Frederick Paul II August 15th, 2022
Title
Frederick Paul II August 15th, 2022
Description
In this interview, Frederick Paul talks about growing up in Detroit and how it led to the launch of his business Fahrenheit 313.
Publisher
Detroit Historical Society
Rights
Detroit Historical Society
Narrator/Interviewee's Name
Fredrick Paul the 2nd
Brief Biography
Frederick Paul II was born in Detroit in 1992. He grew up on the east side and has gone on to create a business that launched online in 2016, along with a retail location that opened in 2020.
Interviewer's Name
Billy Wall-Winkel
Interview Place
Detroit, MI
Date
8/15/2022
Interview Length
31:41
Transcriptionist
Taylor Claybrook
Transcription
BWW[00:00:00] Hello. My name is Billy Wall Winkel. This interview is for the Detroit Historical Society's Hustle Project. We are in Detroit, Michigan. It is August 15th, 2022, and I am sitting down with.
FP [00:00:11] Frederick Paul II.
BWW [00:00:13] Please spell your name for me.
FP [00:00:14] F r e d e r i c k P a u l, II.
BWW [00:00:18] Thank you so much. Just some housekeeping out of the way. What is the name of your business?
FP [00:00:24] The name of my business is Fahrenheit 313 Detroit's hottest sneaker exchange.
BWW [00:00:30] And when did you launch?
FP [00:00:31] We officially launched our retail location on March 13th of 2020, although we were online since 2016.
BWW [00:00:44] And where and when were you born?
FP [00:00:46] I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, in 1992.
BWW [00:00:51] Good year. Cool. What neighborhood did you grow up in?
FP [00:00:57] I grew up in Davison, Joseph Campau area on Detroit's East Side. I was pretty much born and raised there and I moved to the west side of Detroit to attend Renaissance High School in 2006. My dad lived on the West Side, so I've been on each side of the city.
BWW [00:01:13] I want to ask you which one you prefer. But I want to be pleasant, not controversial, but awesome. So bring. Take me through your journey of. Either discovering that this was an option for you or discovering your passion for sneakers.
FP [00:01:34] Okay. From the moment I can remember, as long as I can remember, I've always been an avid sneaker fanatic. I've always collected sneakers. They've always been in my life around for as long as I can remember. My dad was a huge MJ fan, so growing up, you know, he kept me in the latest Jordans. So also my sister, my cousins, everyone in my family just grew up to be Sneakerheads, so they were always a part of my life growing up and this journey started for me back in 2015. I was a senior at Western Michigan University. I just needed a little cash to survive. So one day I'm cleaning around my apartment and I'm just noticing all of my old sneakers just laying around. I picked them up, you know, just started to look at them and dissect them a little bit, see if they were still worth anything. I cleaned a few of them up and I had a bright idea. I need money. So let me just try to sell a few of these on eBay, see if that works. So I listed a few pair on eBay and to my surprise, they were selling like faster than I ever could have imagined. And I found a market. So I listed a few more pair on eBay and next thing you know, those pair sold as well. So I said, let me think of a creative name for this and kind of
schedule my drops every Wednesday I'm going to drop stuff on eBay. So I called it the heat factory, kind of a play on sneakers being called Heat and I launched and next thing you know, I was sold out of all my old sneakers about 20, 30 pair in like a month or two. So from that I said, okay, this could be a real business. So the heat factory was born.
BWW[00:02:54] And when did the heat factory become Fahrenheit 313?
FP [00:02:57] Yep. So from 2016 to 2020, it was the heat factory. At that moment, I knew I kind of needed a retail location because with sneakers, it's a very intricate industry. And if you don't have a big backing or credibility having an online store, it may not work because people, you know they're not sure how you're authenticating these sneakers and where they're coming from. So I tried online thing and I realized right away I need a storefront. So from 2016 to 2020 the heat factory just working, doing everything I could to possibly get that retail location, including going around to different business incubators like Motor City Match, tech town, things like that, to get me ready and prepared to open a business. So right before we launched in 2020, a lawyer came to me and said, Hey, we may have an issue. There's a company in California called Heat Factory and they sell hand warmers. You may want to change your name to just avoid any confusion or avoid anything potentially down the line. So months before opening I’m struggling and trying to come up with a different name, I didn't want to lose that brand identity. So I did a small survey just listed like five names on air Fahrenheit 313 being one of them. And I sent it to my closest friends and family. Say, hey, just real quick, what do you think about these name shoes and what you think is best? Fahrenheit three one, three, one. But I still wasn't sold. So maybe a month or so later, literally down to the wire, when I had to choose my sign for the exterior of the building, something just told me, go to Fahrenheit three, one three is is seeing as Detroit is 313 to the core. And that's what the business always aims to be.
BWW [00:04:25] Very nice. I was wondering about that, particularly because you, you mentioned you had that brand awareness you had. You people knew what to expect from you and then to change your name when you get to a storefront, especially when you mentioned this, and the struggles for credibility in this industry. It was just it was interesting. So thank you for that. What were you studying when you were at Western?
FP [00:04:53] So at Western Michigan University I was studying advertising and promotion, which was huge. So literally in class I would be learning how to design websites and how to market myself. That was like our class project. We had to create a website for ourselves and, you know, kind of list our assets and things like that there. So literally what I was learning in class, I was taking back home to create my own website and try to to build that there. So I was studying advertising and promotion, including consumer behavior, impulse decisions, you know, learning what makes customers tick. So those things definitely helped me to this day. I definitely love like that aspect of, of business is the marketing aspect. I love that. So it kind of went hand in hand with what I was doing.
BWW [00:05:33] Yeah. So what did you do following graduation? So you have so you've sold out of all of your old sneakers. You have this model there. You know, there's an appetite for it. What are your next steps?
