Andrew Rosen Built Theory and Backed SKIMS – Here’s What He’d Tell Every Founder

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26:27You've mentioned the word principles and philosophy a couple of times in the short time we've been speaking. It strikes me as like just knowing and working with you that you are such a highly principled person in the terms of the way you do business, the way you make decisions, the way you take on responsibility. Is that something that you, like, is it something that you're very conscious of or is it so wired into you that you don't even think about it at this point. I think it's something that's wired into me. I don't think about it, but you know, I remember my dad said to me one time, I don't understand why all these people are saying they like you.

27:04I don't want you to be liked. I want you to be respected. I learned at a very early age that if you wanted to be respected, you had to do the right thing. And that's what I've always tried to do. The right thing may mean different things to different people, principles and integrity and And the way I want to live my life and the way I want to do business and the way I want people to think of me, it's a certain way. And that's wired into me. A lot of people aren't going to agree with what I do or how I do it. But as long as I'm comfortable with it, that's good enough. It's funny that you say a lot of people wouldn't agree because it's really hard to get any shit on you.

27:46because everybody that you call, even if you've given really harsh, hard feedback in that way that only Andrew does, they really respect you. And I feel like everyone at some point has sat in your office, had a meeting with you, spoken about their business, certainly anyone in fashion in New York. And you are a no holds barred person. You never tell people what they want to hear. You always are very truthful and you're very explicit with that truth. You're not really dressing up because you don't have that kind of time. And yet you are extremely well liked. Is there a reason that you think that that's the case with you?

28:25You must be aware of that reputation. Are you? I think that... I couldn't get anyone to talk shit about you, basically, Andrew. I made all the calls. I think the environment that you create is important to the success of your business. So I try to be fair with people. I try to be compassionate with people. And as I say, I try to do the right thing. It doesn't mean that it's always the most popular thing, but it's the thing that I think is in the best interest of the mission ahead. It's nice that people feel that way. And I guess that goes back to the conversation I had with my father. And people did like me, but more importantly, they respected me.

29:07Yeah, I think the same could be true. You know, that's something, as I said, I learned at an early age and something, you know, it's interesting because I'm sure what he said to me, you know, just rolled off his tongue and he didn't think that 50 years later I was going to remember it and it was going to be, you know, something that had a great impact on my life. Yeah, and a great impact on so many other people's lives because I think that that is the big thing about you, like your wisdom and your know-how, like you're not a gatekeeper. You're someone who is willing to share the information, to pass on the knowledge, to show that to other people.

29:44And I think that there's been so many people, whether you've invested in the company or not, that have benefited from that wisdom. And you might not think about it like that, but I think it's pretty true of how other people see you. Yeah, but I learned from other people and I'm still learning today. And I like to meet young people that founded their businesses or starting their business or involved in their business. And I learned a lot from conversations with them. They learn from me, but I'm also learning from them. I'm now of a generation that really should be retiring, but I have no interest in retiring.

30:15I'm still building and going and wanting to do lots more. And the reason that is, is because I'm around young people all the time. I'm around young ideas, and I'm still interested and curious about that. Yeah, no doubt. I mean, I always find that fascinating about you, that you will know about the new hottest handbag startup before I do. And I'm like, oh shit, Like I need to go and get this thing or like, you know, you'll call up and you'll be like, these people are making like injected molded shoes out of AI algorithm. And I'm like, okay, Andrew, like, let's go and see them. But that is so much a part of you.

30:48Like you are constantly in learning mode. You are absorbing from the young energy all around you. And you've kind of made it your business to know, to be in the know. You're not like sitting here talking about Ralph Lauren and Anne Klein anymore, really. Maybe Ralph Lauren, because that's still. Ralph Lauren. We're all talking about Ralph Lauren again now. Having an incredible comeback. I know, what a comeback. It's amazing. I want to talk a bit about theory because to me, theory was such an interesting business because what you saw, and actually, again, it goes back to your superpowers. You have this incredible way of seeing what's coming down the pipe, like what's actually happening and looking into the future.

31:24And you saw that the way women were dressing for work was really changing. Like, I'm curious to understand how you knew that that shift in behavior could actually become a business? So here's what, this is now 1995, 96, 97. So the world was a completely different place. Cell phones were just coming. The internet was just coming. I understood that people's lives were going to change dramatically. They were no longer going to be chained to an office. They were going to be moving around and work was going to become a very different thing. I felt that if I could make clothing that matched what the new paradigm for the working woman was going to be, I was going to have something.

