Most Innovative Small Company in America?
I was flipping through the June issue of Inc. Magazine over Memorial Day weekend, the cover story caught my eye. It’s about the most innovative small company in America, Threadless, an online t-shirt company.
I’ll have to admit I’m a bit perplexed and surprised this is the most innovative small company in America. I’m not saying they haven’t been successful or don’t deserve all the accolades, they’ve received. They do, Threadless sold roughly $30 million in t-shirts last year, sales in 2006 hit $18 million with profits of nearly $6 million. For a company that started in 2000, those are great numbers.
I can’t help but wonder though, what am I missing? The article makes the point that Threadless has almost wholly and effectively used social media and Web 2.0 vision to their advantage, soliciting t-shirt designs from the visitors of the website, who then vote on their favorites to be produced and sold.
Can the Next Gen readers educate me? What makes this company so innovative? What differentiates it from others like cafepress.com?
NextGen/Web 2.0'ers want a 2-way communication with their world. They've accepted the fact that traditional communication methods from the last 50-75yrs are going out the door. However, they don't want it to be a one-way street. They're tired of talking-heads, overseas outsourcing, and "email-only" communication. It's all about interaction and having a say!!
While this blog is "spiritual" in nature, it talks about this exact theory: http://withoutwax.tv/2008/06/04/why-do-you-blog/
I haven't heard of 'Threadless', but just reading your brief description of their business-model, I can see exactly why they're successful. At the end of the day, we all want to interact with the world around us...especially our own "personal" world.
Hope this brings some insight!
Sounds like they (Treadless) have done some great things. I do have to question that fact as to whether or not they are THE MOST INNOVATIVE SMALL COMPANY IN AMERICA though. Sure, they were innovative, but surely there are some that are more innovative than this? Please note that I am not trying to take anything away from their accomplishments...I am only pointing out that there are many many many small Companies out there and this does not seem that "innovative" to me. Perhaps I am defining innovative to literally in my head - as in, they have invented some sort of product.