FP[00:05:47] Yeah, my next steps was saying, okay, I'm born and raised in Detroit. I don't come from much. Right. I don't come from a family that can lend me $10,000, 30,000 to get open. So I say, okay, let's take a step back and this kind of break
this down into a plan. I know I want a retail location. Let's figure out how to do that. So I can't remember where the first time I heard about a program called Motor City Match, but I remember hearing about that. So after college, just struggling to find a job in Kalamazoo, western Michigan again, I moved back home. Leo Burnett was Fortune one of the biggest advertising agencies in the country, really in the world as well. They offered me like a freelance position, so that was my ticket to move back home and it was only like a three month position. So I ended up working there. And once again, advertising was a huge passion of mine marketing and things like that. So I really did love that job, but eventually it did come to an end after those three months. So what I was doing in that same time as working there was still trying to find ways to to get to a brick and mortar. And once again, the Motor City match program was having their opening where you can apply. And there's different tracks for the Motor City Match program. So I say, okay, I apply for a space award, already had a business plan. So once I applied for that space award that links business owners with building owners, so it kind of bridges the gap for you to find a location. And I won that award. I was accepted. So I said, okay, there is some traction there. Maybe, you know, I have something going for me. So in 2016 with the space award, it comes with like $4,000 of technical assistance. I started looking for a location. So from 2016 to 2018, I was literally riding around the city looking for a location, just trying to do things to get prepared. In that time. I also started a retail bootcamp at Tech Town, which is an eight week intensive incubator course. You know, drilling. You want things to get ready to open a business. At the end of Tech Town, there was a pitch competition in which four or five students from the class were pitching against their peers. And when $5,000 that could go towards opening your business. And I was fortunate enough to win that. So I used the funds from the Tech Town Pitch Competition and Retail Bootcamp. Once I found my location, I was able to put a down payment on it over on Avenue of fashion, over on Livernois. So still, while doing the business things, trying to find a location and trying to get the funds and stuff needed. I was still popping up. I still had that brand awareness going. So making Detroit a stronger community is really at the heart of my business. So what we were doing were charity campaigns and creative things like that to continue to build our brand, like our street corner classic charity softball game is one example. We create a couple of teams like the Detroit Players and the Detroit Hustlers, and we have a game at Belle Isle. Whoever wants to play can register, and all the proceeds go back to our collegiate book scholarship or our Back to School Bookbag Drive. So throughout the time of finding a location and doing those things, we were also still in the community, still doing fun events still selling sneakers and popping up with sneaker tables at different events and things like that to continue to get our brand awareness going. So yeah, and that kind of led us to having our location and in Tech Town kind of help us secure that location. And at that point it was all about just finding the funds to really open.
BWW [00:08:55] How does it… how did it feel for you? Going through that eight week intensive course it is... I've talked to the people who have and it's very enriching, but it is not easy.
FP [00:09:06] You know, it's not easy for me. Like, honestly, I just love business, you know? I'm just really passionate about my business specifically. And and I saw that course as being something that was actually helping me because there's just the things we were learning. I guess they would have come to speak to the class and, you know, and things like that. I felt like I was actually getting something out of it and it kind of kept me going. It was very intense. But I love I think I thrive in an environment of being in like a school or, you know, things like that. So I really was very attentive. It was kind of easy for me to get in there and just want to do that, you know, and then knowing that the pitch competition was at the in and I could potentially win $5,000, that was huge for me coming
from, you know, that could change my life. And it did honestly. So that was a huge motivation to give everything I had to it, because I honestly didn't see another way to how it happened.
BWW [00:09:54] And so you mentioned. They're working extremely hard to get this brick and mortar location. Why was it important for you to do the charity work at the same time?
FP [00:10:11] Yeah, definitely. So once again, being born and raised in Detroit, you know, going through the bankruptcy and things like that and just seeing how tough it was for the city. At one point, I remember that there weren't a lot of companies who were hired or a lot of events, things like that didn't come to Detroit. You know, we'll be seen in cities like Chicago and New York, have these big festivals or sneaker events, whatever it may be. But Detroit was just being left out of the picture a lot. And I said that if I was ever given an opportunity to have a business in a city or to be a part of the renovation of Detroit or the Renaissance that's going on here, that I want to make sure that the community, the actual inner city, is not left behind. So it was very important to me to continue to do things that that are not just downtown or, you know, that are actually in Detroit in as prime example, was having a storefront literally within city limits of Detroit. A lot of people may claim Detroit, but they're located in, you know, a different metro area. But it was really important for me to actually be in the city and to actually give back to the city where the people can see where the dollars go. Once again, growing up, you hear a lot of things, Oh, Detroit's been given this much money, but it's like, where's it going? You know, I can't tell you where it's going. So for me, it was very important for people to be able to track the dollars that we're putting back into the community or to track the impact we're actually making. Because once again, I don't want our inner city to be left out of this huge resurgence that's going on. So that's really important to the company and always will be.
BWW 00:11:38] And you said, aside from the profits from the softball game and those drives go to a book drive.
FP00:11:44] So are a book a collegiate book scholarship. So we have like an essay question online. Once we raise all the funds and students from all over can, you know, sign up or enter the essay contest and the winner will receive a book scholarship. I think the most we've done this point was $500. That was back in 2018, and this was all before we had a retail storefront, you know. So hopefully this helps us really drive those donations and really make an impact for some collegiate students. And also, we give away backpacks every year. We started with 30 and then we partner with like Ludington to give them away. So every year we're trying to increase that number of backpacks as well.
BWW [00:12:20] Who do you work with when you're giving doing the backpack drives?
FP [00:12:23] Yeah. So right now, we're and we're going to announce a huge partnership with the Detroit Public Schools Community District as well coming up soon. But we just work with them directly, whether like for Ludington, it was actually really cool. So this was our second year doing it. So what we did, we said, okay, we're going to work with Ludington this time. So we gave 30 backpacks to one class. They had paint supplies and everything, any that you needed to paint the backpacks and it was kind of like a backpack customization contest. So all the students, their teacher gave them an hour to customize their backpacks that we gave them and they had some really cool designs. So at the end, our fans and our followers on social media voted for the best backpack, and
that student got a pair of sneakers customized for them. Whatever they chose, they got to, you know, sit down with a designer and customize their own Air Force Ones and they got delivered to the students. So that was really cool. And just for them to have a moment, you know, to create these backpacks and things like that was really cool. So once again, just being creative, that's what Fahrenheit is about. Like not just doing our standard charity giveback, but we want to be really creative. We have an entire softball game or we're doing something really creative. You haven't heard that just gets the community going.
BWW [00:13:28] Yeah, to engage instead of just give.
FP[00:13:30] Exactly.
BWW [00:13:32] That's awesome. And so we're going to head back to the storefront now. Was it important for you to be on the avenue of fashion or was that just a fortunate coincidence?
FP [00:13:45] Yeah. So looking around, I wasn't immediately sold on Avenue of fashion. It was definitely a hot spot for me, like hearing that, you know, like being in Tech Town once again, hearing that there's are the avenue of fashion is a district that the city is really focusing on. Improving is one of the corridors that they're really putting financing behind, you know, to bring life to the community. So I knew that going into it. But as I as the search continued, I don't know what it was. It just I just drew stronger to it. I really love the atmosphere on the avenue of fashion and everything that's going on there. And then it looks amazing. Literally like when I secure the building is when the road construction and everything started. So as I was building the store out, they were outside building it and it looks amazing now. Definitely happy that we landed there and I wouldn't have rather been anywhere else in the city.
BWW [00:14:35] And is part of that also continuing the history of the avenue of fashion because it was known as the place like you wanted to go for clothes. You are continuing that.