32:15And at that time, remember, I just got fired from Ann Klein. I wasn't really hireable because who was going to hire me? I actually went on two interviews. One interview was with Linda Walkner. She was a big powerhouse at the time, the CEO of Warnico. And she had a job for me out in California to run Speedo or one of these, this whole thing she had out there. I wasn't picking up and moving to California. No, no, you don't work in California. I had another interview with Silas Chow and Lauren Stroll. You were ready to go to Tommy or Tommy? What was happening? Now I'm getting, I'm really getting into stuff.

33:00But I had an interview with Silas and Lawrence. They were looking for someone to run Peppy Jeans. Oh. But I don't think they thought I was the right person for that. More much then. So I realized that finding a job was not going to be the way to go. But I wanted to start my own business anyway. I wanted to do something on my own and personal. And Ellie Tahari called me up. Amazing talent. Ellie is an interesting character. I mean, we could go on about that, but we don't need to. But Ellie called me and Ellie said, why don't we get together? I got together with him and he and I sort of hit it off.

33:36But I have the ability to deal with people that are a little left of center. And Ellie was definitely left of center. And he's such a nice, polite way to put it. You know, he's a creative guy and he's a survivor. and, you know, he came here with nothing and built an incredible business and all, but he was different. And Ellie said, why don't you come and help me run my business? I said, I don't want to help you run your business. I want to start my own business. He says, you will start a business together too. He says, you'll help me run my business. We'll start a business. And that business was Ellie Sahari, like the brand, his namesake brand.

34:16It was actually a good situation for me because, you know, I could earn some money helping run his business. Well, I started a business that he and I had together. That business was theory. And he had been screwing around with lots of these stretch fabrics. And I said to him, why don't we start a company where all the fabrics are made with Lycra and all the clothes we make are going to be out of fabrics with Lycra and we're going to do it better than anyone else. We're going to have the best fabrics. We're going to have the best fit. We're going to have the best quality. And that was the whole premise.

34:50And the idea also that women needed clothes that were more versatile and there was nothing more versatile than clothing with lycra. You could pack it up and it wouldn't wrinkle. And it was so comfortable to travel in and everything seems simple. It seems so simple. But actually, when you go back to that time, like it would have been completely revolutionary. Yeah.

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37:23I wonder what are some of the decisions that you made at Theory that made the business as successful as it was? Like now with the benefit of hindsight, what can you look back on and say like, these were the things? We spent a long time to get the right fabrics, the right fit and manufacture them the right way. And the clothes fit perfectly. And from the day we started, the clothes flew off the shelves. I think we went from 6 million to 20 million to 50 million. The company just took off. And It was also a different era. There was no, owning your own store was not something that was even conceivable.

38:02There was no internet back then. The internet was just starting. In fact, I have a funny story about that. The guy that started ShopUp. Oh, yeah. He was named Bob. And he came into my office. He started in Wisconsin or something. And he said, I have this platform and I'm going to sell clothes on the internet. And I want you to sell. I said, that's the stupidest idea I've ever heard of. Who's going to buy clothes on the internet? That's ridiculous. Off with you. Come back when you have a better idea. I quickly changed my mind, but at first I thought it was a terrible idea. But it's so funny because, I mean, obviously both you and I are friends with Natalie Massonet, and she had exactly the same stories.

38:43Like walking around telling people you were going to buy clothes off a computer screen felt bananas, especially expensive things. You were like, yeah, I get it. I'll buy a book, but I'm not spending like 150 bucks on a pair of pads. When you think about scaling that business, because the trajectory was so like steep, what did you have to learn when it came to scaling it like the right way? The thing is that I started my business, I was 40 years old. So I had a lot of experience. Most people start their business, they never did anything before. Isn't there something to say of that though, Andrew?

39:14Like so many people feel like they should start a business when they're 26, 27. and it's like... I tell everyone, experiment on someone else's money. Don't experiment with your own. By that time, I knew what to do and how to do it. I was sort of inventing a whole new category of business and I had to learn things about that. But I knew how to design clothes. I knew how to manufacture clothes. I was a good, I knew how to merchandise clothes. I knew all the department stores. I knew all the press. I knew all the ingredients that it took to be successful. The big advantage was, as I said, I'd done it before for years and now is doing it for myself.

