Attorney Sells Cork Sunglasses With Grape Expectations

This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.

Any hobby that has a large following, anything that has a lot of people that are interested in participating, likely has a lot of options for byproducts or opportunities to sell something associated with the hobby. This could mean a lot of different things. I'll talk about some options at the end of the episode. Today we're going to look in particular at the hobby of wine. Or I guess you could say the passion, the industry, whatever you want to call it.

In today's story, when two fashion-loving friends go in search of a business opportunity, they discover a bright future, selling cork sunglasses to wine aficionados. I'll tell you where the idea comes from and how they made it happen. We'll look at that question of byproducts, additional opportunities, and so on right after the story. I'm glad you're here. My name is Chris Guillebeau.

That story is coming up in just 30 seconds. Joseph O. Bell and David Egan live in Austin, Texas. Both are young professionals with Joseph working as a construction litigation attorney and David in finance. As friends, they bond over fashion and wine.

In fact, for them, enjoying a glass of Cabernet can turn a regular day into a cause for celebration. Joseph has been a working attorney for several years. The hours are long and the work demanding, but at the same time, it's a well-paid field that comes with its own job security. David personifies the side hustle spirit a bit more. Outside of his day job, he's had several different money-making projects, the most successful of which was Taco Suites, a food truck that put a sugary spin on a traditionally savory dish.

One thing they share is that they're both always on the lookout for opportunities, discussing ideas together over a glass of red. Most of these conversations don't amount to much, but every now and then, something fruitful arises. It's not unlike growing grapes, where the vine grows for years before it yields fruit. One particular idea that got their attention was something specific in the fashion space, a sunglasses company. But to avoid having to compete with the big companies, they decided to make them specifically targeted to wine lovers, a pair of glasses they could wear in a vineyard, while enjoying a cab sov as the sun goes down.

Their original idea was to make them out of cork, to stick with the wine theme. It would make the glasses unique, allow them to be marketed directly to wine lovers, and beyond that, they hoped it would be a great conversation starter. They put a corkscrew into this idea, diving in further. The first thing they needed was a supply, someone to actually produce the glasses. To find one, it seemed obvious to turn to China.

David had some experience working with suppliers there, and was able to provide Joseph with a couple of promising leads. Joseph then made a few calls and selected a manufacturer. But dealing with suppliers in China can be difficult. There's a language barrier, long shipping times, and quality control can be a real problem. In hindsight, Joseph says it probably would have been worth visiting the manufacturers in person, to get the lay of the land and sort out any issues.

It might be a hassle at first, but in the long term, it would make for a better relationship. Still, Joseph worked for the issues quickly, and soon had his first batch of cork sunglasses. The initial cost was only $250 for 50 pair. Now over to David, who had some experience in web design from his previous ventures, built their website. And with that, it was time to celebrate.

A vineyard son, their new side hustle, was officially open for business. They committed to investing the profits into buying more sunglasses and trying to grow things further. Since they were very happy with the quality of the cork product, which actually floats in water, by the way, they thought about cold calling a batch of wineries to try to sell them directly. Now, most people hate that approach, but Joseph was committed. He figured, why not?

With a list of wineries from all over the country, he got to work. The plan was to sell those wineries, sunglasses wholesale from vineyard son, and they would then sell them onto their guests and visitors. With much apprehension, Joseph dialed the first number, a winery in Washington, and another cork popped. After a quick pitch, that winery actually bought 10 pairs of sunglasses. Joseph and David were both a little groggy with excitement.

They sold those for $35 at wholesale, which the winery would then resell them for $70 retail. What flowed over the next year was a series of marketing experiments. More cold calling, snail mail, and email to wineries. They tried pitching to boutique stores and gift box subscription services. What worked the best was building up a following on their Instagram and Facebook accounts.

It's helped get the word out and produce direct sales. Also, having a brand with an online presence makes things seem more legitimate when they're cold calling. They were also featured in a few publications around Austin. These efforts led to sales increasing steadily in the two and a half years since launch. In fact, they've already launched a new style.

Now they have Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. This is for sunglasses, by the way, not wine. But if things continue to go well, perhaps we'll see Merlot and Chiraz in the future. That brings us to today where, like a fine wine, Vineyard Sun has only gotten better with age. The side hustle is now at the point where it's consistently bringing in $500 profit per month.

While that's nowhere near enough for a full-time living, that is their eventual goal. To sell enough pairs of sunglasses to wine lovers all over the world, the Vineyard Sun can become Joseph and David's primary pursuit. All right, congratulations to Joseph and David. As mentioned, at markets with byproducts, offshoots, and additional opportunities, there are just so many. So many markets like that, and then so many byproducts and offshoots.

In fact, in terms of wine, there are an estimated 84 million regular wine drinkers just in the U.S. So it's obvious that selling wine to them is a good way to make money, but they're also interested in other stuff. Perhaps even sunglasses. What else could you sell to wine lovers? Maybe there are other fashion items.

Maybe it's something educational, directories, guides, wine hacks, probably more. And you can apply this thinking to plenty of other markets as well. Any kind of sport, any hobby, any game, any popular activity. So it's not just about what that main thing is, but everything that surrounds it. Before I go, I want to give a shout-out to a new book that just came out from Kathy Heller.

And it's called "Don't Keep Your Day Job." The pursuit of happiness is all about finding our purpose. We don't want to just go to work and build someone else's dream. We want to do our life's work. What are those key ingredients? Well, that's what her book is all about.

Don't keep your day job. Ask for it at a bookstore near you, or of course you can check it out from your favorite online retailer. All right, inspiration is good, but inspiration with action is better. Today's show notes. All right, sidehustleschool.com/1053.

That's episode 1,053. Thanks so much for listening. I'll be back again tomorrow, so be sure you're subscribed. My name is Chris Guillebeau for Side Hustle School. From the Onward Project.