring billing

Listen to hear Eric’s advice on whether to include the content on your eCommerce site or on a seperate site.

Most Awesome Thing Right Now

Beardbrand are in the process of building an influencer programme. They have successfully recruited over 20 remarkable guys, with interesting stories to tell to ‘Team Beardbrand’. They will focus on promoting Beardbrand’s vision to shift society’s perception of people with facial hair.

On the Radar for the Coming Months

Eric is keen to start his own podcast to complement his YouTube channel.

Tips for What you Should Outsource

Areas that do not require a full-time position.
Areas that you do not have expertise in and don’t want to gain expertise in.
Areas that are not a core aspect of the business.

You can hear about all this on the podcast, for free – right now…

eCommerce Book Top Tip

Eat People: And Other Unapologetic Rules for Game-Changing Entrepreneurs by Andy Kessler

eCommerce Traffic Top Tip

YouTube – helps the audience understand the vision and passion of your business.

Tool Top Tip

Grasshopper – which is a computer routing platform has helped keep Beardbrands lean. Customers can call in on a free phone number – but that can be directed to any mobile.

Start Up Top Tip

Finding the right team! Business can be lonely and it is important to surround yourself with people who are philosophically aligned.

If your business didn’t exist, which eCommerce Business Would you like to be Running?

Nixon – They’ve got a real good look, feel and vibe – as well as some great products.

Interview Links

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