You might see student John-Michael Sedor walking on Comm Ave or maybe in the dining hall, but how much do you really know about him? Some recognize John-Michael from his talk-radio show he hosts on WTBU or even from BUTV10’s “Terrier Nation.” But there is more to this sophomore COM student than just his multitude of activities on campus. John-Michael actually started his own t-shirt company “Evolve” back when he was only a senior in high school.
It all began on any regular day when John-Michael casually sat in his dorm room at boarding school, he then made sure to mention, and “I wasn’t there because I was a bad kid or anything.” His friend, current sophomore at Wake Forest University, Will Dietshe, burst into the room and proposed an idea to start a t-shirt line consisting of his recently created, alternative monkey design. John-Michael, excited to venture into the business world, always loved clothes and style, which made him more than eager to create a clothing brand just like his favorite one, “Billionaire Boys” (a street line that many famous artists wear like Pharrell). The two friends decided to begin their journey as businessmen with this urban, hip t-shirt line that hopefully underground artists would begin to sport.
John-Michael currently helps design the shirts and sends them to the customers who place orders on the website, http://www.anevolvedbrand.com. He also contacts local artists about possibly wearing their shirts in future gigs and appearances. This small business is much more difficult to orchestrate than John-Michael ever expected, but it offers him a new perspective on entrepreneurship. John-Michael understands that the company might always stay a small project, but he loves the experience and says it’s empowering to say, “Yeah, we started our own company.” John-Michael hopes that some day he will see at least one random person on the street wearing his shirt. This, he mentions, would be the greatest success. He offered a last piece of advice, “Always grab any opportunity that comes your way, even if it seems difficult or something you weren’t currently interested in at first. Everyone is constantly changing and that’s where the name “Evolve” came from. It is the clothing for the future.”