FP [00:14:44] Oh, absolutely. And then it's just like, you know, a perfect fit, like exactly what would be an avenue of fashion. And that's being a sneaker store and trying to revolutionize the customer experience for buying, selling and trading sneakers right on an avenue of fashion. It just it kind of once again brings home that, you know, for the city thing, you know, this is our avenue, this is our corridor within the city limits and is definitely history there. Still to this day, you got bakers, you got a lot of places that have been around for decades, you know, so we definitely want to just become one of those staples in a city. We want Fahrenheit to be there forever, somewhere where if anyone from around the country is in Detroit, they know to come to the avenue of fashion that Fahrenheit it's going to be there and take care of.
BWW [00:15:28] So you mentioned. By the time you graduate. Western, you're your back catalog. You've sold it. Where do you source the sneakers you get in the shop?
FP [00:15:39] Yeah. So in the shop, we're supplied by the community. So if you or anyone you know has sneakers that you don't wear, you can bring them to Fahrenheit. You can sell them, trade them, or consign them, selling we would just give you cash. You can trade for something else you may prefer. We'll give you like an appraisal. You can use that or you can consign because we may not be able to buy every pair that comes into the store, we can let you set the price and once your item sells, you actually get paid. So
there's multiple options for us, but we really like being able to buy sneakers because there's real dollars going right back into the community around the store.
BWW [00:16:11] And how popular has that been?
FP [00:16:15] Oh, that's been huge. The demand is is crazy. Every once every day we get, you know, dozens of pair of sneakers in, honestly. And it's just growing from there. We opened 2020 during literally the onset of the pandemic. Like the week we opened the next week, we had to close like it was a crazy time. But seeing it progress from that, you know, to now where people know they can come get a quick dollar if they need some shoes sold, we're just trying to keep up with that demand right now. So it definitely is this challenge it for us to just, you know, make sure we're, you know, meeting everyone's needs. Like I say, we get dozens of pairs a day. So we're trying to be more efficient in our processes and things like that to handle that.
BWW [00:16:55] And in the end, has having the physical location amplified your credibility?
FP [00:17:02] Oh, absolutely. Most recently, we were voted number one. One number one shoe store in Detroit on a click on Detroit, vote for the best. So that to me was crazy. That's literally people voting for us over, you know, ten other stores in metro Detroit area. And that's just that's just a testament to how we try to run our store and the customer experience. That's the difference with Fahrenheit, is our customer experience and how you feel when you walk into the store. Once again, we're trying to revolutionize that because you can walk into a sneaker store. It kind of all feels the same, but it's not definitely not the same when you come to Fahrenheit. And that's definitely important.
BWW [00:17:38] And I can only guess that since you get so many new sneakers coming in every day and you only have so much wall space, the online portion of the business has blossomed.
FP[00:17:49] So interestingly when the online portion was most successful was like right during the onset of COVID or right during the onset of the pandemic. I think everybody may have seen a shift just to online shopping. We were all at home. So that was like huge. That's when we got our first online sales. So like moving into the retail location and then it kind of fluctuates. I definitely see opportunity there. That's our next goal is to really get that online store growing as fast as it is in person. People seem to just prefer to shop in our store right now. They see things online, but they come in and say, Okay, yeah, I saw this online, let me buy it. And that's fine with us. We get that, you know, people love to come into the store, so we're just trying to get them to make those purchases online a little bit more now and give them an incentive to do that.
BWW [00:18:38] And how nice did it feel finally seeing the construction wrap up on Livernois? As a as a commuter, as a driver on Livernois,I was very excited.
FP [00:18:49] Oh, yeah. That's definitely it is really exciting. And it looks amazing over there. You know, like there's tons of beautiful places around the city that they're enhancing, but Livernois, it really looks good. We have huge sidewalks. You can do pretty much anything you want outside, and it just looks really amazing over there. And like it was a tough time when the construction was going on. I wasn't open, but I know a lot of my fellow business owners over there really struggled some from that, but I definitely think that
it looks amazing, one of the most beautiful corridors in a city and I encourage anyone to come out and see. It definitely looks amazing.
BWW [00:19:22] Good. Was there anything else in particular about going through the Tech town program or going through Motor City match that you wanted to share that I didn't ask you about?
FP [00:19:41] Yeah. I'd definitely just recommend anyone who has idea about starting a business or if you just have an inkling there are programs right now to help you. Just I'm just really thankful for the Motor City match and tech town staff because they went you know for me outside decided the program requirements or itinerary to make sure that I'm still successful to this day. So to any potential entrepreneur in the city of Detroit. You know, use your resources, try these programs. You know, they were fortunate enough to give me a post or you know, I feel like if I need something to this day, I can call on one of those programs and they'll make it happen. So it's really more about like building that, that connection. Our relationship with them I truly feel like they're in Detroit to help out these small businesses and help the entrepreneurs flourish. I see not just me, but other people, you know, going through this program. So I'm a huge advocate for people doing those things. And then once again, like I said, they're still to this day I know I can call them in and, you know, get help with whatever I need. And a lot of business owners don't have that. It's very tough to be entrepreneurs. So having those type of community organizations that you can rely on if you really need is huge and is definitely a big stress reliever. So I'm just a huge advocate of those programs.
BWW [00:20:54] Very nice. As we've touched on here and there so far. But you mentioned that your clientele is returning to in-person shopping. Do you see that happening elsewhere on the avenue of fashion?
FP [00:21:08] Yeah, I do. I definitely see like the summer is great for us. People are also walking is bike lanes over there. People are riding their bikes from Ferndale or Royal Oak. There's always something going on the avenue of fashion and to be completely honest, I'm still finding out about things. I've been there two years, but it's like, Oh, it's a jazz fest this week. I've never heard of that one, you know? Or it's like, you know, it's light up Livernois. Oh, it's a Juneteenth jubilee stroll. So there's always something to look forward to on Avenue of Fashion that's driving the businesses, including us, like we did a charity three point shoot out in a parking lot right next door. It was sponsored by the Detroit Pistons. And, you know, you came out and shot the shots you make were donated back to DPS. So there's always some business doing something on the avenue of fashion as bringing people over there, so definitely seeing an increase in that as well. Like restaurants are opening up now more so yeah. It's cool to see.
BWW [00:22:00] Awesome. You're doing a really good job of answering multiple questions at once. So I'm double checking. Make sure I got everything okay. You're doing excellent, by the way. Thank you. I had in my head. So you mentioned doing pop ups and going to different places to sell sneakers. Was that primarily just from the 2015 to 2020? Or do you still do that?
FP [00:22:41] Yeah, primarily it was to raise funds needed to open the store. So it started in like 2016 moving forward. But now we still do to this day because one thing we realize you can't rely on is just everybody knowing that we're there. When you have a retail storefront, you still have to go and market even more hard sometimes to get people back. So we still do sneaker shows like we've done a sneaker show in Cobo most recently, we
still do pop ups because that's used to drive people back and people love being able to interact with the brand. See you in person. So I feel like that's definitely helping, you know, still being out and doing face to face things with the community. That definitely helps bring people back to the store.