39:55Did you know that theory would become as big as it actually did? Not at all. So what was your thinking? Because you kind of get six years into starting the company and then you decide, I'm going to sell a meaningful piece. Well, there's a reason for that. I had a partner and I thought it was better and safer to sell the company, have the money and not have the partner. and Ellie, there's nothing bad about Ellie. I think Ellie is a great guy and Ellie has got a lot of great qualities, but he's not always the easiest. And when 9-11 happened, business became very tough after that and Ellie's business got very tough and he had to use the financing of theory to support his business, which I had no problem with.

40:43He was my partner. I couldn't say no to him. I didn't really want to do it or like to, but I had to do it. And I realized at that time that - Well, technically you were just being a good partner though. No, you wouldn't have had to do it. I mean, two companies, two separate companies, you were a good partner. Ellie helped me when I needed help. I was certainly going to help him when he needed help. Fair. I mean, that wasn't an option. I realized that I was not 100 % in control of my fate. and I thought it was better for both him and I that we got the money because the business started with nothing and we sold it for, at that time, a lot of money.

41:28A pretty penny. Yeah. So you then get to take some money off the table and you decide to stay on in the business for a bloody long time after that. I'm wondering, like, what did staying in a business for that amount of time teach you about being a good leader and a good businessman? I made a deal with the Japanese that I was going to stay for one year. They were their money partner. Misty and I from fast retailing who... Unicode. I don't need to explain. All bow down. Yeah. Couldn't have had a better buyer, acquirer, I guess. He was Misty and I then, but he wasn't the Misty and I of today. His business was smaller, maybe three or four billion at that time.

42:08He came in and my closest friend at that time was a fellow by the name of Ricky Sasaki. And Ricky was sort of the intermediary between Missy and I and myself or fast retailing myself. Ricky, unfortunately, had passed away maybe now 15 years ago, but he was another amazing person and a really close friend of mine. But he was the one that made the introduction to Missy and I. And Ricky had theory in Japan. I had licensed theory in Japan to him and he had built a big business there. And so Ricky was the one that had met Missy and I and had sort of put the deal together. And they had agreed with me that I was going to stay one year.

42:54And I had a one-year contract. And after the year was up, they didn't want me to go. I didn't want to go. And I never had another contract. No way. Never had another. You just stayed on for how long? 15 years. I mean, it's unbelievable. It wasn't really hard because Misty and I was, is still an incredible, inspiring leader. He's incredibly intuitive. 15 seconds is an eternity to him to make a decision. I mean, it's just incredible. And I learned a lot from him, a lot. I was learning for the whole 15 years I was there. I think at the end, he wanted to have more control of the business and rightfully so.

43:37His son, who had been working there all the time, was ready to take over. And it was time I left. But for the 15 years that I was there, I think he respected me and I greatly respected him. He couldn't have made a situation easier for a founder to stay and continue running the business. And he's incredible. I think that so many of the founders that you interact with would say a similar thing about you. Like you couldn't make it easier to be a founder in a business that you've invested in. And you obviously learn an enormous amount for him. What do you think that people right now underestimate about building a brand and scaling a brand, given all your years of experience, everything that you saw from taking over from your father to being at the helm of that company, to moving into Anne Klein, to then starting Theory?

44:27What are the biggest things that you see that are just not talked about enough? You know, I think it's all about the integrity. The integrity of the company you create, the product, the experience, the methodology of doing business. I mean, it all has to be done with great integrity. And it's not just about making sales. I mean, sales are easy to make. It's about really creating something that's worth something at the end of the day that really lasts, that's way more than just how much sales you bring up. I want to be proud of the work we do. I want the people in the company to be proud of the work that we do.

45:05And I want them to be proud when they say, this is the company I work for. How do you institute that though, Andrew? Because even as you say that, and you talk about integrity, and I feel like it's a word that people throw out a lot, but you really live it. How do you bring in what you know so intrinsically, what you've learned from all the amazing people that you've had around you, and make that a value within the company that everybody else lives by? Like, how do you actually ensure integrity within products, integrity within how customers come in and see the brand? It's just what you do every day.

