.Manly Bands is a direct-to-consumer dealer of guys's bands. The business introduced in 2016 after John Ruggiero, the co-founder with his other half Michelle, couldn't find an appropriate wedding ceremony band.This is Ruggiero's second appearance on the podcast. In April 2021, our team went over the firm's beginning, one-of-a-kind ring components, and more. Since then, Manly Bands has obtained its supplier. The production of rings coming from, point out, Port Daniel's bourbon barrels or Fender guitar strands makes compelling video, claims Ruggiero, excellent for storytelling on social networks as well as somewhere else.The whole audio of our discussion is embedded below. The records is actually revised for length and clarity.Eric Bandholz: Give our team a rundown of what you perform.John Ruggiero: My other half, Michelle, and also I started an internet ring business referred to as Manly Bands in 2016 to address a concern of wedding ceremony bands for guys. Our experts were actually simply wed. I possess big fingers as well as could not locate a ring that I just liked that was actually not overpriced. My alternatives were actually buying from a directory or having something tailor-made.I found yourself getting from an internet site. The ring got there in a standard mailer, without any package or customer service. It was actually a horrible adventure through today's ecommerce standards.Our experts obtained gotten married to, transferred to Florida, and required a work. Our company informed ourselves, "Our team're each business owners. Why don't our company generate our very own service?" We talked about the forms of issues our experts 'd viewed as well as exactly how to resolve them. My band expertise appeared, and also our experts opted to attempt to handle it for other fellas.Our objective when our experts started was to pay out rental payment. We believed creating a pair many thousand dollars a month from this will be great. We considered it a way of life organization, certainly not high-growth. It was actually only Michelle as well as me in our garage making rings and also sending all of them bent on consumers. We had actually hit on something. Our notification resonated with customers.Michelle and I make an excellent crew. I create suggestions, as well as she's the implementer. A considerable amount of our effectiveness mosts likely to her creative thoughts. She titles the bands and builds personas. She connects the rings to clients. Explaining a ring solely as "eight-millimeter dark" really did not cut it.Our experts created bands coming from special components, such as Jack Daniel's barrels or exclusive metals. Business took off. Ever since, our team've grown significantly. Our company now have more than 55 individuals in the Manly Bands family. About half of those are actually ring professionals that do work in our lately obtained manufacturing store in Utah.Bandholz: When did you acquire a maker?Ruggiero: Regarding a year and a fifty percent ago. We had actually been their consumer for several years, so we knew all of them well. A lot of their company was actually wholesale, which really did not passion our company-- visiting mom-and-pop jewelers. They kept their wholesale customers as well as brand name. Our experts acquired several of their properties and also delivered over employees.Bringing on a production team has actually been one of the most effective things our team have actually done. It's been actually astonishing to walk out there certainly as well as enjoy all of them make rings out of Fender guitar strands or metallic from an M1 Abrams container.Bandholz: Exactly how carries out in-house manufacturing impact advertising and marketing?Ruggiero: It's been actually massive. Taking a camera to the opposite of the office and also recording the crew using turrets to cut the metallic rods or bourbon barrels right into rings produces extraordinary video clip. Our company have our video camera staff around continuously. Our team utilize that video on our social networking sites as well as in our ads and e-newsletters. Our experts try to advertise that given that a lot of firms in the men's band space don't make. They go down ship or order from foreign and afterwards ship it out. But our team wish it to last a lifetime as well as be actually something individuals can take honor in.Our team have actually had a great deal of results along with our army culture selection, where we resource special army components. Our company have the M1 Garand rifle inventory, the wood component, coming from World War I. Seeing our crew put that in the turret as well as reduced a piece out for a band is interesting.Our advertising and marketing for those rings talks about the history, the soldiers, where the weapon was used, and points like that. My spouse and I researched filmmaking in college. We use our skills to inform and also tell a story. As an example, I recently obtained an email from a customer that shared that his grandpa used to steer M1 storage tanks. The consumer gifted some of those bands to his grandfather, as well as they possessed fairly an emotional exchange. It behaves to aid customers associate with their past as well as develop something meaningful.Bandholz: Where can folks acquire a ring from you?Ruggiero: ManlyBands.com. Our company possess photos on Instagram, too. I perform Twitter and LinkedIn.