Today we’d like to introduce you to Clay Paschal.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
A little over four and a half years ago, I decided to start my own business. I had amassed a kind of eclectic set of experiences, both personally and professionally, and the idea was to draw on those experiences and create something special.
I had a solid Christian upbringing, which I decided to challenge in every way. After what we’ll call “my little mini rebellion”, and a return to my roots, I chose to fulfill a dream I’d had to become an actor. After earning a degree in Performing Arts, I signed with Kim Dawson Agency in Dallas and with BLVD Talent in Austin and managed to land a few pretty solid jobs. I had a roll on season 2 of Prison Break on Fox, performing with one of my favorites on the show, Robert Knepper, and was featured in both a national Buffalo Wild Wings commercial and a regional Texas Lotto commercial.
I love acting, but it didn’t fulfill what I thought was my calling like I imagined it would. That was a pretty tough blow because I put a LOT of eggs in that basket. But I listened to my heart and my conscience and after some beach and island traveling and working some odd jobs to keep the wheels spinning, I launched Clayton’s Digs, LLC.
Initially, I drew upon some woodworking skills I had picked up from my Dad and from several construction jobs I had throughout my life and was creating some pretty cool handmade knickknacks and decor. But the thing that really spun it on its head was when I added Signature Beard Oil. I had been using beard oils from all the companies that sold it, and I thought I could do it better. So I spent hours and days and weeks and months developing a 100% natural beard oil that doesn’t stay oily or greasy, smells 100 times better and works like nothing else I’ve ever used. It was obvious to anyone looking at my beard. So many people kept asking me what I use on my beard, I put it up for sale on the website alongside the woodwork. I sold more of that than anything else I was selling, and the rest, as they say, is history. I had finally found something unique that I created, that I could share with the world around me. And I had carte blanche as to where I could take it.
Has it been a smooth road?
I’m not sure I’ve ever taken a smooth road in my life. (Laughing) Seriously though, anyone will tell you starting a business is tough. Hearing that and experiencing that are definitely two different things. There are all kinds of little things; little hiccups that happen. In fact, I don’t think that ever stops, that’s just the nature of the beast.
A lot of resources were exhausted on things that, for whatever reason, didn’t work out the way they were supposed to – radio ads that didn’t perform as expected, product labels that got redesigned and never got used, traveling for pop-up markets that actually ended up costing us money instead of making us money… We just learned early on to roll with those mistakes; to learn whatever the lesson was and make adjustments.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the CD Beard Company story. Tell us more about the business.
CD Beard Company offers luxury lines of all-natural, handcrafted beard and skincare products – beard oils, beard balms, beard and face washes, styling waxes, as well as sandalwood combs, boar bristle brushes, complete beard kits and branded apparel including hats, beanies, tees and more.
Our products are blended to perfection with an island spirit using the finest raw ingredients available. Nothing else on the market absorbs, smells or works better than what we offer, and we pride ourselves in that. Our lines are Signature, Aloha and Black Tie.
Signature is a Caribbean-style scent similar to a bay rum, Aloha has the aroma of a Hawaiian Island breeze and Black Tie is a cologne-style scent reminiscent of our favorite cocktail, The Old Fashioned, with a warm sandalwood base and hints of orange and bourbon.
Ours is superior to the household brands due to its quick absorption leaving no residue, and it’s superior to the department store brands because we use no chemicals, including synthetic fragrances. All of our lines are scented using original, proprietary blends of pure essential oils and absolutes only.
A lot of blood, sweat and tears has gone into creating superior products, and that’s exactly what we’ve done.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
The beard industry has exploded. Everyone seems to be wearing beards these days, and the answer to that call has been beard care products. The main misconception about beard care products has been that you need to have a Gandolf or a Grizzly Adams to justify their use. This couldn’t be further from the truth, and as people learn that fact the need for beard care will continue to grow.
The thing that I think will start to shift is people seeking out higher-quality beard care than what they’re finding in the grocery stores and drug stores. It has already started happening, but I think it’s going to continue to trend that way. It’s gone from a complete novelty to a legitimate men’s grooming necessity, and as people explore better products like ours, I believe they’ll just want more and more. People are starting to understand that a good beard care product is really a skincare product that your beard benefits from, and nobody wants to look 90 when they’re 50.
Pricing:
- Beard Oils – $30
- Beard Balms – $32
- Beard Washes – $35
- Gentlemen’s Styling Wax – $15
- Sandalwood Combs – $32
- Boar Bristle Brushes – $32
- Beard Kits – $135
Contact Info:
- Website: cdbeardco.com
- Email: info@cdbeardco.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/clay_cdbeard
- Facebook: facebook.com/cdbeardco
- Twitter: twitter.com/cdbeardco
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