IAM106 – Creative Director and Founder Helps Fitness Designers Put Their Ideas Into Products

Architect – Creative Director and Founder of FittDesign.

• CEO Hack: Appreciate sincere understanding of what you have and where you are to effect any change.
• CEO Nugget: Be patient and respect the process
• CEO Defined: Most vulnerable person in a business

Website: https://fittdesign.com/

Instagram: @fittdesign
Facebook: Fittdesign
Pinterest: Fittdesign

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Transcription:

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Intro 0:02

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

Gresham Harkless 0:27

Hello, hello, hello, this is Gresham Harkless from the I AM CEO Podcast, and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Shadi Adada of FittDesign.com. Shadi, it is awesome to have you on the show.

Shadi Adada 0:37

Hey, thanks for having me.

Gresham Harkless 0:38

Awesome, awesome, awesome. And Shadi, if you didn't know is the Architect Creative Director and Founder of FittDesign. And what I wanted to do Shadi, was just kind of getting things started to ask you about what I call your CEO story, what led you to start your business, and what led you to kind of get started.

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Shadi Adada 0:52

Yeah, of course. Um, so I think like most people, it comes from a place of wanting to do a little bit more with your time becoming kind of getting to this point was purely by mistake, I was in school, actually at the University of Southern California studying Architecture, and kind of quickly finding that spending 20 hours a day on the core subject matter wasn't really what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I think I quickly caught on to that. But I realized that there was a core skill set that I was learning that I could definitely apply to another area of my life. And at the same time like any other 21-year-old, going to the gym, and seeing positive changes in my body, I definitely fell in love with the whole fitness aspect. And I just definitely got involved in the whole community. And I was looking for a way to combine my skill set into something that was really, really passionate about, of course, doing something for 20 hours a day, like architecture and design, it's like it just consumes you.

So, it was definitely something that I saw as an opportunity. And little by little, trying to find a way to apply that skill set to my kind of passion for fitness. Initially, it was kind about how can I design products and kind of items that relate to fitness. And that was obviously parallel gym, gym clothes, workout clothes, and I just looked at some of the players in that space. And in 2014, there wasn't that much going on. And I just wanted to see what I could do with it just ultimately have fun with it. So, little by little it took off from there it was it was definitely something that happened completely by mistake. And as you do something, you iterate on it, you get better and better.

And eventually, it turns into a business. And that's sort of how it was it was completely by mistake and not by design at all. It wasn't there was never an intention for it. I think that's what most entrepreneurs kind of stumble upon they stumble upon it, as opposed to having it happen by sheer will force in terms of how you go about it. So, that's sort of my story, in terms of how I got into it.

Gresham Harkless 2:48

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. And it's kind of like a good, awesome reminder, because a lot of times, some of the best products or best things have come about just because like you said, it's by mistake where you see kind of like a gap in the market, so to speak. And then you start to fulfill that mark, you start to create those things. And then it's like that perfect sweet spot where your passion, what it is that you've been working on, and what you love doing and solving a problem kind of all intersect at the same time.

Shadi Adada 3:12

100%

Gresham Harkless 3:13

Awesome, awesome, awesome. So, I wanted to drill down a little bit deeper and hear I guess a little bit more about like what you're doing with FittDesign, what exactly you do to kind of help serve the clients that you work with.

Shadi Adada 3:21

Yeah, of course. So, FittDesign is in short, it's like a complete production-to-development, design development production solution. It's we take clients' visions for their brands and their ideas, and we take it from just an idea and we make it happen. Most of the clients that we operate with are in the fitness space. And most of that is apparel, of course, we've done stuff outside. But to put it to put a long story short, if you come in with the idea to create something, it could be a nice hoodie or a pair of joggers, and you really want to customize that we have the ability to take that from just an idea in your head to physical, physically manifested product that you can sell to your customers.

And that's really where a lot of these kinds of small businesses are going. They're sick and tired of just having a shirt that you just print a logo on. That's not the way you differentiate yourself, especially in a market, which is so competitive. And there's just that need to kind of have your own voice in this industry. So, we facilitate. And we've done that's sort of what I stumbled into essentially.

Gresham Harkless 4:16

Awesome, awesome, awesome. So, these are people that might have an idea of something that they want to create, but they don't necessarily have like the I guess the steps after that on how to actually create it and how to bring it to fruition. Is that what you're saying?

Shadi Adada 4:27

Exactly. That's exactly what it is.

Gresham Harkless 4:30

Okay, no, that's awesome. Because I know that a lot of people probably want to test out different ideas and have different, as you said, ideas that they want to maybe AB test against or create and see how the market likes it. But it's great that you've kind of created something that can help facilitate that for people.

