Backpacker Likes China So Much That He Launches A Startup There And Becomes A (Profitable) Minor Celebrity – by Dominic Johnson-Hill
on Jan 13, 2010 - 1:29 PM PSTThe kind of spirit that you and I celebrate here on Mixergy is spreading around the world, largely because of creative entrepreneurs like Dominic Johnson-Hill, who you’ll meet in this interview.
Dominic is a backpacker from the UK who found himself in China. Today he runs Plastered T-shirts, the startup he founded in 2005 which does about $800,000 a year in sales, but when he first got to China he had little to his name — but the guy knew how to hustle. In 1995 he looked around and noticed Western giants elbowing their way into the Chinese market without much data on how effective they were. So he hatched a plan. He noticed that taxi drivers were pretty much the only ones in the country who had cars. He gave them fax machines and paid them to fax him notes on the Western products they found in stores around China. Just like that he was in the market research business.
When he launched Plastered, he promoted it by closing off the streets near his store and launching a fashion show without prior permission. The Chinese authorities weren’t sure what to do with a man with that kind of unapologetic initiative. They chose to look the other way. Stunts like that, and a passionate love for China, got him a lot of media attention. And he made the most of each press opportunity, like the time he went on a popular TV show wearing a witty tshirt that happened to feature his phone number. That stunt helped him get into the wholesaling business.
Want to hear more? Listen to the full program.
The FULL program
About Dominic Johnson-Hill
Dominic Johnson-Hill is the founder of Plaster T-shirts. He founded the company in 2005 by putting iconic Chinese imagery andon t-shirts to create a clothing brand that China could call its own.
You can read his blog here. Or check out the press he got here.
Full program includes
- You’ll hear about the challenges and opportunities of starting a company in China.
- You’ll be inspired by the story of an entrepreneur who started with nothing and built a successful business is a foreign country.
- You’ll have a hard time seeing the video (sorry).
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[This interview was possible because of an introduction by Richard Robinson, who keeps introducing me to incredible people, even though I never met him in person.]
View Comments to “Backpacker Likes China So Much That He Launches A Startup There And Becomes A (Profitable) Minor Celebrity – by Dominic Johnson-Hill”
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January 13th, 2010 at 2:24 pm
Started listening, 5 seconds in I'm thinking Andrew you need some kind of sound or music for your show.
January 13th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
You're right. I picked out some music, but I'm not sure how to integrate it. I don't have a creative bone in my body.
January 13th, 2010 at 4:31 pm
Now that's a guy who's a real entrepreneur! I love the “screw you” mentality :) It's interesting a lot of people with dyslexia and ADD seem to have more of an entrepreneurial mindset. I guess you to think more creatively to work around those extra obstacles that ADD and dyslexia entails.
This is one of my favourite interviews, especially as Damien's product is in the creative field.
I would of loved to learn more about how he got manufacturing up and running, the trials and tribulations of that.
Great question about education and creativity in China. I had never thought of it that way.
Incidentally, Paypal in China is not used a lot because it's apparently not easy for them to deposit or withdraw money via paypal. It's talked a lot on Alibaba. I find not many vendors on Alibaba use Alipay either, rather they want western union which is not a good method to pay by.
January 13th, 2010 at 5:57 pm
For some reason iTunes downloads the latest episode but will not sync with my iPod Touch. If I delete the feed and unsubscribe then re-subscribe I get the newest episode but none after that. Do you have any ideas?
January 13th, 2010 at 8:43 pm
You mean video? Let me know And I'll check it out.
Sent from my mobile
January 13th, 2010 at 9:03 pm
Thanks Andrew for this interview. As a native Beijinger, it is very interesting to hear a foreigner's experience in China. Also, that reminds me of the days in the early 1990s when I was fresh out of college in China.
Now I am the opposite as Dominic, I live and work in USA.
Anyhow, China really has changed a LOT from the 1990s for sure. There are lot of opportunities there still these days I think, someday, I might get back there again and do something…
January 13th, 2010 at 9:27 pm
Agreed; he exuded a grittiness that you don't find in most entrepreneurs. It makes for a great interview when they're genuinely gritty and wily.
January 14th, 2010 at 4:01 am
Hi Andrew,
I've been listening for a couple of months now and this was my favorite episode so far – a really interesting person, great stories, and very unique insights into what it might be like being an entrepreneur in China.
I really hope you'll continue interviewing business expats and “digital nomads” like Kareem Mayan. I really appreciate your practical and straight to the point questions, like “How did you learn to speak Mandarin?” or “How do you find an apartment in Budapest?” instead of talking in generalities and searching for “higher concept” like some other interviewers. The reason I listen is to hear the real “how did you do…” answers to problems I might be facing one day myself, or to be inspired to do something I didn't even think of myself.
Thank you for all you do and have fun in BA!
January 14th, 2010 at 6:39 am
That was the most inspiring interview ever. If anyone ever has doubts about starting a new business, then they should listen to Dominic, Thanks
January 14th, 2010 at 9:17 am
It would be great if you provided links which fast forward to specific subtopic in the videos. I get turned of by having to watch the entire video when I am only interested in one subtopic.
Get Seth Godin!
January 14th, 2010 at 10:46 am
Andrew, Lynda.com is doing something similar.
January 14th, 2010 at 5:40 pm
[...] An audiocast on the chap behind Plastered T shirts here. [...]
January 15th, 2010 at 7:26 am
Great interview. Will listen to this one a second time for sure :)
January 15th, 2010 at 7:28 am
An animated opener like on http://www.thisweekinstartups.com would be great. Just put a job on 99Designs and let the MixerNation help you to decide :)
January 15th, 2010 at 4:59 pm
Excellent interview. It's great to hear what his thought process was behind the stuff that he did to promote his business.
At the end, it was interesting how he talked about 3 hours of homework every night, and the competitiveness of the Chinese. That's extremely impressive. Still, if you lose creativity in the process, then it's not worth it. In any case, I think we Americans are way too lax when it comes to education (and working hard) when compared to the rest of the world. Lots of room for improvement.
January 15th, 2010 at 5:01 pm
Good suggestion by Kristen, there are a ton of creative types that can help there. BTW, you can find some great music at stockmusic.net — that's where I got my background music for my recent screencast.
January 19th, 2010 at 8:28 am
I agree with alot of what was said there. I have often been led to believe through education that there is only one route and certainly know alot of my friends who have followed that path.
Ken Robinson who is an advocate of creativity in schools did a great talk on it at TED last year:
http://yesandclub.com/blog/2009/11/20/ken-robin…
January 19th, 2010 at 3:28 pm
I agree with alot of what was said there. I have often been led to believe through education that there is only one route and certainly know alot of my friends who have followed that path.
Ken Robinson who is an advocate of creativity in schools did a great talk on it at TED last year:
http://yesandclub.com/blog/2009/11/20/ken-robin…
March 7th, 2010 at 8:50 pm
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