45:37It's just every decision you make, how you run your business. You know more maybe than I do about what people think of me and the business I run, but I try to be fair and consistent and inspiring. I mean, I think that's, again, something I learned from my father. My father made work fun and he was inspiring and he made it like people wanted to give 150%. And he was giving 160%. I believe that, you know, you have to work just as hard as anyone in the company still, even if at my age and my success or whatever, I try to work as hard as the hardest working employee in the company. Yeah, I mean, I feel like I can see that with you because I mean, even when we have a board meeting, like you care so much about products.

46:27One of my favourite Andrew stories is when I was trying to show you like some new stuff that we were doing and you like, you go for a row in this like very particular way. Like when you show Andrew stuff, he goes, mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm. That's a hit. That's not a hit. Don't do that. That, do more of that, but in that way. But like you, you have that, like, you know, you can just leaf through a thing and you will feel it immediately. But do you think it's that like, that you've stayed so close, like you haven't kind of gone up here and just done the boards and just done the investing and just done the advising that you're still like in it?

47:02I think that helps, but I don't read fashion magazines. I don't look at fashion. It's just something I feel. I've been around it for so long and I suppose that my senses and my, you know, I have my own algorithms that are going on in my mind. So when I see a product or someone discusses an idea with me, I'm going through a whole checklist in my mind as to whether that's going to work or not. It's just something intuitive. I see things differently than other people do. And it's frustrating to people because I want to go left and they want to go right. And I said, no, we have to go left. Or usually, you know what you say.

47:43You're like, go right. Just remember what I said about going left. That's usually what happens. I do that too. If somebody feels strongly in something, I'll let them go do it. But I just have sort of an intuitive sense. And I think that was something because I grew up with my father bringing clothes home. I can remember him bringing boxes of Beatles t-shirts and hats and all the kind of stuff he was making at the time and bring him to the house and us looking through them. And, you know, I just always was trained that way. It's in your bones. Do you have the same type of gut instinct for people?

48:20I feel that way about people also. I mean, I don't know whether I'm as good at that as I am the other thing, but yeah, I sort of, I operate a lot from my instincts and my instincts with people, my instincts with product, my instinct with making decisions, very much so. What have you learned when it comes to hiring people about the type of person that can be successful and additive in an organization? Some people work laterally. Some people work linear, right? I deal much better with lateral thinking people. The linear thinking people have a little bit of trouble with me because I think very laterally.

49:01People have to be able to see things from that kind of perspective. And the only companies that I've not been successful with is when I really didn't get along with the people that were running them. I really had a very different opinion and they didn't understand what I was saying. And they were super defensive about what I was saying and how I was saying it. But, you know, it just, that's the ones that didn't work out. But the ones where we've gotten along have worked out really well. And going along is very different from agreeing all the time, right? because I feel like you have been so useful to me and in the businesses that we're involved in together because you have your opinion, but it isn't something where you're like, it's my way or the highway.

49:45You're going to offer your experience. But I also feel like you've saved me from a lot of shit, even if I've gone against what you told me to do. But I respect people have a different opinion and that's okay. And if they want to go that way, even if I'm their partner, it's all right. I mean, I don't have to be right all the time. and I don't have to only see things my way either. I feel always so happy that I had the investor base that I did because in one way, like I feel like so many things that you do, you know, I had like one camp of people that would talk about like a different way of thinking about growing a business.

50:24And I always, you know, in my very naive way, I was like, I had like this sort of younger group of investors and I had the older group of investors and you were very clear in your training. And you were like, Emma, if you don't have profit, you don't have a company. Like, it's just that simple, right? And in a way, when I came up, like thinking about the start of Good in America, which is a decade ago now, it wasn't, that wasn't the timing. The timing was like, chase the top line, like plow money into digital marketing. And you literally looked at the numbers and you're like, here's why this is not going to work, which wasn't the prevailing wisdom, which wasn't how everyone I could see around me that was being successful was doing?

51:04I mean, I've been running a business almost 50 years now and be responsible for running a business. And, you know, you have to have gross profit. You have to have a bottom line profit. And if you don't have that, you're not going to own much of the business when you get finished. But were you never seduced by that moment where you saw all of these brands becoming massive overnight successes and thought, I want to be a part of that? Not really. I mean, I don't think there are any rules in fashion, as I said earlier. People run their businesses completely different. You know, everyone runs the business a little different.