Shadi Adada 4:44

Yeah, of course.

Gresham Harkless 4:45

And now I wanted to ask you for what I call your secret sauce. And this is kind of like what you feel kind of differentiates you or your organization and kind of sets you apart and makes you a little bit different.

Shadi Adada 4:54

So, two things. The first thing is a completely insincere understanding of the line and empathy. It's empathy for the client. I like you, for some customers, I deal with businesses on a day-to-day basis. And I find myself frustrated sometimes with the way that we're treated and the way that kind of these businesses take advantage of us or interact with us. It's a true understanding of how would I feel if I was in this person's shoes. How would I want to be treated as a customer? And that's first and foremost that is like the central monitor to FittDesign to the way we interact with our clients. And that's sort of the guiding light. The second thing that kind of would make us unique is we've productized design services.

So, where most companies might go about it, like send us a brief, and we'll send you back a quotation, we've sort of distilled design down to its core elements. And we've listed that on our website. And we have set prices for everything that people can go in and see what matches their needs. And they're able to have a clear understanding of what they're getting themselves into before they actually get themselves into that.

So, a lot of people find that super unintimidating, it's really clear. And it's just a much more streamlined process. It's the product ideation or the commercialization of something that has never been commercialized before, which is design services, which are these kinds of intangible assets right there. It's basically hiring someone to do a project for you. Well, we've kind of taken that and streamlined that into just the product, essentially.

Gresham Harkless 6:18

Yeah, love that it kind of sounds like those two things kind of go hand in hand, meaning that you understand and you put yourself and you empathize with the client and ask what would they like, what would they like, as far as the process, it seems like you have been able to kind of put that in a place where now the client can find everything they don't have to worry about the emails coming back, and everything that sometimes happens in the design process, you kind of have everything out front open so that everybody knows exactly how much it costs and everything like that.

Shadi Adada 6:45

And then allows you to make a more educated decision as a customer, basically, going into it what you're getting yourself into, and you just have a lot more confidence dealing with the service provider.

Gresham Harkless 6:55

Exactly, exactly. You don't have that fear of knowing that you have this idea, and you start getting the ball rolling, and then you don't know how much it costs or what it takes to do that all that's kind of laid out. So, that's pretty awesome that you put that in place. So, now I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. And this could be an app or book or habit that you have, but it's something that makes you more effective and efficient as a CEO.

Shadi Adada 7:16

It's I think most people probably do a lot of says a podcast and a book or blogs, or whatever it may be of course, those things are good, they're a great way of expanding your mindset. For me, it's a little more of a personal thing, it's kind of appreciating the sincere understanding of what you have, and what you would the position that you're in to kind of effect that change. And when I say that, I know it sounds a bit cheesy, but it literally is taking a step back and looking at everything that is in front of you being like wow, like I am in a position that truly, truly, truly, I am blessed to be in that position, I need to maximize on that I need to put push myself to make the most of that out of that situation or that opportunity.

And I think that is a great self-motivator. And just that keeps the wheels turning essentially, it's a great way for you to stay involved and to really appreciate everything you have through thick and thin. And there are a lot of thick areas, especially in this kind of in this quote-unquote CEO lifestyle.

Gresham Harkless 8:12

Yeah, I mean, I don't think they're cheesy at all. Because sometimes just simple things are what kind of motivates you and gets you going and to be able to have kind of like that gratitude, where you appreciate every little thing and every opportunity that you have that's in front of you to kind of you know, create the life that you want to build the life that you want. I think that's a phenomenal reminder. And, of course, a great example of a CEO hack. So, now I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO nugget. And this is a word of wisdom or piece of advice. Or if you can happen a time machine, what would you tell your younger business self?

Shadi Adada 8:38

What would I tell my younger business self, I would probably tell my younger business self to be patient. Again, it sounds so overplayed, but that's because it works. It's patience is the key. Sometimes I have to tell my older business self to be patient because it's you're just in it, you're living it right. You're in yourself every day, 24 hours a day, and it's tough sometimes to not be impatient, not tell yourself, I would like more I want it now. Like why isn't it happening? And that ultimately leads to you being deterred from that path that you're on. It's definitely patience. It's understanding that there is no target. There's no set date that you're gonna get there.

And it might happen tomorrow might happen after tomorrow will happen in 10 years, it might never happen. And that's a scary concept, especially when you kind of you're doing it the right way. And when I say do it the right way. There's a lot of I guess pretend when it comes to the entrepreneurial lifestyle but people who are doing it no, it's not glamorous, it's not Instagram worthy, it's not anything it's it is literally just a grind on in the patience is just going to help you see through that grind. And that's the biggest thing I'd say. It's just patience. Be patient.