BWW [00:23:20] You've mentioned it before, how important it was for you to have this shop in the city of Detroit. What is what is the reaction you get from folks that you that you are physically located in the city? For some people, like a high end shop like yours, they expect it to be in Oakland County or something like that. Do you get those reactions?
FP [00:23:42] Oh, all the time. We definitely get people like and it's very humbling. And honestly, what keeps me going. You know, people come into the shop and they're just amazed by, number one, the interior design. When we say Fahrenheit 313 it looks like an old firehouse with the gritty Detroit factory mixed in. The walls are burnt, you know. So just to see their reaction when they walk into the store, for one, is always something I look forward to. And then just hearing them say, Oh my goodness, thank you guys are here, you know, or I'm so happy you're here now. I don't have to drive to Dearborn. I don't have to drive to Troy or, you know, like that's why we're doing it, honestly. That's why we're here to make people feel like they can get these same things right in the city, right on avenue of fashion, right around the corner from your house. That's why we're there and hearing that keeps us going.
BWW [00:24:28] Very nice. So you mentioned the like your next steps are really branching out into or re branching out possibly into the digital sphere into online shopping and e-commerce. What are the things are you looking forward to now that you have the physical location? You have people coming back? What's next?
FP [00:24:49] Yeah. So next which we're really excited we've never even talked about anywhere, but we're happy to launch our online community. It's going to be in the form of an app you can get on iOS or Android. And this is a place where Sneakerheads can congregate online. Similar to the same vibe you get into our store. When you come into the store, there's a marketplace there, there's a release date calendar, there's
constant content, exclusive drops, everything on this app that you can't find anywhere. So we're definitely looking to build this community. And, and like I mentioned, a little partnership with DPSCD before. The best part of this is that every person we get to sign up for the app, we're giving money back to the schools as well. So literally you're building online our online community, but you're building a real community as well. And we're going to do some really cool things like in some of these schools coming up with the funds that we're using, you know, for people subscribing to this app. But this app is going to be huge. This is the Fahrenheit 313 app. IOS or Android is a community for Sneakerheads. Everything you want will be there. We'll keep you updated and it's going to change the game.
BWW [00:25:51] That's great. That is a great segway to my next set of questions is most people. Not most people. A lot of people are curious about the Sneakerhead community like it is. It is intense. It is passionate. You, like some people, don't understand why you're not supposed to bend sneakers when you stand in them. Could you walk me through that a little bit? Can explain the community and maybe like try to like try to convey like where the passion comes from?
FP [00:26:24] Absolutely. So it all started with one guy. Michael Jordan. It didn't start with him, but he took it to the next level. So it started with people just being fans of
the way Michael Jordan played basketball, the way he flowed through the air. You know, it really just captured people's attention. And of course, you look down at sneakers, he's wearing everyone. Back then, the marketing was air. These sneakers make Michael Jordan jump higher. They make him run faster. This is how he plays his way. So that's where the kind of need to have these sneakers originally came from back in the eighties. So then it was more of nostalgia. The Jordans, a new colorway release like or new model released every year. So you know as Jordan played and it became more popular obviously sold his sneakers. So what Nike started to do in the early 2000, they started to retro or rerelease some of these iconic colorways that Michael Jordan played in their be limited quantities that you couldn't really get access to unless you were, you know, going to the store. You really wanted them. But that's kind of where the demand comes from leading to this day. So every other weekend, Nike drops products and the quantities are limited. So now you have sneaker heads who are in the game. More to make a flip on the sneakers are not necessarily they don't want to wear them to the store, just not necessarily. They're no more is just someone who sees potential profit in buying sneakers that no one else can get and selling them for higher kind of like ticket scalping or anything like that. So a lot of people would say that the love has left the sneaker game. A lot of people say, I just want these shoes, Jordan wore them. I want to wear them. I just always wanted this pair. But you can't find them because someone's bought them and you know, just trying to resell them. So there's two sides to the sneaker game right now. A lot of people who just say, man, I just want these sneakers. I feel like the love’s not there and there's people who are there now who's like, Oh, I love this. I can make a quick dollar off of this. I don't even want to wear the shoes. So what we're trying to do is bridge the gap for both. If you feel like the love has left the game, you could come in and find something from the eighties or nineties or, you know, and you can also come in and resell it as well.
BWW [00:28:34] Was there a moment for you? I guess you mentioned you felt humble. You felt the love when either you were standing in the shop or something along those lines, or you're just kind of like, this worked like my love, the passion, this plan worked.
FP [00:28:50] Honestly, it's unbelievable. Like, I kind of had that moment every day, to be completely honest. Like, you know, it's just it's because it's crazy to come from where I come from. I literally remember sitting right… it was longer than five years, but, you know, like I remember sitting there like vividly, like, okay, I want to open a store how this is going to happen maybe in five years like it happened in like every step of the way honestly amazes me from getting accepted into Motor City match up until getting, you know, winning a retail boot camp pitch competition to getting funded, to having my first customer. Every little milestone is always a milestone. And like winning of, you know, number one shoe store, everything is just still humbling. And it's crazy because I feel like there's still so much work to do. But just seeing the reaction of our customers, sometimes it's good to sit back like, okay, maybe we did. We're doing something right. Maybe we do something good here, just seeing their reaction. But I still I'm not too quick to celebrate because I still feel like we have so much more to do.
BWW [00:29:48] That's a great answer. I have a couple quick follow up, quick wrap up questions. But is there anything you wanted to chat about today or you want to tell me that I didn't ask you about?
FP [00:30:04] I think you've been doing a really good job.
BWW [00:30:07] Thank you. All right. When you …what do you what comes to mind when you hear the word hustle?
FP[00:30:13] To me when I hear the word hustle, that brings to mind just the attitude of Don't quit. No matter whatever obstacle is in front of you, you're going to find a way to get around the obstacle. You're going to find a way to be successful, whether they're staying up night and day and doing what you have to do. Making sacrifices to me, a hustler. And the hustle means to just never give up the pursuit of your goal or your dream. And a hustler won't.
BWW [00:30:37] That's my next question, actually. What comes to mind when you think of the word hustle? Hustler?
FP [00:30:41] Yeah, to me is just a hustler is someone that embodies the hustle. Once again, someone who doesn't see obstacles as a complete, like, you know, end at a rope. But they see obstacles as another challenge just to find another way around it. A hustler just once again, just won't quit. A hustler is someone who will find a way. They'll use their resources or do what they have to do to achieve their goals.
BWW [00:31:04] Great. Last one. Now that you have your brick and mortar location, you have your business, you've turned your hustle into your career. Do you have a new side hustle?