51:41And that's what makes the industry so interesting. I've always tried to have a few guiding principles and who I want to work with and what I think is successful. It doesn't, it doesn't all, like all the companies I'm involved with, they all run differently. No doubt. And the product is all different, but they're all competing against each other too. Which I always find so fascinating. Obviously I know I'm your favorite, so I feel totally fine about it. Even like the interesting thing is at Theory, I was investing in companies that were directly competitive with Theory. Yeah. And as you do now, I mean, you have so many companies in the same space.

52:18They all do it differently. Like I don't mix. The only, the only thing that's common in the companies is me and Hussein, who's my CFO. Love Hussein. Shout out to Hussein, by the way. Hussein's amazing. Couldn't do it without Hussein. No, Hussein is unbelievable and amazing.

52:40I take the holidays very seriously. I plan meticulously around work so that while I'm away, I'm taking real time off to recharge and enjoy my life with the people closest to me. Summer holiday in particular is one of the few windows where I can be properly indulgent with time. And this summer, we were home in London, then in Switzerland, which is just one of those places where the beauty completely takes you over. We spent our days hiking and on the Swiss national holiday, we got really festive and joined in on all the local celebrations. Travel is also where some of my best ideas come from. There's just something about stepping into a different pace of life and seeing how other people live that gives you a completely fresh perspective.

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55:22I want to talk to you a little bit about you as an investor, Andrew as an investor. So many founders that I speak to have really difficult relationships with their investors. They never quite find the reason that they've parted with so much or their footing and how to work with their investors. You mentioned earlier that the companies you have the best relationship with are those where you've actually just established a great relationship with the founder. What do you advise people when they go out and they find an investor? How do you interact with an investor in a way that is going to be fruitful for the relationship?

55:58Like, what do you tell people? I think, first of all, what kind of investor are you looking for? Are you looking for an investor or are you looking for a partner? If you're looking for an investor, that can be difficult because they're investing in you and unless you deliver what you committed to them, you're going to deliver, they're not going to be happy. And when they're not happy, how are they going to perform? I think the most important question to ask is, if you're a founder, what's going to happen if the business has some trouble and how are you going to react to that? And how are you and I going to work together?

56:33The key thing is not business is not good. And there's always going to be that period where business is not good. I mean, it just doesn't go always. There's always problems, even in the best companies. And I think what founders need to realize is what's the investor I'm having going to do when things aren't exactly the way that I put them on the piece of paper. Which is so difficult, right? Because I feel like you're in such a dog and pony show of show and tell when you're out to investors. So you're only ever trying to talk about the upside and you shy away from ever even imagining a moment of downtime.

57:15But that's when it comes down to character and integrity and who am I in business with and for what reasons. But I don't ever consider myself an investor in any business. I'm a partner. As a partner, I have a different responsibility than an investor. And for me, I'm not looking about how much money I'm going to make and how quickly I'm going to sell it. I'm looking at how we're going to build something that we can be proud of. And is that a criteria for you to get involved in a business? Because I'm sure some people are just looking at the check. They're like, great, the check comes from somebody like Andrew Rosen.

57:51But I wonder if that's always like implicitly understood from the other side. I mean, the best companies that I invest in and the companies that are super small, I invested in Alice and Livia. It was 500 ,000. Stop it. They're going to do 300 million. What? I invested in Ragged Bone. They were doing, you know, a million and a half dollars. I just want to say for the record that you were in Good American and Skims before they even started. So I'm just putting myself in that list of success stories. Thank you very much. Just in case you weren't going to mention them, Andrew. Oh, Skims. Good old Skims.

58:34Skims makes us all happy. Skims will make us all sleep at night. That's what we say. If we only knew then what we knew was going to happen. Shoulda, coulda, fucking woulda. If we could only just make a million Skims. That makes everything else look bad. I know. Which is actually such a curse in a way, isn't it? It's so funny because, again, because we're coming up on this big anniversary with Good America. And I'm like, that's an incredible company. It's just that everything pales into insignificance when you have something that's a total outlier. How do you even focus on the smaller, more emerging things when you have all of this unbelievable stuff in your portfolio?

