Free Enterprise Watch Alert. Luxury coolers: A monument to true entrepreneurial spirit

byDre-ngerous

100 followers

11 years ago

Hey everybody.

I'm going to be doing what I call Free Enterprise Watch Alerts, and depending on the feedback I get for them, I will adjust my output accordingly. Free Enterprise Watch Alerts will usually consist of me giving some background information on companies/entrepreneurs to look out for, and some additional thoughts by me. So if you would like to see more of this content, please let me know! This also doubles as an experiment of sorts to see the sort of content people would like on my future website which is going to be geared at young entrepreneurs (and old), and try to spread the word about the self made entrepreneur explosion I think that we are about to witness take off within the next few years. All that goes to say, feedback is very important to me, so I can produce the content you WANT to hear!

As always criticism and suggestions are always welcome.

Yeti

Yeti was founded in 2006 by brothers Roy and Ryan Seiders. They set out with one goal in mind, which was "to build the cooler we'd use everyday if it existed." That is a rugged, sexy, maximum ice retention, grizzly bear proof cooler (Certified by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee, mind you)

Watch this Yeti go to war with a Grizzly.

Ah, but you say "It may, hold it's own against a Grizzly, but can it keep ice longer than the competition?"

The verdict is in. Check out the reviews for details.

http://www.amazon.com/Yeti-YETI-Tundra-45-Cooler/dp/B00M21HJRM

Yeti's profits have grown over fifty percent the last year. During the holiday season, stores ran out their product to put on shelves because demand was so high, and Yeti couldn't produce enough of the goods to keep up with demand for a while. I mean, when the cooler you are purchasing is up to 350 dollars, it better be worth it right?

And the consumers say it is. You can not hear enough good things about the coolers, or the few (albeit spectacular) other items that Yeti offers for sale, such as its very sleek tumblers (of which I am a happy owner) that offer the same rugged and efficient qualities of its older brothers.

The most impressive thing though? The way Yeti took something as utilitarian and unspectacular as a cooler, and made one with essence. By essence, I suppose that you could compare it to a cult of personality, of sorts. Brands with essence? One immediately comes to mind. Apple. Nike, Mercedes, Harley Davidson, are a few more to mention.

If you can essentially turn people into walking advertisements is something that should be commended, if nothing else for the ingenuity of getting people to willingly go out of their way to associate with a product or brand. That is TRUE marketing efficiency.

I own a Yeti shirt, and my PlayStation 4 is adorned with a Yeti sticker. My parents will shortly be attending one of those vacation home pitch sessions, which will gift them with a Yeti cooler for being there. At work, it's not unusual to see someone sport the Yeti cap, even though most (including myself) can't really afford a luxury cooler, so we will just settle for the small stuff for now.

Roy and Ryan Seiders are brilliant entrepreneurs. Why? Because they made something people wanted, but no one was offering. Then, they offered a quality product, and the consumers voted yes with their wallets. What is the great lesson in that? The proof that if you offer something with GREAT inherent value, use a little bit of clever marketing, and it can stand to the at times cut throat consumer standards, you have a brilliant recipe for success.

I would keep an eye out on on the crew over at Yeti. It is difficult to say just how much they can grow if they only sell a very limited number of products, but regardless of wether or not a future IPO is in Yeti's future, it is important to acknowledge true entrepreneurial spirit, and ask ourselves what we can learn from those individuals.

I'll end on this note, by echoing the Seider brothers from earlier, "In 2006 we founded YETI Coolers with a simple mission: build the cooler we'd use every day if it existed."

The gem of truth in that statement, is really the question of, "What would I buy, if I was the consumer?" The beauty of it is, you are the consumer, and it is my belief that true entrepreneurial innovation comes out of being in direct contact with the consumer. It is this relationship that will help propel us into the New Age of Capitalism I believe is brewing.

Check out Yeti and all of their great products at their website.

http://yeticoolers.com/