For this quirky startup, it's all business -- at least in the front. Louie and Morgan Simpson are the owners of Mullet On The Go, happily spreading '80s nostalgia through their hilarious wigs.
A little people-watching gave the pair the last bit of assurance they needed before diving into the costume market. The small company, which just hired its first two salespeople, was quick to use social media and a little guerilla marketing to get their name out there. "I get to dress up like a guy from the '80s, drink beer and wear mullets all day," Louie Simpson says.
Clearly, it has worked: After selling out of their stock of 2,000, the couple just placed an order for 10,000 additional mullets.
So let's get to the most important question: Are the mullets synthetic or real human hair?
Synthetic… we think.
What was your lightbulb moment?
My wife Morgan went to high school with a friend that originally had this idea. He had the stuff sent over from China and had a prototype made, but let it go. We were in Cabo in 2010 and a group of tourists walked by with real mullets, and we both agreed that we should talk to our friend about getting the business off the ground. We asked him if we could take it over, and he said yes. So we worked it out, partnered up with Shopify and got our site up and running. We still weren't making the minimum, so my wife suggested we go to a trade show. We went to the Halloween and party expo in Houston and we sold everything we had. We're now in the process of ordering 10,000 mullets this month. We never thought it had this much potential.
What is it like running a business with your wife?
It can be challenging at times. When you know someone so well and become comfortable, you're not always as polite as you could be, but she's the brains behind the operation, I'm just the frontman. Still, there's a pretty even divide between duties.
Tell me about some of your celebrity run-ins.
We are really active on Twitter, and Morgan came across Tony Hawk's Twitter Hunt for cool products, so Morgan contacted them and they said they'd love to include us. We were cracking up, really. We sent them 50 mullets, and the next thing you know we see Mullets On The Go next to these huge brand names. Also, in 2010, we were at a bluegrass festival and Bill Murray happened to be there. At the time, we were handmaking the mullets, putting together the separate pieces ourselves, and he ended up buying one from us. I thought, if Bill Murray likes it, we might have something here.
So what's so special about the mullet?
It's a lifestyle piece. It's a part-time hair piece, and a full-time lady-getter. It's a novelty item that people can use for parties, but I go everywhere in it, and people don't know how to react. You can wear our mullets all day long, Your head won't itch or sweat. Our current styles feature a sweatband with the hair attached and coming down the back, but we're actively coming up with new styles to diversify the product.
Entrepreneur Spotlight
Names: Louie and Morgan Simpson
Company: Mullet On The Go
Ages: 38
Location: San Diego, Calif.
Founded: 2010
Employees: 2
Website: www.mulletonthego.com
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Before You Go
