Alumni Who's News
THREADCOUNTzzz Turns Dream Into "Overnight" Success
Picture this: You’re in your third hotel in as many nights, the mattress feels like a doctor’s office examining table, and the sheets bear no resemblance to the sumptuous linens that dress your own comfy bed at home.
Brandon Evans, BBA ’99, faced this scenario countless times as a business traveler and found that his colleagues had similar concerns about hotel bedding quality. On one of those sleepless nights, he decided to take matters into his own hands. Partnering with Shawn Rosenzweig, MPA ’99, Evans dreamed up the concept for THREADCOUNTzzz, a line of 400-thread-count, Egyptian cotton sateen-weave sleepwear.
“I thought if you had these pajamas, you wouldn’t have to worry about what kind of sheets you slept on,” he says. “You’d be coated in luxury.”
The two launched their product in November 2003 via their Web site, www.threadcountzzz.com, and found immediate success. Evans and Rosenzweig capitalized on America’s recent obsession with high-thread-count sheets and other luxury bedding, selling 2,000 pajama sets in three weeks and taking back orders for over 5,000 more. Their average customer ordered three sets each. Courtney Cox wore their black embroidered pajamas on a “Friends” episode, and the show’s stylist bought 20 sets as holiday gifts for the cast and NBC executives. By the end of the year, THREADCOUNTzzz had made loyal customers out of celebrities like Robin Wright Penn and became a finalist for Oprah’s “Favorite Things Show.”
“Since 2003, we have been fortunate that a lot of the buzz stuck around,” Rosenzweig says. Without any advertising and despite the fact that their products had been sold out for more than a month, the Web site saw half a million hits in January 2004. The media attention has not lagged. Since that first November rush, the company has been featured in dozens of publications, including the New York Times, Travel and Leisure, ELLE and Real Simple. Their sleepwear also was included in the 2004 Emmy Gift Bag given to presenters.
To keep up with burgeoning demand, the former college roommates moved into office space in New York’s SoHo district and set up shop. Remaining a two-man production, Evans took on responsibility for marketing, creativity and expanding the design of the line, while Rosenzweig handled the operational side of the business, including the development of manufacturing, distribution and fulfillment bases.
The product has proven to work well for a variety of distribution channels. Rosenzweig says department store retailers such as Neiman Marcus can’t keep the PJs on their shelves, while their Internet sales include bulk purchases for bridal party and wedding gifts, as well as personal gifts.
THREADCOUNTzzz has recently extended their line to include robes, boxers, chemises, and camisole-and-capri sets, all of which come with a mini-pillowcase to fit around airline pillows when traveling.
A jeans-and-T-shirt guy himself, Rosenzweig can hardly believe he has found such success in the fashion industry. “It’s funny because before this, the idea of spending $160 on a pair of PJs was foreign to me,” he recalls. “Now, I think if I didn’t take my pajamas with me to a hotel, I’d feel like the sheets were sand paper.”
Rosenzweig attributes much of his ability to transform an innovative concept into a viable business to the lessons he learned while employed as a teaching assistant for former Chancellor William H. Cunningham and UT Austin Distinguished Alumnus Shelby H. Carter. “I truthfully credit the success of THREADCOUNTzzz to what I picked up while working with those two men,” he said. “They helped me—and countless other students over the years—to not only become a successful corporate executive but a dedicated civic leader, as well.” He counts among his lessons learned never being afraid to speak his mind and thriving in crisis mode.
“Shelby used to say that you should come to work every day prepared to get fired,” Rosenzweig says. “What he meant by that, I believe, is that you shouldn’t be timid about making difficult decisions.” For THREADCOUNTzzz, the decision to raise the price point to ensure that their Chinese manufacturers have access to quality facilities and services was a no-brainer.
“You should really thrive on the opportunity to make important decisions that can really have an impact,” he says. Now, Evans and Rosenzweig rest easy knowing that THREADCOUNTzzz offers products that they are proud of creating.
- Sandie Taylor
For information on specific programs at the McCombs School, consult our contacts page. For media information, contact the Communications Director by phone at 512-471-3314 or by email at CommunicationsDirector@mccombs.utexas.edu.