59:11And Andrew, like when you don't need the money anymore. I mean, I don't think things are always about money. Clearly, but that's easy to say when you have a lot of money. Yeah, but even when you don't have money, it's still about the passion of being able to do something well. If you do something well, the money will come. And I guess it's easy to say now, but I mean, there was a time that, you know, money was a little tighter than it is currently. But I don't know. I just, I love my work. So I'm lucky. I discovered recently that I was a workaholic. You didn't know that? Who told you? I didn't really know that.

59:55Are you absolutely kidding? you'll take a call at like 11 o 'clock at night. And I make calls at 11 o 'clock at night too. We fucking know. But I actually just realized that, that I have more enjoyment at work than I do in lots of other places. But I think I realized that because I stopped playing less golf now. And I stopped playing, golf was a big distraction for me. Huge distraction. Huge distraction. I'm only saying it like this because my husband has just taken up golf, which you know. you were like, welcome to being a golf widow. I was like, yeah, like literally I'm on my own all the time.

1:00:31Golf is a huge distraction, but it's interesting because I always think about fashion as being like a bit of a hobby for you. Like you love it so much, but you are someone that despite being a workaholic, you have a very full life. You fish, you have the horses. Andrew is obsessed and owns a lot of race horses. You have golf, which took up a lot of your time. You You're a grandfather. Your daughter has two kids. You have this incredibly successful family. You're really like the person that so many people rely on in some way. So even though you're a workaholic, you're a very well-rounded sort of family man with a lot of hobbies.

1:01:10I don't know how you put it all in. I have a lot of hobbies and I have a lot of responsibilities, but there's time for everything. What do you think that great fashion businesses of like the 90s and the early 2000s understood that brands now have maybe forgotten a little bit? Back then, you have to understand that brands were about making the best product. And they didn't have to worry about marketing it. They didn't have to worry about selling it. They just had to make the best product. They were experts in designing and manufacturing and merchandising. I think today the business has gotten a lot more complex because not only do you have to worry about that stuff, you have to sell it.

1:01:53You have to create the content. So you have to be a retailer. You have to be a media company. You have to create content. So it's a much more complicated business today. Yeah, I think you're completely right about that. And it becomes a distraction for small companies. It's more complex and it takes a greater understanding of the whole now. Yeah. Before you only understood half because you had magazines and you had retailers to do part of the job for you. Yeah, there was a much more established and recognized system and that system is kind of broken, meaning that there's then a bit of a free-for-all and a land grab.

1:02:29For those companies that understand it, it's very liberating. Do you still believe that... I think it's better today, by the way. I was just going to say, do you think there's still as good a chance for like the good stuff to come through? Oh, I think it's better today. Why? Because there were so many gatekeepers? There were so many different channels. and as you say, gatekeepers. Yeah, I think it's much, a brand can really tell its story from beginning to end today and really authentically and the consumer sees a pure experience of the brand, not someone else's point of view. It feels to me like it's never been easier to start, but actually to have longevity, to have staying power still remains like elusive to so many companies.

1:03:13I don't know if I can remember like the new brands of three years ago, because they seem to come up and they go away. So what do brands need to do to actually create a meaningful, long-lasting business? You've got to do the right thing over and over again. And you've got to make product that's unique and different and that inspires the consumer. You can't just make what everyone else is making. For me, brands that start in one category of business and try to go to another category of business, just because they're successful in shoes doesn't make them successful in handbags. And I think a lot of clothing companies, they want to go into shoes, they want to go into bags, they want to go into jewelry and they want to do this, that.

1:03:57Most of the time it doesn't work because there's no authenticity and there's no expertise. I've stuck to clothing mostly because I'm an expert when it comes to clothing. When it comes to making shoes, I have no edge. Sorry, I'm laughing because we all know about my failure in shoes. I'm just going to take it. squarely on the chin over here. You know, there is a moment now when like things are going so good in a brand that you're like, let me just do all the things, you know? And it was such a massive lesson for me because it wasn't until the failure of shoes that I understood what Good American was about.

1:04:31That's the honest truth. I thought I could pretty much do any category so long as I told a story around inclusivity. Like that's what was in my head. I was like, this business is about inclusivity. I learned after that this business was about fit and fabrication, period, end of. And I could not just apply that to any old category. So the most important lesson you learned is from your failure, which is absolutely correct. You never learn anything when you do it well. It is true. You only learn something when you don't do it well. I want to know if you were starting a business from scratch today, what kind of business would you start?

