Failure Friday: “80% of our customers never returned…”

What It’s About

A subscription box for baseball fans almost strikes out.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1966

I believe we can learn as much from failure as we can from success, if not more. It’s with this principle in mind that I offer you a weekly segment called Failure Friday: a collection of short stories all about mistakes, missteps, disasters, and of course, failure.

Just like our Throwback Thursday segment, you’ll hear directly from side hustlers who have struggled to get something off the ground. They’ll tell you a short story of something that went very wrong.

The stories will vary, but often it starts with an idea, what they thought would happen and what really happened—and of course, what they learned.

Today’s short story features Josh from PlateCrate.com, a subscription box all about baseball.

Business was growing, and the team decided to upgrade the website and make a big change. Everything went perfectly well!

Oops, wrong story. The migration turned into a major headache, and then a complete disaster.

Listen to today’s episode to learn more…

 


 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

  • Thanks to Josh for sharing this transparent and truthful story. Check out PlateCrate.com or follow them on Instagram and Facebook at @platecrate. He’s got more than 1,200 published reviews, so obviously a lot of baseball fans have been enjoying their crates!

SEE ALSO:

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

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Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

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There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

Avid Baseball Fan Hits Home Run With Subscription Box

What It’s About

Root, root, root for this baseball themed subscription box.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Josh says, If you want something to be your full-time job, make it your full-time job. That doesn’t mean quit your current job…it just means sit in front of your computer and do the work.. We agree!

Fun Fact

Side hustle opportunities can present themselves by combining the old with the new. In this case, presenting the new billion-dollar distribution channel of subscription boxes to the millions of baseball fans worldwide.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1205
When Josh Band was a kid, he set himself the goal of playing professional baseball. He believed in betting against the odds, but he knew the chances of getting into the major leagues were pretty low. There are thousands of hopefuls who want to make it—but only a select few can grace the dugout of Yankee Stadium or Fenway Park.

So, Josh figured he needed a backup plan… and selling products online seemed to fit, well, like a glove.

Back in 2015, the subscription box craze was taking off. These are the boxes where you pay a monthly fee and in exchange receive a bunch of swag and products. The fad started with cosmetics, but Josh noticed it spreading to other niches as well. He began to wonder, why wasn’t there a subscription box for baseball lovers like him?

He decided that since there wasn’t one, he could be the guy to step up to the plate and make it happen. He already had the perfect name: Plate Crate – a monthly box of baseball gear and greatness.

He set aside two thousand dollars with the goal of making this dream a reality. In fact, he was so committed to hitting a grand-slam that he was willing to go all-in from the beginning… not our normal procedure or recommendation!

To start, Josh had to find enough baseball-related products to satisfy his customers every month. He went straight to wholesalers and tried to bargain for the best prices. But that was hard to do without volume, which he didn’t yet have. Luckily though, he was about to arrive at second base.

In his first month after launching Josh had twenty customers. A successful start, but not enough to bring in the relief team. Those twenty customers brought in around one thousand dollars a month in revenue which Josh fast-balled backed into influencer ads … to reach more baseball lovers.

After more time, hours, and extra innings, the momentum started to shift. Josh felt like he was getting close to the playoffs. Revenue kept increasing and he’d nabbed discounts on several products. He also began ordering gear direct from China that was branded as Plate Crate—a huge move in making his subscription box more official.

In fact, in terms of side hustles, Plate Crate has become a heavy hitter. Josh’s business generated over nine hundred thousand dollars in revenue in 2019. While there’s plenty left over for him to go full time and he has given away most of his other jobs, he does continue to personal train a couple of days a week, mostly because he enjoys it.

He didn’t make it as a professional baseball player, but his side hustle game is ready for the major leagues.

 


 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SEE ALSO:

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

GET $625 IN FREE TRAVEL

Earn 50,000 travel rewards points (enough for 2 round-trip plane tickets or $625 in travel credit). You'll also earn 2x points on all travel and dining spend, with zero foreign transaction fees.

