Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Hoang.
Hi Daniel, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I come from a family of entrepreneurs. My entire mom’s side, everyone owns their business and pretty successful at that. I guess I was never really taught, but it was just around me. I was working with my family until a little after college when social media started picking up for me. My friend Christian Guzman started a brand called Alphalete Athletics as well as gave me my first camera for YouTube and the rest was history.
Social media in the fitness realm took off for me in 2016 because at the time, there weren’t many Asians in the fitness industry, so I felt like I was a huge representative in the community. Over the 6 years that I was in it, I got to cultivate many great relationships as well as build a solid reputation in the space. I started my first product-based brand in 2017, called Zephyr Collection, which started out as a jewelry company but later evolved into a full-blown clothing brand. Alphalete was also at the time helping me to simultaneously grow my popularity.
Covid happened in 2020, and for a lot of us, it was an amazing time to own an e-commerce brand. Furthermore, I proceeded to start my 2nd clothing company, called Modiv Brand, with my 2 good friends, Dereck Dreyer and Brad Bromlow. When you have your own brand, you always need warehousing and fulfillment. This came easy to Dereck because he had done it before for Alphalete. Fast forward to 2022 and Dereck and I had a lot of common interests in the space. Being best friends, we knew that we work very well together because we complement each other’s weaknesses. This is how we started Relay Distribution together, a full turnkey DTC fulfillment center where we not only fulfill for brands but also do their full product development.
Presently, we are all in on Relay Distribution, and it was been an amazing chapter in our lives. We help businesses solve problems using our 8 years of experience not only as individuals in the e-commerce space but also owning our own businesses in the space. We understand where the gaps are in businesses because we’ve gone through the same pitfalls. In turn, we hope to solve these issues for our clients. We are truly building a one-of-a-kind full turnkey fulfillment center.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s impossible to have peaks without valleys. The lows without the highs. However, these trials and tribulations always lead you to your best self. In business, when you build something substantial, there are always people out to take down what you’ve built.
I honestly think I’ve gone through some of the worst things you can probably go through. From losing tons of money on drops that you think we’re going to do well to lawsuits. I’ve seen so much through my years of business.
Fortunately, like my parents, I never give up. I try to always look at the silver lining in everything, and no, it’s all temporary.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Relay Distribution LLC?
We are a full-turnkey DTC fulfillment center.
You can come to us at any stage in your business, and we can not only help with inventory management and inventory but also turn your ideas from concepts to reality. We not only do fulfillment but also product development and content/media.
Fulfillment centers are often known to be typical B2B or corporate style. They didn’t come from e-commerce or the influencer side of things and, therefore, can’t identify the issues that come with this niche. We understand the power of influencers from a first-hand perspective as well as the needs required from start to finish. Our brand is built in the influencer niche. Social media and personality is often so overlooked in this space because of the old school professionalism. Everyone is just a number.
At Relay Distribution, we are big enough to support but just small enough to care.
What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
Personability and Relatability. This industry lacks personality, and I am here to deliver it.
In addition, we understand that the problems we solve and brands we service are a privilege and not a right. That’s why we call them our partners instead of clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.relaydistro.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/relaydistro/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@relaydistro
Image Credits
Austin Hronich
