Androu De Vera is a twenty-two year old marketing student with big dreams and quite an impressive resume. Not only is he the founder of FTD Clothing, but he is also a co-founder of Good Looks Chicago. Keep reading to learn more about Androu’s impressive accomplishments and advice for other young entrepreneurs.
What pushed you to become an entrepreneur?
I started off freshman year at the University of Iowa as a premed student, and I realized it really wasn’t for me. At the time my parents were struggling to pay for my school because of the out of state tuition. I made it my goal to find a way to help with payments and eventually pay them back. I’ve always had an interest in fashion and art, so I came up with the concept of FTD Society Clothing. But, I would say that I’ve always been somewhat of an entrepreneur, I would constantly buy and sell things.
Your first business venture was your clothing line, FTD Society, tell me more about that?
FTD Society, which stands for Fresh to Death Society, started out in my dorm room at the University of Iowa. Eventually I extended the brand into the online market and joined an online department store named Kazbah, which is a branch of Karmaloop. It didn’t take long to start selling internationally and around the US to places like Canada, California, and New York. As time went on I wanted to expand the brand more so I built teams and started sponsoring local DJ’s and rappers in Chicago. We traveled around to different states and set up vending spots at their shows to sell apparel. From there FTD Society grew even larger.
Then came Good Looks Chicago?
Good looks was started January 1 2015. I have two business Partners: Alex Kislov and Arviol Mala. We are a promotional/event company that focuses on various aspects of entertainment and fashion. We host/promote events such as fashions shows, rap shows, nightclubs, art events and even EDM events. It’s been extremely successful thus far; we actually tripled our profit projections for our first month in business!
Who are your role models/where does your inspiration come from?
When it comes to fashion, brands and companies like Obey, Supreme, and Hype Beast are where my inspiration comes from… very street and urban companies. As far as good looks, I get inspiration from magazines like Esquire, GQ, and Complex because of the high-class living lifestyle behind them. That’s what Good Looks is all about, those that work hard during the week, but still have time to party on the weekends. Go getters and entrepreneurs, essentially. We believe individuals should work hard, play harder and look good doing it.
What are your long-term goals/what’s coming next?
I plan to get my Masters in marketing and expand both companies while doing that. I want to finish school as a back up plan just incase things do not go according to plan. I hope to comfortably live downtown by the time I’m 28 and make enough money to give back to my family, because of the opportunities that they gave me. As far as Good Looks, my partners and I would love to eventually branch out to larger scale events such as festivals and fashion/art trade shows. I also plan to design a higher end clothing line, and outsource the clothing production. The clothing apparel would be sleek, modern, and well priced for the consumer.
Do you face criticism? If so, how do you handle it?
Oh yeah, I definitely face criticism, about my designs/photography especially. I use the criticism to make the final products better and give my audience what they want to see. I think it’s important to be open-minded.
Piece of advise for other young entrepreneurs?
Don’t have your head in the clouds. Be realistic and always remain humble about what you have. Also, nothing comes easy. Like everyone says, “If it was easy everyone would be doing it.” Believe in what you do because if you don’t believe in yourself then why should others. Furthermore, be organized and manage time efficiently. There are 24 hours in a day what you do with those hours will differentiate you from being successful or not. Last but not least, set your ego aside and do not be afraid to ask for help. One person can only do so much by him or herself.
FTD Society Social Media:
- Facebook.com/freshtodeathsociety
- Twitter: @FTDsociety
- Instagram: @FTDsociety
- Tumblr: ftdsocietyclothing.tumblr.com
- Pinterest.com/FTDsociety
- Youtube.com/theFTDsociety
- Email: freshtodeathsociety@yahoo.com
Good Looks Chicago Social Media:
- Facebook.com/goodlookschi
- Twitter: @GoodLooksChi
- Instagram: @GoodLooksChi
- Email: goodlookschicago@gmail.com