{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"228: How Tommy John Became a 9-Figure Underwear Brand with Tom Patterson","description":"Today, I\u2019m talking with Tom Patterson, founder of Tommy John, the underwear brand that turned a frustrating problem into a 9-figure business. Tom started the company after getting tired of undershirts constantly coming untucked while working in medical sales. What began as a simple fix turned into one of the biggest direct-to-consumer apparel success stories of the last 15 years. In this conversation, we break down how Tommy John bootstrapped its way to over $100M in revenue before taking meaningful outside capital, why Howard Stern and Kevin Hart became game-changing growth channels, and what founders misunderstand about building premium consumer brands today. Tom also shares lessons on raising capital, balancing wholesale with direct-to-consumer, building a company with your spouse, and why experience can actually become a disadvantage in fast-changing markets. &amp;nbsp; Key Takeaways (01:27) Leveraging Howard Stern\u2019s Audience (03:08) Pioneering Podcast\/Radio Marketing (04:25) Starting Tommy John with $100 and a Sketch (07:27) How Useful is a Patent? (11:12) Evolve and Innovate (13:49) AI\u2019s Future In Product Development (15:04) How to Defend Against Knockoffs&amp;nbsp; (18:01) Wholesale Vs DTC Margins Explained (21:33) Why Women Became 30% of Sales (26:26) How Tommy John Financed Growth (30:47) Kevin Hart\u2019s Unexpected Partnership (33:08) The Kobe Bryant Deal That Fell Apart (36:05) Selling A Minority Stake (38:20) Running A Business With Your Spouse (42:36) Experience Can Be Your Worst Enemy (44:38) Handing Off The CEO Role (46:53) Avoiding The Post-Exit Crisis (48:24) Lifestyle Businesses Are Changing (50:23) The Truth About Raising Venture Capital (52:06) Advice For New Entrepreneurs &amp;nbsp; Watch on YouTube: https:\/\/youtu.be\/879q12wejtw &amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp; Let\u2019s Connect: Website&amp;nbsp;|&amp;nbsp;Instagram&amp;nbsp;|&amp;nbsp;YouTube&amp;nbsp;|&amp;nbsp;TikTok&amp;nbsp;|&amp;nbsp;Twitter&amp;nbsp;|&amp;nbsp;Facebook ","author_name":"Beyond A Million","author_url":"https:\/\/beyondamillion.com\/","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/41275445\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/item\/41275445"}