Gresham Harkless 9:51

Yeah, I would definitely agree with that. I'm not on a yacht or anything like that. I'm working hard, just like I imagined that you are as well too. So understanding that it's part of the process and to be patient so that you can continue to kind of go down that path to get your goal, whether it happened, like you said, today, tomorrow, next year, or 10 years down the line, you just kind of have to respect the process and go through it. So, one of the I think there's a phenomenal reminder.

Shadi Adada 10:13

Yeah, of course.

Gresham Harkless 10:14

And now I wanted to ask you what is my favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. We're hoping to have different, quote-unquote, CEOs on the show. So, I want to ask you, Shadi, what does being a CEO mean to you?

Shadi Adada 10:24

The CEO means you're the most vulnerable person in your business, what does that mean being the most vulnerable person in that business, it means that every single thing, every aspect, every element that your business goes through is on you, and you're responsible for your team, you're responsible for making it happen, you are responsible for every last aspect of it. And that's what vulnerability means it's and being comfortable with vulnerability, that's what it is, it's when you're comfortable in an unbelievable position.

And you kind of thrive off that and you understand that that is enough and in and of itself, a true opportunity. Because when you're vulnerable like that, you have to operate to the maximum of your ability, you have to understand that any weakness, any opening, any sort of way that you can fail can happen, you have to be able to cover that you have to know that it's important to just cover all your bases to be in that zone, where you have people to take care of you have obligations to meet, you have deadlines to meet. And that is just an amalgamation of everything. And it sounds all over the place. And it is, but it is a true vulnerability and being comfortable with that vulnerability. That's what I would say.

Gresham Harkless 11:32

I love that definition. And the idea that a lot of times when people are founders or startup founders and have a vision, they put themselves out there in order to do that they put themselves out in front of the world too, so to speak, so that they can try to reach that vision, try to empower their team and do all those things. So, I think that's an awesome definition of what it means to be a CEO.

Shadi Adada 11:51

Love your group.

Gresham Harkless 11:52

Yes, definitely, definitely, definitely. So, Shadi, I appreciate you so much for taking some time out of your schedule, what I wanted to do was passionate the mic so to speak, just so that you can let us know any additional words of wisdom or piece of advice that you might have for our readers and listeners, and then also how best we can get in touch with you and find out about FittDesign.

Shadi Adada 12:08

Yeah, of course, I would say in terms of additional comments, it's realizing that like, it sounds so cheesy, because it is, but it's the truth, it's every single day that you get out, then you have the ability to walk on your own two feet, and to breathe through your lungs is an amazing kind of, in and of itself. It's a feat of miracle basically. And it's 100% A, I don't know how you put it, but it is a true gift to be able to do something with your life every day and to have that capability and to be able to put yourself in a position to make more to provide value to bring yourself value. And don't take that for granted, no matter how tough circumstances may seem. And of course, people have things to do, and they have obligations to meet.

And they know they have to pay off this or they have to do that. But at the end of the day, it's you always have that opportunity to a lesser or greater degree to make more, to achieve more to get more out of what you want are those hours in the day, and do not squander that. Because I promise you the process itself, like the actual doing of it not getting there. It's amazing when you learn to just kind of get down and distill down to the core emotions. It's amazing, like watching something grow together and build that foundation.

There are no words to really describe it. And when it starts to manifest and come together, it's an otherworldly experience. So, it's definitely worth it. And it's definitely worth that grind in that setup time.

Gresham Harkless 13:31

Exactly. I would definitely agree with that. And in for anybody that wants to follow up with you Shadi, what is the best way for them to do that?

Shadi Adada 13:38

So we live on Instagram @fittdesign is the main Instagram, we live all over the internet. So, super active on social, which is one of the core kind of the core centers of our businesses. How do we engage with people on social? How do we create a community in a way that most design companies or design teams might not do? So, it's Instagram @fittdesign, Facebook @Fittdesign, Pinterest Fittdesign, Behance.net Fittdesign. So, we can be found in all those places, or just email me personally at shadi@fittdesign.com. And I would love to hear from anyone that would love to speak. I'm always available.

Gresham Harkless 14:18

Awesome. I appreciate that Shadi, and what we'll do is we'll have all those links in the show notes just so that anybody can follow up. But again, I appreciate you for the great reminder you gave us all today and all of the awesome things that you're doing to kind of innovate within that design industry. I appreciate you for taking time out again and I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

Shadi Adada 14:36

Thank you, Gresham, and thank you so much for having me.

Outro 14:38

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co

I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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