Daymond John, Why he founded FUBU $6 Billion company

Daymond John is a man of many accomplishments. Not only is he a successful entrepreneur and investor, but he is also a self-made millionaire. And it all started with just $40 and three friends. In 1992, John founded FUBU, an acronym for For Us By Us. The company quickly grew from a small startup to a $6 billion company. Today, John is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world.

Daymond John the “Shark Tank” investor and founder of apparel footwear brand company FUBU had been denied capital by the Bank, but before long, Samsung became a major investor in FUBU. Himself, Keith Perrin, J. Alexander Martin, and Carl Brown, started FUBU from his mother’s home Later the business entrepreneur mortgaged his mother’s three-level Queens, N.Y. home for $100,000 and invested it into FUBU.

According to report, FUBU was created to target the African-American community after popular brands refused to market their brands to ethnic minorities. The brand quickly became synonymous with T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, hats, denim, and footwear.

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The brand became so popular that celebrities like Mary J. Blige, TLC, P. Diddy, LL Cool, and Beyonce all wore FUBU to multiple shows, award events, and print and television ads. FUBU reportedly made $350 million in sales through various retail outlets and eventually grossed $6 billion globally.

Despite his journey, Daymond John has proven that no one should ever underestimate themselves. “I’ve been really fortunate to have been part of something that’s a globally recognized brand,” John told NBC News. “It’s close to me. I don’t necessarily know the effect or impact that I’ve had, but whatever it is, I’m grateful.”

He also added “I had much bigger hopes for FUBU. Ralph Lauren probably does about $3 to $4 billion a year still. I did $6 billion over 20 years. When anybody touches any extension of anything that you do, you should be extremely grateful.” NBC reported.

Besides making FUBU, John has established himself as a branding guru, working with A-list artists such as rappers LL Cool J and Pit Bull, and boxer Lennox Lewis. In 2015, U.S. President Barack Obama appointed him as one of nine Presidential Ambassadors of Global Entrepreneurship. FUBU template was borrowed by hip-hop moguls like P. Diddy, Nelly, and Jay-Z to start their own clothing line.