But he and cofounder Paul Mitchell squirreled together $700 and hit the pavement, peddling their shampoo door-to-door. Today Paul Mitchell is $1 billion a year revenue business.Proving that he wasn’t just lucky, DeJoria cofounded Patron Spirits in 1989 as a hobby and went on to create a global market for luxury tequila. The two premium brands, Paul Mitchell and Patron, have made DeJoria one of the wealthiest people in America with $4 billion fortune.
Here DeJoria, a product and marketing master, shares four secrets for entrepreneurs out to build a world-class brand from scratch.
1. Create the best product you can and know it’s the best product.
“Believe in yourself and know you have a great service and a great product that will put you in the reorder business… You’re never selling–you’re trying to get it into someone’s hands, whether it’s a service or a product–knowing it’s so darn good they’ll want o order it again or tell a friend about it.”
2. Stick to your vision and be ready for rejection.
“You’re going to run across a lot of rejection. Be prepared for the rejection. No matter how bad it is don’t let it overcome you and influence you—keep on going towards what you want to do–no matter what… You need to be as enthusiastic about door number one-hundred as door number one.”
3. Win over your early customers again and again.
“Once [a customer] say yes, you have to put your personality into it. Go by and thank them, make sure it’s going well…You must pay attention to your first customers—real attention, because it’s easier to keep somebody than to get somebody new. And those people you give the extra attention to will be your best sources for recommendations because they’ll like you and tell someone else.”
4. Hire one employee for multiple roles—it makes the company more flexible, efficient and lean.
“If you are hiring people, give them two or three jobs, and pay them a little more. If things get tough, you’ll never have to lay them off.”
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