If you think college is rough, try running a clothing company startup while you’re still a student.
Elizabethtown College junior Lucas Cunningham launched C&B Outdoor in August. The clothing line focuses on outdoor apparel and is staffed entirely with full-time college students at Etown and other colleges.
“We have 14 items in the collection. We carry everything from scrunchie accessories to a burlap bag. We carry casual outerwear and outerwear. We’re gonna be expanding the line to go into performance wear this April and possibly coats for this winter,” Cunningham said.
C&B Outdoor does alright on sales, with Cunningham estimating a 40 percent turnover of their merchandise.Most of this purchasing is done in person.
“Our website sales are very slow—[sales] have all been from events,” Cunningham said. “Storefront is still a huge part of clothing sales because people can actually feel the product.”
Cunningham has hosted several popup sales on campus.
“It can be really stressful when it comes to having the capital to buy inventory. [Sales at] Etown really wiped us clean so we have to take resets and put a lot more money into buying higher quantities to meet demand,” he said.
Among others, Cunningham appreciates Etown public relations major Ally Bonicker and graphic design major Isa Abdul-Rahman for the contributions they’ve made to the company.
Associate professor of marketing Dr. Bryan Greenberg was also an inspiration to Cunningham.
“Dr. Greenberg was the scariest professor I’d ever met, two years ago. But as much as he’s taught me about how to market and develop a brand, he’s also instilled me with the humanitarian aspect of it. He’s somebody I’ve looked up to because not only does he care about you studying for the test, it’s ‘how are you doing,’” Cunningham said.
As an example, Cunningham remembers a dark time back in the thick of the pandemic.
“That was my hardest time as a sophomore. I remember breaking down in a room and Dr. Greenberg was there to help me through. He taught me more than just the knowledge of how to start a company. He taught me how important it is to be a natural leader and help your employees,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham hopes to apply this human-centric vision of leadership not just to his relationship with his employees, but to the business as a whole.
“If I was so focused on money, I wouldn’t be doing this. Don’t get me wrong—in the long run, we could do really well. But if you just crave money then you probably don’t have a lot of that entrepreneur spirit,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham’s perspective on entrepreneurship is different.
“Money is just something that happens along the path. For me, this is more about our message,” he said.
C&B’s mantra is “Free Your Journey.”
“It’s all about students going out there and pursuing the life they want to pursue—being a go-getter and not listening to the noise,” Cunningham explained“I think that’s crucial in today’s environment. In the 21st century, we’re moving toward this direction where people can be who they want to be. In the last 2,000 years, we lived in a very black-and-white world where it was either ‘you do this’ or ‘you do this.’ I like how we’re becoming more technicolored and that’s where ‘Free Your Journey’ is going to join onto that message so we can be a company that pushes people to live how they want.”