FP [00:31:14] Oh, yeah. I always have a side hustle. Of course. That's the hustler in me, of course. But right now I'm just using my marketing and advertising background. I love doing graphic design, things like that on the side. So I've been, you know, helping a
few friends and things help get their things started, get their dreams out by doing some graphics and things like that and maybe a few other side hustles.
BWW [00:31:37] All right. Thank you so much. That was great. Thank you.
FP [00:00:11] Frederick Paul II.
BWW [00:00:13] Please spell your name for me.
FP [00:00:14] F r e d e r i c k P a u l, II.
BWW [00:00:18] Thank you so much. Just some housekeeping out of the way. What is the name of your business?
FP [00:00:24] The name of my business is Fahrenheit 313 Detroit's hottest sneaker exchange.
BWW [00:00:30] And when did you launch?
FP [00:00:31] We officially launched our retail location on March 13th of 2020, although we were online since 2016.
BWW [00:00:44] And where and when were you born?
FP [00:00:46] I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, in 1992.
BWW [00:00:51] Good year. Cool. What neighborhood did you grow up in?
FP [00:00:57] I grew up in Davison, Joseph Campau area on Detroit's East Side. I was pretty much born and raised there and I moved to the west side of Detroit to attend Renaissance High School in 2006. My dad lived on the West Side, so I've been on each side of the city.
BWW [00:01:13] I want to ask you which one you prefer. But I want to be pleasant, not controversial, but awesome. So bring. Take me through your journey of. Either discovering that this was an option for you or discovering your passion for sneakers.
FP [00:01:34] Okay. From the moment I can remember, as long as I can remember, I've always been an avid sneaker fanatic. I've always collected sneakers. They've always been in my life around for as long as I can remember. My dad was a huge MJ fan, so growing up, you know, he kept me in the latest Jordans. So also my sister, my cousins, everyone in my family just grew up to be Sneakerheads, so they were always a part of my life growing up and this journey started for me back in 2015. I was a senior at Western Michigan University. I just needed a little cash to survive. So one day I'm cleaning around my apartment and I'm just noticing all of my old sneakers just laying around. I picked them up, you know, just started to look at them and dissect them a little bit, see if they were still worth anything. I cleaned a few of them up and I had a bright idea. I need money. So let me just try to sell a few of these on eBay, see if that works. So I listed a few pair on eBay and to my surprise, they were selling like faster than I ever could have imagined. And I found a market. So I listed a few more pair on eBay and next thing you know, those pair sold as well. So I said, let me think of a creative name for this and kind of
schedule my drops every Wednesday I'm going to drop stuff on eBay. So I called it the heat factory, kind of a play on sneakers being called Heat and I launched and next thing you know, I was sold out of all my old sneakers about 20, 30 pair in like a month or two. So from that I said, okay, this could be a real business. So the heat factory was born.
BWW[00:02:54] And when did the heat factory become Fahrenheit 313?
FP [00:02:57] Yep. So from 2016 to 2020, it was the heat factory. At that moment, I knew I kind of needed a retail location because with sneakers, it's a very intricate industry. And if you don't have a big backing or credibility having an online store, it may not work because people, you know they're not sure how you're authenticating these sneakers and where they're coming from. So I tried online thing and I realized right away I need a storefront. So from 2016 to 2020 the heat factory just working, doing everything I could to possibly get that retail location, including going around to different business incubators like Motor City Match, tech town, things like that, to get me ready and prepared to open a business. So right before we launched in 2020, a lawyer came to me and said, Hey, we may have an issue. There's a company in California called Heat Factory and they sell hand warmers. You may want to change your name to just avoid any confusion or avoid anything potentially down the line. So months before opening I’m struggling and trying to come up with a different name, I didn't want to lose that brand identity. So I did a small survey just listed like five names on air Fahrenheit 313 being one of them. And I sent it to my closest friends and family. Say, hey, just real quick, what do you think about these name shoes and what you think is best? Fahrenheit three one, three, one. But I still wasn't sold. So maybe a month or so later, literally down to the wire, when I had to choose my sign for the exterior of the building, something just told me, go to Fahrenheit three, one three is is seeing as Detroit is 313 to the core. And that's what the business always aims to be.
BWW [00:04:25] Very nice. I was wondering about that, particularly because you, you mentioned you had that brand awareness you had. You people knew what to expect from you and then to change your name when you get to a storefront, especially when you mentioned this, and the struggles for credibility in this industry. It was just it was interesting. So thank you for that. What were you studying when you were at Western?
FP [00:04:53] So at Western Michigan University I was studying advertising and promotion, which was huge. So literally in class I would be learning how to design websites and how to market myself. That was like our class project. We had to create a website for ourselves and, you know, kind of list our assets and things like that there. So literally what I was learning in class, I was taking back home to create my own website and try to to build that there. So I was studying advertising and promotion, including consumer behavior, impulse decisions, you know, learning what makes customers tick. So those things definitely helped me to this day. I definitely love like that aspect of, of business is the marketing aspect. I love that. So it kind of went hand in hand with what I was doing.
BWW [00:05:33] Yeah. So what did you do following graduation? So you have so you've sold out of all of your old sneakers. You have this model there. You know, there's an appetite for it. What are your next steps?
FP[00:05:47] Yeah, my next steps was saying, okay, I'm born and raised in Detroit. I don't come from much. Right. I don't come from a family that can lend me $10,000, 30,000 to get open. So I say, okay, let's take a step back and this kind of break
this down into a plan. I know I want a retail location. Let's figure out how to do that. So I can't remember where the first time I heard about a program called Motor City Match, but I remember hearing about that. So after college, just struggling to find a job in Kalamazoo, western Michigan again, I moved back home. Leo Burnett was Fortune one of the biggest advertising agencies in the country, really in the world as well. They offered me like a freelance position, so that was my ticket to move back home and it was only like a three month position. So I ended up working there. And once again, advertising was a huge passion of mine marketing and things like that. So I really did love that job, but eventually it did come to an end after those three months. So what I was doing in that same time as working there was still trying to find ways to to get to a brick and mortar. And once again, the Motor City match program was having their opening where you can apply. And there's different tracks for the Motor City Match program. So I say, okay, I apply for a space award, already had a business plan. So once I applied for that space award that links business owners with building owners, so it kind of bridges the gap for you to find a location. And I won that award. I was accepted. So I said, okay, there is some traction there. Maybe, you know, I have something going for me. So in 2016 with the space award, it comes with like $4,000 of technical assistance. I started looking for a location. So from 2016 to 2018, I was literally riding around the city looking for a location, just trying to do things to get prepared. In that time. I also started a retail bootcamp at Tech Town, which is an eight week intensive incubator course. You know, drilling. You want things to get ready to open a business. At the end of Tech Town, there was a pitch competition in which four or five students from the class were pitching against their peers. And when $5,000 that could go towards opening your business. And I was fortunate enough to win that. So I used the funds from the Tech Town Pitch Competition and Retail Bootcamp. Once I found my location, I was able to put a down payment on it over on Avenue of fashion, over on Livernois. So still, while doing the business things, trying to find a location and trying to get the funds and stuff needed. I was still popping up. I still had that brand awareness going. So making Detroit a stronger community is really at the heart of my business. So what we were doing were charity campaigns and creative things like that to continue to build our brand, like our street corner classic charity softball game is one example. We create a couple of teams like the Detroit Players and the Detroit Hustlers, and we have a game at Belle Isle. Whoever wants to play can register, and all the proceeds go back to our collegiate book scholarship or our Back to School Bookbag Drive. So throughout the time of finding a location and doing those things, we were also still in the community, still doing fun events still selling sneakers and popping up with sneaker tables at different events and things like that to continue to get our brand awareness going. So yeah, and that kind of led us to having our location and in Tech Town kind of help us secure that location. And at that point it was all about just finding the funds to really open.
