#togetherwecreate with Jackson Thomas
The Together We Create series is a group of interviews we conducted with some of our Asset Factory family to learn more about them and their brands. This week we sat down with Vintage Fashion enthusiast, Jackson Thomas. Jackson recently started vintage second hand store, Vintage Kit. We’re excited to be working with Jackson and are proud to bring you his story…
Vintage Kit:
I’ve always had two passions in life: sports and fashion. The story behind Vintage Kit pretty much just comes from that. In 2019 I was lucky enough to be working my dream job – and still am. Rugby League Reporter. That’s the 9-5 for me and I love it. But I saw a ceiling on the potential earnings a job like mine has. It’s still a good career, but I wasn’t ready to settle. A side hustle had always been something that interested me. The idea of making money while I slept, A, but B I loved the idea of having my own thing – not working for someone else. Vintage shopping was something I was already doing by myself. I’d buy tees from the US, ship them to Auckland, rock them for a while then sell them to whoever wanted them. To simply save on shipping, I started buying more at a time (10-15). Then I needed somewhere to display and sell them on that wasn’t just a personal Facebook account. So I set up @_vintage_kit on insta and sold through DM’s. Mates copped them at first. Then mates of mates. Then guys who worked with a mate of a mate. Without even realising it, the business had taken off and I was running a side hustle out of my living room.
Inspired by:
I pretty much give this bloke a wrap every week, but Ice from YKTR over in Australia is my biggest inspo in business. A former footy player, he has built a seven figure ecomm business, with his mates, completely off of self education and hard work. His ethos is transparency and I love that. It’s something I have adopted myself. Documenting the journey is who he built his customer base. Showing everyone the good, the bad and the ugly. With Vintage Kit this has been key. It hasn’t always been smooth sailing, but I’ve documented all the highs and lows and taken everyone along for the ride. Through that, you get stronger customer connection.
Content Creation:
I still work full time, so time is everything for me and my business. I’m big on content, providing as much VALUABLE content as possible – as often as possible, and Asset Factory streamlined that process for me like never before. Photography to be honest was the thorn in my side for the first 12 months of operation. Hours, man. Hours upon hours spent shooting, uploading, posting, and repeat. The changing light around home always made the images look miss-matched. The flat-lay machine at Asset Factory is my baby. I love that bloody thing. Quick, easy, clean cuts. It’s no exaggeration to say the thing has saved me anywhere between 6-7 hours a week.
What’s next?
I have plans, once restrictions ease, to run multiple pop-ups a year around the country – taking my vintage as far and wide as possible. Currently I sell about 80% of my gear overseas, so I really want to lock in on the domestic market. I’m still learning about ecommerce, branding and storytelling every day. But it’s the latter that is the most important to my business and what I will be focussing on. Content, content and more content. Once we can travel again, I’ll be on the first flight to LA to fill my boots with the best sports vintage I can find and bring it home for everyone to enjoy. It’s been a helluva ride so far, but just getting started.