I use this card every day all over the world! ✈️ Learn More

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

Quote of the Day
"If you want something to be your full-time job, make it your full-time job. That doesn’t mean quit your current job…it just means sit in front of your computer and do the work."
—Josh Band #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Learn More With Skillshare!

Supporting the sponsors keeps the show free. Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Skillshare. 📷

Skillshare is giving Side Hustle School listeners 2 months of unlimited access—for $0.99! Join the 2 million students learning everything from street photography to SEO on Skillshare today!
Get Started Here!

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.


Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau

High School Teacher Starts Baseball Pitching Academy

What It’s About

Root for this teacher who starts not one, not two, but three Baseball hustles.

[podcast_details]

Words of Wisdom

Follow your passion, learn what people need, and find out how to merge both of those.

Fun Fact

In the summer of 2010 and 2011, Mike was the pitching coach for the Stark County Terriers of the Great Lakes Collegiate Baseball League. During that time, he coached five pitchers who have gone on to play professional baseball.

Notes from Chris

Episode 1005

In 2006, Mike Grady was coaching college baseball while working as a loan officer. A parent asked if he would be willing to teach his 8-year-old son to pitch. When he accepted the offer, he saw how the right coaching could improve a young pitcher’s skills … and how it could put extra money in his pocket.

He decided to see if he could coach anyone else … and he took an old-school approach to finding clients. He made up a simple flyer that he posted at the gym, on announcement boards at baseball fields, and anywhere the parents of baseball playing kids might be.

Even in this always-connected world, when it comes to parents making decisions about their kids, they still rely on other parents to make recommendations. That’s how Grady’s Pitching School came to be. It offers private instruction, team sessions, and off-season training programs. But this was only the start of Mike’s baseball dynasty.

Then came phase two. A few years ago, the parent of two of the pitching school’s students approached Mike about opening a training facility of his own as a partnership. By that time, Mike was working with nearly 100 students, some of whom drove two hours to their lessons. A dedicated training facility in a central location seemed like an obvious next step.

That facility, Velocity Sports, is a separate business from Grady’s Pitching School. It’s allowed Mike to hire additional instructors to help run the programs. People can also buy memberships to the facility which allows them to use the equipment to train on their own. Oh, and that’s not all—it can be rented out for birthday parties. Why not?

And wait … there are still more innings left in this story.

For his third baseball-related side hustle, Mike now sells a set of a soft-shell balls pitchers use for training. He used to buy them for his students and realized how big the markup was. So naturally, he found a seller on Alibaba that could make a similar product which allowed him to have input into the design.

Mike clearly has a lot on his home plate. In addition to his three side hustles, he now works as a full-time teacher. He also has a wife and two young children. To make time for work and family, he’s learned to automate as many processes as possible. There is an online scheduling system for his pitching clients to book their lessons and he is even able to automate grading at school. If he had to grade by hand, he simply wouldn’t have time.

He’s come a long way from the days of leaving his phone number on those flyers. Now instead of calling him to ask questions, parents can go to his website and get all of the information they need. Mike is in an enviable position. The businesses continue to grow and he loves teaching high school … so he’s going to keep pitching doubleheaders for as long as he can.

 


 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

 

SEE ALSO:

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

cg-sig-newsletter

Resources

CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE

Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.

Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today! Learn More

GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS

Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time. Learn More

Quote of the Day
"These projects have changed my life. I love baseball, and I love teaching. By doing this I get to do both and I get to be around others who share that same passion."
—Mike Grady #SideHustleSchool

Sponsors & Gratitude

Don't Do Business Without It

Side Hustle School is brought to you by American Express.

No matter what you do in business, from working nine-to-five to working five-to-nine, it’s easier when you don’t go it alone. Get the powerful backing of American Express—don't do business without it! 💳 Visit American Express

Like the Show? Leave a Rating!

Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅

It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Here's How

Keep in Touch

There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!


To infinity and beyond,

Chris Guillebeau