![]() ![]() He got a booth at an entrepreneur fair in San Diego and priced his sunglasses at about $20 each. In 2012, Fisher went to sell Blenders for the first time. When he found a manufacturer, his first order was for 300 pairs of sunglasses – which cost the entire $2,000 loan – featuring black frames, red detailing and the brand’s signature pair of stripes on the arms. Those positive reactions validated Fisher’s idea and gave him the confidence to ask his roommate to borrow the $2,000 with a promise to pay back the loan with a 25% return (or a total of $2,500) in six months.įisher then spent eight months tyring to bring his designs to life, researching online and googling things like “how to find a manufacturer” and looking for negotiating tips. “Before we knew it, we had hundreds of likes and a lot of people. “I hustled to get fans to that Facebook group,” inviting all of his friends and family, Fisher says of the company’s first social media presence, which amassed 1,500 followers over a few months. Jensen created a few mockups of sunglasses and the pair shared them on Facebook to seek feedback. So in 2011, Fisher started Blenders with his neighbor, Blake Jensen, a graphic designer. ![]() “In the darkest of times and in the lowest of your life, you can create opportunity,” he says. The idea of starting his own business was also motivating to Fisher, who had always struggled in school due to dyslexia. ![]() So “I decided to go out and create our own.” “There wasn’t really a competitor or a brand that was in between that offered a cool style sunglass at a price point that was affordable and quality and comfortable,” he says. He bought his own sunglasses at Target, because he “couldn’t afford the shades I actually wanted,” like Gucci, Oakley or Ray-Ban, which can cost hundreds of dollars. I would be spending nine hours a day at the beach just noticing people and the expensive sunglasses that they were wearing,” Fisher, now 32, says. And in December 2019, Blenders was valued at $90 million after Italian eyewear company, the Safilo Group, announced it would acquire 70% of the company. Within three years, Blenders made over $1 million in revenue. Fisher started to sell his product out of his backpack on the beach where he worked as a surf instructor. The reaction to his cheap shades made Fisher realize there was an untapped market for stylish sunglasses that weren’t as expensive as name-brands, which he could cash in on.įisher borrowed $2,000 from his roommate and launched the sunglasses company Blenders Eyewear (named after Hornblend, the street he lived on). It spawned the idea for what’s now a $90 million business: Blenders Eyewear. Where’d you get those? Let me try them on,'” Fisher tells CNBC Make It. Chase Fisher had his multimillion-dollar business idea at a San Diego nightclub in 2011.įisher, who had just graduated from San Diego State University, was suprised by how many people were complimenting the cheap, neon green sunglasses he was wearing as an accessory: “They were like, ‘Those are so cool. ![]()
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