1:05:13I've been busy with TWP as of late, so I haven't really thought about starting something new because I'm right in the midst of what's going on there. You always find something. I have a few new companies that I have my eye on that I'm going to get involved in. New places that I'll get a discount. How exciting. I like when a company has the ability to get known really quickly. And there's a lot of these influencers that really know how to cut through and be able to get their message across. And I think there's a real opportunity in some of them have not only the ability to understand how to cut through, but they also have a flair for fashion.

1:05:54You're doing an influencer business without me? How rude. Who is this? Who is this bitch? So there's a few of those that I'm sort of interested in experimenting with. I think there's actually a bunch of really good ones out there now. Yeah. And some that definitely are going to like make it over that hump of like just selling to their immediate audience. I have something different to offer than other people because it's not really the money. Money is easy to get from a lot of people, but I'll have a point of view about, you know, what makes a clothing company successful. And there's not just one formula, but I mean, I think you have to be able to navigate the landscape.

1:06:35So I'm very interested in maybe one or two of these things and starting up, starting some new things. It's hard to start a company from scratch. It's really hard, super hard. Do you caution against it? What would you say that somebody needs? Investing in a company from scratch is a mistake. But like TWP, I started from scratch. But I started TWPA because I had an amazing confidence in Trish. And Trish, I think, I'm going to do a little sales pitch now. Trish, I think, is probably the best American designer that hasn't been discovered yet. I mean, she's created a whole new language of American sportswear.

1:07:15I mean, the style of the clothes, the fit, the combinations of what she's doing is incredible. Investing in companies, being partners in companies, you have to do things the way the founder wants to do them. No doubt. And Trish and I sort of founded this together and she does what she does very, very, very well. And I have complete confidence in that. And I do what I do and she has complete confidence in that. And so we work really, really well together. And it's been like a really rewarding thing. I said to my wife the other day, I wonder what life would have been like if I hadn't started this.

1:07:51I think there was something missing. I think that you would have found something else because there's no way you would have been fishing and on the golf course. Yeah, but investing in, you know, founding a company, it's different. It's different and it's hard. And, you know, we started from scratch and I had enough confidence that I funded the whole thing myself. And we didn't go out to raise any money and I didn't want to have the responsibility of that and started and to really, you know, know, half the success that we've had has been really rewarding. I was going to say, but it's really working right now, right?

1:08:25Really working. I mean, it's really, it's super exciting. You know, it gave me an opportunity to sort of start over again. I think it's inspiring that at this sort of season in your life, you're still finding things that excite you this much. I've learned a lot differently now of how I want to run the business. Like I'm more teaching the people what to do than doing it myself. And I'm way more tolerant of the mistakes than I used to be. But at TWP, I'm there and I know everything that's going on, but I'm definitely much more of a mentor and a teacher and letting other people really do the heavy lifting.

1:09:09I'm not doing much heavy lifting. It makes me laugh that you say that because I swear to God, I got my show invite from you. Okay, Andrew. You're really like light touch over there. He's wrangling, he's in here, he's doing the clubs. I think it's amazing. Again, like I said, I love that at the end of the day, you really care about the product and it's very, very clear that you want to make something that is excellent and something that you can be proud of. And when you have that opportunity, that's what excites you. It isn't the other side of things because again, it's like you clearly don't need to do this.

1:09:44You do it for love of the love of the thing love of the game love of the product love of the whole situation yeah and you know you have clearly a great thing going on there so I'm really happy but you know that's what I was you know I was born that way and uh my father my grandfather that's the way it was as you get older now and you could be doing a lot of other things with your time? Like, do you think about how work will stay in, what family means as you're now this like involved grandfather? Like, where are you in your head with that?

1:10:26Now I understand why you're so good is because you really are extremely intuitive about what's going on. I definitely am thinking about where everything fits in, but I'm still super passionate about the work. And I think I'm super passionate about the work because I'm really looking forward to what's coming tomorrow. And I'm not looking at what was here yesterday. In my golf game, I understand that this was as good as it's going to get. And through my whole life playing golf, I always thought I could get better. Now I realize that isn't going to happen. And I'm less interested in it. But in the work, I still believe in what's going on in the future and the opportunities of the future.