BWW [00:08:55] How does it… how did it feel for you? Going through that eight week intensive course it is... I've talked to the people who have and it's very enriching, but it is not easy.
FP [00:09:06] You know, it's not easy for me. Like, honestly, I just love business, you know? I'm just really passionate about my business specifically. And and I saw that course as being something that was actually helping me because there's just the things we were learning. I guess they would have come to speak to the class and, you know, and things like that. I felt like I was actually getting something out of it and it kind of kept me going. It was very intense. But I love I think I thrive in an environment of being in like a school or, you know, things like that. So I really was very attentive. It was kind of easy for me to get in there and just want to do that, you know, and then knowing that the pitch competition was at the in and I could potentially win $5,000, that was huge for me coming
from, you know, that could change my life. And it did honestly. So that was a huge motivation to give everything I had to it, because I honestly didn't see another way to how it happened.
BWW [00:09:54] And so you mentioned. They're working extremely hard to get this brick and mortar location. Why was it important for you to do the charity work at the same time?
FP [00:10:11] Yeah, definitely. So once again, being born and raised in Detroit, you know, going through the bankruptcy and things like that and just seeing how tough it was for the city. At one point, I remember that there weren't a lot of companies who were hired or a lot of events, things like that didn't come to Detroit. You know, we'll be seen in cities like Chicago and New York, have these big festivals or sneaker events, whatever it may be. But Detroit was just being left out of the picture a lot. And I said that if I was ever given an opportunity to have a business in a city or to be a part of the renovation of Detroit or the Renaissance that's going on here, that I want to make sure that the community, the actual inner city, is not left behind. So it was very important to me to continue to do things that that are not just downtown or, you know, that are actually in Detroit in as prime example, was having a storefront literally within city limits of Detroit. A lot of people may claim Detroit, but they're located in, you know, a different metro area. But it was really important for me to actually be in the city and to actually give back to the city where the people can see where the dollars go. Once again, growing up, you hear a lot of things, Oh, Detroit's been given this much money, but it's like, where's it going? You know, I can't tell you where it's going. So for me, it was very important for people to be able to track the dollars that we're putting back into the community or to track the impact we're actually making. Because once again, I don't want our inner city to be left out of this huge resurgence that's going on. So that's really important to the company and always will be.
BWW 00:11:38] And you said, aside from the profits from the softball game and those drives go to a book drive.
FP00:11:44] So are a book a collegiate book scholarship. So we have like an essay question online. Once we raise all the funds and students from all over can, you know, sign up or enter the essay contest and the winner will receive a book scholarship. I think the most we've done this point was $500. That was back in 2018, and this was all before we had a retail storefront, you know. So hopefully this helps us really drive those donations and really make an impact for some collegiate students. And also, we give away backpacks every year. We started with 30 and then we partner with like Ludington to give them away. So every year we're trying to increase that number of backpacks as well.
BWW [00:12:20] Who do you work with when you're giving doing the backpack drives?
FP [00:12:23] Yeah. So right now, we're and we're going to announce a huge partnership with the Detroit Public Schools Community District as well coming up soon. But we just work with them directly, whether like for Ludington, it was actually really cool. So this was our second year doing it. So what we did, we said, okay, we're going to work with Ludington this time. So we gave 30 backpacks to one class. They had paint supplies and everything, any that you needed to paint the backpacks and it was kind of like a backpack customization contest. So all the students, their teacher gave them an hour to customize their backpacks that we gave them and they had some really cool designs. So at the end, our fans and our followers on social media voted for the best backpack, and
that student got a pair of sneakers customized for them. Whatever they chose, they got to, you know, sit down with a designer and customize their own Air Force Ones and they got delivered to the students. So that was really cool. And just for them to have a moment, you know, to create these backpacks and things like that was really cool. So once again, just being creative, that's what Fahrenheit is about. Like not just doing our standard charity giveback, but we want to be really creative. We have an entire softball game or we're doing something really creative. You haven't heard that just gets the community going.
BWW [00:13:28] Yeah, to engage instead of just give.
FP[00:13:30] Exactly.
BWW [00:13:32] That's awesome. And so we're going to head back to the storefront now. Was it important for you to be on the avenue of fashion or was that just a fortunate coincidence?
FP [00:13:45] Yeah. So looking around, I wasn't immediately sold on Avenue of fashion. It was definitely a hot spot for me, like hearing that, you know, like being in Tech Town once again, hearing that there's are the avenue of fashion is a district that the city is really focusing on. Improving is one of the corridors that they're really putting financing behind, you know, to bring life to the community. So I knew that going into it. But as I as the search continued, I don't know what it was. It just I just drew stronger to it. I really love the atmosphere on the avenue of fashion and everything that's going on there. And then it looks amazing. Literally like when I secure the building is when the road construction and everything started. So as I was building the store out, they were outside building it and it looks amazing now. Definitely happy that we landed there and I wouldn't have rather been anywhere else in the city.
BWW [00:14:35] And is part of that also continuing the history of the avenue of fashion because it was known as the place like you wanted to go for clothes. You are continuing that.
FP [00:14:44] Oh, absolutely. And then it's just like, you know, a perfect fit, like exactly what would be an avenue of fashion. And that's being a sneaker store and trying to revolutionize the customer experience for buying, selling and trading sneakers right on an avenue of fashion. It just it kind of once again brings home that, you know, for the city thing, you know, this is our avenue, this is our corridor within the city limits and is definitely history there. Still to this day, you got bakers, you got a lot of places that have been around for decades, you know, so we definitely want to just become one of those staples in a city. We want Fahrenheit to be there forever, somewhere where if anyone from around the country is in Detroit, they know to come to the avenue of fashion that Fahrenheit it's going to be there and take care of.
