Of the four pitches, Dapper Boi was the one that spoke to me most. In their introduction of the product line, Vicky and Charisse Pasche were clear in their identification of a problem that their product presented the solution for. They described how Vicky struggled to find clothes with the right style and fit in both the men’s and women’s sections – finding a more simple style in the men’s but the better fit in the women’s. In creating this line, they were creating clothing that was pretty much unisex in style (though gendered in terms of fit) that speaks to butch/queer/non-binary consumers.
In terms of who wants this product, as the Sharks made clear, there is a clear but specific market. There are very few companies out there that manufacture clothing in a unisex (veering masculine) style that fits typical women’s body shapes, and Dapper Boi identifies as one of them (actually, they claim to be the only one). I know of several people in my own life who are part of the community described here and who have encountered the same issues with clothes shopping as Vicky had. This clothing line certainly presents an option for clothing that meets the need for size-inclusive fit without overly gendered styling.
Based on the reading and in light of the Sharks’ feedback, this product has a clear core product (gender-neutral and size-inclusive clothing) and tangible product (a range covering jeans, shirts, swimwear, and beyond) that appeals to a specific and defined market (non-binary people and butch women). In the discussions that accompanied the presentation, it became clear the entrepreneurs had spent a lot of money marketing their product with the goal of expanding their consumer base. Looking back to our segmentation work, it’s clear they did not need to do this and spending quite so much on advertising without considering their consumer in fact harmed their business (their ice cream store would have gone out of business!).
The pricing, while on the higher end, seems appropriate for the product and for the sense of community belonging it promises. Their model of online-only works for where they are right now, and the concern they raised about retailers not knowing where to place their products is a valid one, but I do think there are stores in major cities that might be a good brick-and-mortar place for them to have stock available (while keeping online as their primary method of sale).
Much like the Sharks noted, this product is a solid one, and while the company has made some mistakes in their initial stages, they have done very well in getting the product to the hands of the relevant consumer. There are ways to save costs on marketing and ways to increase sales by focusing on their relevant market, but they will likely get there, even without the help of the Sharks.