1:11:18So I'm still balancing my work and my passions and my family. and it all fits in one nice, neat little box. That's a really great way to think about it. You still got places to go. I still have places to go. Andrew, if people could take just one thing from your story, what would you actually want it to be? I just want people to understand that I really care and that I have a lot of compassion and commitment to the community that I'm involved in. Maybe I'm not somebody who's going to be involved in lots of committees and different community things and so on. But the community that I'm involved with, those people that are connected to me, I'm incredibly committed and passionate and responsible to and for.

1:12:14What do you still aspire? Your husband is one of those, by the way. Isn't he? Definitely. Are you on the phone every single day? I'm always like, who are you on the phone to? Andrew. Actually, it's an interesting question before I ask you my last question. I'm interested, what do you think that you saw in me when I first met you? Like, was there anything there or do you just think, oh, like I take a punt, like, what do you think? Ambitious and smart. I'll take it. There was an ambition that was, yeah. burning a hole in things. That's true. That's true. I'll take it. What do you still aspire to be or to become?

1:12:58Hopefully it's already happened, but no, what has happened is enough. I don't really need any more, but I want my horses to run faster. I want the fish I'm catching to be bigger. I still want my golf game to get back to where it was. I mean, I want to enjoy my life and I want to spend it with, you know, the people that are meaningful to me. And, you know, I'm definitely still ambitious, maybe not quite as ambitious as you, but still ambitious. I just want to enjoy my life and I want to do things that, you know, inspire me. Andrew, I'm going to move you to rapid fire. It's quick ones. What's the first thing you do in the morning?

1:13:46Call my horse trainers in England. Is that the first thing you do? Because the time difference, absolutely. Oh, you've got to get on that. You've got to get on it. Definitely. Last thing you do at night? I read the TDN, Thoroughbred Daily News. These horses are taking over. The TDN. The horses start in the morning and close at night. What is the best way to get into fashion right now? If you're a young person graduating from school and you want to get into fashion, find a company that inspires you. If you want to start your own company, do it with clothing that, you know, or products that inspire you.

1:14:26There's no rule here. Just find something you love. And do it. And do it. What's the best advice you've ever been given? I think it was what my father said. People don't have to like you. They have to respect you. It's a really good one. Okay, you're going to hate this question, but I'm going to ask it anyway. If you had to give this chapter of your life a title, what would it be? I don't, I don't, I'm, that's a little too final for me. That's a good enough answer. We're not giving it a name. Andrew Rosen, thank you for being on Aspire. Thank you. You're so good. You're so amazing, Andrew.

1:15:11If you're loving this podcast, be sure to click follow on your favorite listening platform. While you're there, give us a review and a five-star rating and share an episode you loved with a friend. We'll be so grateful. Aspire with Emma Greed is presented by Odyssey. I'm your host, Emma Greed. Our executive producers are Ashley McShan, Derek Brown, and me. Executive producers from Odyssey are Asha Saluja and Leah Reese-Dennis. Producer, KK Sublime Stephen Key is our senior producer Sound design and engineering by Bill Shultz Angela Peluso is our booker Original music by Charles Black Video production by Phil Sweetek and Carlos Delgado Social media by Olivia Homan Catherine Bale Special thanks to Brittany Smith Sydney Ford my teams at The Lead Company and WME Josephina Francis Hilary Schuff Eric Donnelly Kate Hutchinson-Rose Tim Meekle Evan Cox, Kurt Courtney, Andrew Steele, Sean Cherry, and Lauren Vieira.

1:16:09If you have questions for me, you can DM me at Aspire with Emma Greed. Greed is spelled G-R-E-D-E. That's Aspire, A-S-P-I-R-E with Emma Greed. Or you can submit a question to me on my website, emmagreed.me.

1:16:29I'm attorney Kevin Rowe. A car wreck can turn your entire life upside down. And when that happens, make one call. That's all to Lerner and Rowe. Our local legal team is ready to go to work for you. Working hard to get you the money you deserve. We'll handle the legal process so you can focus on what matters most. Your recovery. From start to finish, we're here for you. Call Lerner and Rowe today. Lerner and Rowe are the boys for you. Call 222-2222. Jonathan Faust, Managing Attorney, 114 East Cermat, Chicago.