BWW [00:15:28] So you mentioned. By the time you graduate. Western, you're your back catalog. You've sold it. Where do you source the sneakers you get in the shop?
FP [00:15:39] Yeah. So in the shop, we're supplied by the community. So if you or anyone you know has sneakers that you don't wear, you can bring them to Fahrenheit. You can sell them, trade them, or consign them, selling we would just give you cash. You can trade for something else you may prefer. We'll give you like an appraisal. You can use that or you can consign because we may not be able to buy every pair that comes into the store, we can let you set the price and once your item sells, you actually get paid. So
there's multiple options for us, but we really like being able to buy sneakers because there's real dollars going right back into the community around the store.
BWW [00:16:11] And how popular has that been?
FP [00:16:15] Oh, that's been huge. The demand is is crazy. Every once every day we get, you know, dozens of pair of sneakers in, honestly. And it's just growing from there. We opened 2020 during literally the onset of the pandemic. Like the week we opened the next week, we had to close like it was a crazy time. But seeing it progress from that, you know, to now where people know they can come get a quick dollar if they need some shoes sold, we're just trying to keep up with that demand right now. So it definitely is this challenge it for us to just, you know, make sure we're, you know, meeting everyone's needs. Like I say, we get dozens of pairs a day. So we're trying to be more efficient in our processes and things like that to handle that.
BWW [00:16:55] And in the end, has having the physical location amplified your credibility?
FP [00:17:02] Oh, absolutely. Most recently, we were voted number one. One number one shoe store in Detroit on a click on Detroit, vote for the best. So that to me was crazy. That's literally people voting for us over, you know, ten other stores in metro Detroit area. And that's just that's just a testament to how we try to run our store and the customer experience. That's the difference with Fahrenheit, is our customer experience and how you feel when you walk into the store. Once again, we're trying to revolutionize that because you can walk into a sneaker store. It kind of all feels the same, but it's not definitely not the same when you come to Fahrenheit. And that's definitely important.
BWW [00:17:38] And I can only guess that since you get so many new sneakers coming in every day and you only have so much wall space, the online portion of the business has blossomed.
FP[00:17:49] So interestingly when the online portion was most successful was like right during the onset of COVID or right during the onset of the pandemic. I think everybody may have seen a shift just to online shopping. We were all at home. So that was like huge. That's when we got our first online sales. So like moving into the retail location and then it kind of fluctuates. I definitely see opportunity there. That's our next goal is to really get that online store growing as fast as it is in person. People seem to just prefer to shop in our store right now. They see things online, but they come in and say, Okay, yeah, I saw this online, let me buy it. And that's fine with us. We get that, you know, people love to come into the store, so we're just trying to get them to make those purchases online a little bit more now and give them an incentive to do that.
BWW [00:18:38] And how nice did it feel finally seeing the construction wrap up on Livernois? As a as a commuter, as a driver on Livernois,I was very excited.
FP [00:18:49] Oh, yeah. That's definitely it is really exciting. And it looks amazing over there. You know, like there's tons of beautiful places around the city that they're enhancing, but Livernois, it really looks good. We have huge sidewalks. You can do pretty much anything you want outside, and it just looks really amazing over there. And like it was a tough time when the construction was going on. I wasn't open, but I know a lot of my fellow business owners over there really struggled some from that, but I definitely think that
it looks amazing, one of the most beautiful corridors in a city and I encourage anyone to come out and see. It definitely looks amazing.
BWW [00:19:22] Good. Was there anything else in particular about going through the Tech town program or going through Motor City match that you wanted to share that I didn't ask you about?
FP [00:19:41] Yeah. I'd definitely just recommend anyone who has idea about starting a business or if you just have an inkling there are programs right now to help you. Just I'm just really thankful for the Motor City match and tech town staff because they went you know for me outside decided the program requirements or itinerary to make sure that I'm still successful to this day. So to any potential entrepreneur in the city of Detroit. You know, use your resources, try these programs. You know, they were fortunate enough to give me a post or you know, I feel like if I need something to this day, I can call on one of those programs and they'll make it happen. So it's really more about like building that, that connection. Our relationship with them I truly feel like they're in Detroit to help out these small businesses and help the entrepreneurs flourish. I see not just me, but other people, you know, going through this program. So I'm a huge advocate for people doing those things. And then once again, like I said, they're still to this day I know I can call them in and, you know, get help with whatever I need. And a lot of business owners don't have that. It's very tough to be entrepreneurs. So having those type of community organizations that you can rely on if you really need is huge and is definitely a big stress reliever. So I'm just a huge advocate of those programs.
BWW [00:20:54] Very nice. As we've touched on here and there so far. But you mentioned that your clientele is returning to in-person shopping. Do you see that happening elsewhere on the avenue of fashion?
FP [00:21:08] Yeah, I do. I definitely see like the summer is great for us. People are also walking is bike lanes over there. People are riding their bikes from Ferndale or Royal Oak. There's always something going on the avenue of fashion and to be completely honest, I'm still finding out about things. I've been there two years, but it's like, Oh, it's a jazz fest this week. I've never heard of that one, you know? Or it's like, you know, it's light up Livernois. Oh, it's a Juneteenth jubilee stroll. So there's always something to look forward to on Avenue of Fashion that's driving the businesses, including us, like we did a charity three point shoot out in a parking lot right next door. It was sponsored by the Detroit Pistons. And, you know, you came out and shot the shots you make were donated back to DPS. So there's always some business doing something on the avenue of fashion as bringing people over there, so definitely seeing an increase in that as well. Like restaurants are opening up now more so yeah. It's cool to see.
BWW [00:22:00] Awesome. You're doing a really good job of answering multiple questions at once. So I'm double checking. Make sure I got everything okay. You're doing excellent, by the way. Thank you. I had in my head. So you mentioned doing pop ups and going to different places to sell sneakers. Was that primarily just from the 2015 to 2020? Or do you still do that?
FP [00:22:41] Yeah, primarily it was to raise funds needed to open the store. So it started in like 2016 moving forward. But now we still do to this day because one thing we realize you can't rely on is just everybody knowing that we're there. When you have a retail storefront, you still have to go and market even more hard sometimes to get people back. So we still do sneaker shows like we've done a sneaker show in Cobo most recently, we
still do pop ups because that's used to drive people back and people love being able to interact with the brand. See you in person. So I feel like that's definitely helping, you know, still being out and doing face to face things with the community. That definitely helps bring people back to the store.
BWW [00:23:20] You've mentioned it before, how important it was for you to have this shop in the city of Detroit. What is what is the reaction you get from folks that you that you are physically located in the city? For some people, like a high end shop like yours, they expect it to be in Oakland County or something like that. Do you get those reactions?
