The Story of How I Started my First Online Clothing Brand at Age 9

Casey's Tees. CTZ for short.

That was the name of my first ever "real" business.

First off... what was I thinking with that name?

Second off... I was 9 years old. Oh, right. That's why that name sounded like a good idea.

I consider "CASEYSTEES" my first real business, because it was the first business I ever bought an internet domain for.

(By I, I mean asking my parents to graciously pay 99 cents to register my domain for me, because I didn't have a credit card yet).

If you've ever bought a domain name before, you'll know, that it might be the highest peak of excitement you'll experience out of the entire business journey ahead of you.

It's sort of like creating a logo for your business— for whatever reason, a logo, makes it real. The same is true for a domain. It's the first step in your vision entering the world (it's also why most never get past this step...once they realize the hard path ahead of them).

Jokes aside, before this venture, it was lemonade stands, hustling high-chew candy around my elementary school, and selling beautifully re-packaged mistletoe around the holiday, which I picked from trees around my neighborhood.

None of these, I really ever considered as businesses (even though now, looking back, I do).

They were more so activities, more than anything. Activities that I just happened to set out upon, for the joy of making a buck for myself and due to the entrepreneurial blood that (unknowingly) flowed through my veins.

With the GoDaddy domain acquired, I set up my Big Cartel website and was ready to start selling my t-shirt designs online that I created using free design software.

One day went by, 2 days went by, then a week...zero sales.

"What's happening?? I thought everyone would want to buy Casey's Tees!" I thought to myself.

And that right there, at the ripe age of 8 years old, was my first lesson in business marketing.

No one was going to just magically show up, and start spending their hard earned dollars on my (quite frankly, poorly designed/ugly) t-shirts.

I needed to make my shirts visible. I needed to push the website out...

I showed CASEYSTEES to everyone I knew. Friends, family, my school teachers, my drum teacher... and alas! A sale.

That feeling was magical. That feeling, is what I'm still chasing today...that feeling of creating something out of thin air that didn't exist before, and bringing it into existence so much so, that people are willing to spend their money on it.

I think out of the entire livelihood of this "business," I sold maaybee 5 or 6 t-shirts total.

On the outside, it was a failure. But on the inside, it was a major success.

I learned product design, how to set up a domain, how to design an e-commerce storefront, how to market, and so much more.

It set me up for my next businesses (and my next learnings).

It's said we should look back on the things that brought us joy as children, to discover what we should be working on in the present (our calling).

As children, we're sort of frolicking through life. We haven't started over-analyzing life yet...we simply, just. play.

For most, it's during their childhood where they'll ever have highest amount of "play." It's also, when it's the most encouraged.

I'm extremely grateful that this sort of mentality has been instilled within me from a young age by my parents, who are both creatives and entrepreneurs.

I've been encouraged to follow my natural creative curiosities, rather than suppress them and be "practical," as most are told to do

I want that for everyone. I want everyone to find deep joy, passion, and fulfillment from the work they do.

It's in part why I started this newsletter. To share stories like this... and hopefully, inspire someone in my network to take action towards the things they love, and find a path to make a living from it.

That's what life is all about.

Self-actualization (desire to become the most that one can be) is on the very top of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. And so, if that's true, it's crazy we live in a society where the majority of people aren't deeply passionate for their work... in fact, many people will go as far as saying they hate their work.

As we grow up, society strips us further and further away from the activities we had so much fun doing as kids.

I encourage everyone to look back to their early childhood, and ask yourselves what was I working on?

The answer to that question, should inform what you should be spending your time doing today.

I'll end this with Pablo Picasso's famous quote,

“Every child is an artist.?The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”

If you made it here, thanks for reading! I hope you got something out of it. If you did, be sure to?follow me, drop a like, comment, and?subscribe?to my LinkedIn newsletter, "The Creative Entrepreneur," where I dive deep into my lessons, journey, findings, and mindset as a creative person navigating the world of entrepreneurship, building profitable businesses fueled by passion.

See you in the next one!

-Casey