Today we’d like to introduce you to Jared De Freitas.
Jared, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I have always been an athlete from playing football from middle school to college, doing wrestling and MMA, and even getting into paintball competitively by traveling the country. So, sports have always been a part of my life. The idea behind Definite Sporting Goods began in 2015. I would buy, sell and trade paintball gear with other members of the community. The biggest success I had at the time, were reselling football cleats to paintball players at great prices all over the US. So much, so people were asking if I had a website or a warehouse to meet the demands. At that time i did not but decided to start small and create a Facebook page. Over the course of the year, things would pick up and slow down since my only product were cleats at the time so, I had to not only find more inventory but a way to get my name out there.
I went to school for computer science and work as an IT manager for an e-commerce company for a few years and I learned first hand what it is like to own a successful internet based company without any on hand inventory. Using this knowledge, I began creating the website for Definite Sporting Goods, Definitesports.com. Late August 2017, the website was launched and had our first sale. Today we specialize in clothing, workout equipment, fan gear and any other unique sporting goods for your regular needs.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The road never traveled is always the roughest. Learning how to successfully market without breaking the bank was definitely a steep learning curve to do on your own. Branding and building a quality reputation of service was a major focus point of mine.
Also, regular issues such and negotiating with vendors, product feeds, and fulfillment were heavy tasks as well.
But the most complicated issue is shipping. Not to throw any names out there, but there are a few that take way to long to ship based on the shipping costs. So in 2017, we are looking into finding better solutions for that.
Please tell us about Definite Sporting Goods.
Definite Sporting Goods specializes in sporting goods. We are an online based E-commerce company. We currently do not have a showroom for customers to walk in but we do have a massive online collection at definitesports.com.
We have workout and fan apparel for men and women. Game day fan across most major sports. Outdoor equipment for hunters, tacticians, campers, and regular necessities for the everyday enthusiast.
As the owner, I currently oversee every department as we continue to grow. To be the competition of some of the bigger name department stores already out there. This dreams that I’m proud that has become a reality is amazing. Only beginning last August we have been extremely successful and looking forward to our future goals.
What makes us different is that we are people who were in one way or another athletes, so we know sports and have an idea what it is specifically people look for.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
To be honest, I wouldn’t. Every set back, failure, mistake was a lesson on how to be a better company. I previously only managed businesses and studied business management as a minor in college. So, keeping a business afloat is natural to me. I’ve never started one from the ground up before. To now, say I am a business owner is still surreal. It has me looking towards my next project with more optimism.
Pricing:
- Women’s clothing starts at as low as $7.99
- Men’s clothing starts at $9.99
- Store wide sales up to 50% off
- 3 items 10% off, 5 items 15%, 7 items 20% off your order on select connections
Contact Info:
- Website: definitesports.com
- Phone: Not listed yet
- Email: definitesports@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/definitesportcom
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DEFINITESportingGoods/
Image Credit:
Sandi Pointe, Social Paintball League, Freddy Laboy, Definitesports.com
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