THE FIRST OF MANY MISTAKES
Do you want to know how this isn’t a fully AI-optimized expression of service? Because I’ve already made some human errors and public mistakes. Yesterday marked the launch of our website and the soft launch of our hats, and somewhere between assembling the frontend of our site and obsessing over the aesthetics, I overlooked a key component of our e-commerce backend—our shipping structure and international logistics.
Here’s the truth: I built this website in 72 hours. (Which, honestly, shows just how capable we are when we focus all our energy into something we care about.) It took 72 hours to build, but five years of hard work to become the kind of person who has the inner fortitude and awareness to share these lessons and actionable tools with you. That’s the reality of it, though—I’m going to make mistakes along the way. I’m going to fall, I’ll fumble, and I’ll probably have those moments when I look at myself and think, “How did I let that happen?” But that’s the beauty of this process, right? Especially now, when so much of what we see and intellectually digest doesn’t even feel human anymore—perfection isn’t human, but flaws are.
So, here we are: the first of many apologies I’m sure I’ll owe for mistakes on my part. But in case you missed it, we had 600 hits on our site yesterday—600 people took time out of their day to check us out. That’s honestly incredible, and I’m truly in awe of that initial response. It’s a bit of an anomaly, too, considering it’s the launch of a new business—on the first day, you’re lucky to get any traffic unless you’re a celebrity or influencer (and spoiler alert: I’m neither). With that kind of traffic, I started getting DMs about shipping and whether people could pay directly (via Zelle). So this morning, I woke up at 5 am, dove under the hood of the site, and spent an hour troubleshooting. After watching a ton of YouTube videos, I figured it out. This is what happens when you learn as you go. This is what happens when you build something new on a platform you’re not familiar with. Shopify is its own language.
But—this is also the beauty of taking the initiative and doing it anyway. Building without having all the skills or tools. Stepping forward with courage, not because you know everything, but because you know you have to. I welcome the mistakes, the moments when I look like a complete beginner, and the times when you see me stumble—because those moments also give you access to the ones where I regain power through accountability, action, and redirection. These beautiful moments connect us in our shared imperfection and push us forward as a more resilient community. My goal is to lead by example, never asking anyone to do what I wouldn’t first be willing to do myself.
I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I know how frustrating it can be to struggle when trying to buy something you want or support something you believe in. I'm proud to say the issue has been resolved, and I can't wait to start shipping out your orders. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Your friend,
Danny