FP [00:23:42] Oh, all the time. We definitely get people like and it's very humbling. And honestly, what keeps me going. You know, people come into the shop and they're just amazed by, number one, the interior design. When we say Fahrenheit 313 it looks like an old firehouse with the gritty Detroit factory mixed in. The walls are burnt, you know. So just to see their reaction when they walk into the store, for one, is always something I look forward to. And then just hearing them say, Oh my goodness, thank you guys are here, you know, or I'm so happy you're here now. I don't have to drive to Dearborn. I don't have to drive to Troy or, you know, like that's why we're doing it, honestly. That's why we're here to make people feel like they can get these same things right in the city, right on avenue of fashion, right around the corner from your house. That's why we're there and hearing that keeps us going.
BWW [00:24:28] Very nice. So you mentioned the like your next steps are really branching out into or re branching out possibly into the digital sphere into online shopping and e-commerce. What are the things are you looking forward to now that you have the physical location? You have people coming back? What's next?
FP [00:24:49] Yeah. So next which we're really excited we've never even talked about anywhere, but we're happy to launch our online community. It's going to be in the form of an app you can get on iOS or Android. And this is a place where Sneakerheads can congregate online. Similar to the same vibe you get into our store. When you come into the store, there's a marketplace there, there's a release date calendar, there's
constant content, exclusive drops, everything on this app that you can't find anywhere. So we're definitely looking to build this community. And, and like I mentioned, a little partnership with DPSCD before. The best part of this is that every person we get to sign up for the app, we're giving money back to the schools as well. So literally you're building online our online community, but you're building a real community as well. And we're going to do some really cool things like in some of these schools coming up with the funds that we're using, you know, for people subscribing to this app. But this app is going to be huge. This is the Fahrenheit 313 app. IOS or Android is a community for Sneakerheads. Everything you want will be there. We'll keep you updated and it's going to change the game.
BWW [00:25:51] That's great. That is a great segway to my next set of questions is most people. Not most people. A lot of people are curious about the Sneakerhead community like it is. It is intense. It is passionate. You, like some people, don't understand why you're not supposed to bend sneakers when you stand in them. Could you walk me through that a little bit? Can explain the community and maybe like try to like try to convey like where the passion comes from?
FP [00:26:24] Absolutely. So it all started with one guy. Michael Jordan. It didn't start with him, but he took it to the next level. So it started with people just being fans of
the way Michael Jordan played basketball, the way he flowed through the air. You know, it really just captured people's attention. And of course, you look down at sneakers, he's wearing everyone. Back then, the marketing was air. These sneakers make Michael Jordan jump higher. They make him run faster. This is how he plays his way. So that's where the kind of need to have these sneakers originally came from back in the eighties. So then it was more of nostalgia. The Jordans, a new colorway release like or new model released every year. So you know as Jordan played and it became more popular obviously sold his sneakers. So what Nike started to do in the early 2000, they started to retro or rerelease some of these iconic colorways that Michael Jordan played in their be limited quantities that you couldn't really get access to unless you were, you know, going to the store. You really wanted them. But that's kind of where the demand comes from leading to this day. So every other weekend, Nike drops products and the quantities are limited. So now you have sneaker heads who are in the game. More to make a flip on the sneakers are not necessarily they don't want to wear them to the store, just not necessarily. They're no more is just someone who sees potential profit in buying sneakers that no one else can get and selling them for higher kind of like ticket scalping or anything like that. So a lot of people would say that the love has left the sneaker game. A lot of people say, I just want these shoes, Jordan wore them. I want to wear them. I just always wanted this pair. But you can't find them because someone's bought them and you know, just trying to resell them. So there's two sides to the sneaker game right now. A lot of people who just say, man, I just want these sneakers. I feel like the love’s not there and there's people who are there now who's like, Oh, I love this. I can make a quick dollar off of this. I don't even want to wear the shoes. So what we're trying to do is bridge the gap for both. If you feel like the love has left the game, you could come in and find something from the eighties or nineties or, you know, and you can also come in and resell it as well.
BWW [00:28:34] Was there a moment for you? I guess you mentioned you felt humble. You felt the love when either you were standing in the shop or something along those lines, or you're just kind of like, this worked like my love, the passion, this plan worked.
FP [00:28:50] Honestly, it's unbelievable. Like, I kind of had that moment every day, to be completely honest. Like, you know, it's just it's because it's crazy to come from where I come from. I literally remember sitting right… it was longer than five years, but, you know, like I remember sitting there like vividly, like, okay, I want to open a store how this is going to happen maybe in five years like it happened in like every step of the way honestly amazes me from getting accepted into Motor City match up until getting, you know, winning a retail boot camp pitch competition to getting funded, to having my first customer. Every little milestone is always a milestone. And like winning of, you know, number one shoe store, everything is just still humbling. And it's crazy because I feel like there's still so much work to do. But just seeing the reaction of our customers, sometimes it's good to sit back like, okay, maybe we did. We're doing something right. Maybe we do something good here, just seeing their reaction. But I still I'm not too quick to celebrate because I still feel like we have so much more to do.
BWW [00:29:48] That's a great answer. I have a couple quick follow up, quick wrap up questions. But is there anything you wanted to chat about today or you want to tell me that I didn't ask you about?
FP [00:30:04] I think you've been doing a really good job.
BWW [00:30:07] Thank you. All right. When you …what do you what comes to mind when you hear the word hustle?
FP[00:30:13] To me when I hear the word hustle, that brings to mind just the attitude of Don't quit. No matter whatever obstacle is in front of you, you're going to find a way to get around the obstacle. You're going to find a way to be successful, whether they're staying up night and day and doing what you have to do. Making sacrifices to me, a hustler. And the hustle means to just never give up the pursuit of your goal or your dream. And a hustler won't.
BWW [00:30:37] That's my next question, actually. What comes to mind when you think of the word hustle? Hustler?
FP [00:30:41] Yeah, to me is just a hustler is someone that embodies the hustle. Once again, someone who doesn't see obstacles as a complete, like, you know, end at a rope. But they see obstacles as another challenge just to find another way around it. A hustler just once again, just won't quit. A hustler is someone who will find a way. They'll use their resources or do what they have to do to achieve their goals.
BWW [00:31:04] Great. Last one. Now that you have your brick and mortar location, you have your business, you've turned your hustle into your career. Do you have a new side hustle?
FP [00:31:14] Oh, yeah. I always have a side hustle. Of course. That's the hustler in me, of course. But right now I'm just using my marketing and advertising background. I love doing graphic design, things like that on the side. So I've been, you know, helping a
few friends and things help get their things started, get their dreams out by doing some graphics and things like that and maybe a few other side hustles.
BWW [00:31:37] All right. Thank you so much. That was great. Thank you.
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Citation
“Frederick Paul II August 15th, 2022,” Detroit Historical Society Oral History Archive, accessed October 13, 2024, http://oralhistory.detroithistorical.org/items/show/819.