Sammy Sucu Shares his Entrepreneurship Story
Sammy Sucu, MBA alum (Class of 2014) and Founder/CEO of DreamClothing, honored us with his entrepreneur story on November 8th.
Sammy shared that, in his early twenties, he attended Law School, but soon found out that the abstract learning style required toward a law degree was not very much in line with his quest for creative development. He dropped out of law school and enrolled in CSUN’s journalism program. However, upon earning his degree, he quickly realized that he would need a business degree to secure a better income for himself and his young family. He chose Woodbury University’s MBA program and ended with insights and skills that equipped him for the next step in his life.
Upon earning his MBA, Sammy took a sales and PR job at a local furniture company, as he was still hesitant about starting up a venture of his own. He was still very young and missed the confidence to put what he learned in B-School into practice right away. Yet, working for a boss did not feel gratifying because even though Sammy boosted sales tremendously during his years at the company, he did not receive the recognition he had hoped for. So, in his spare time, he started selling hoodies, which he initially purchased and had printed locally. He found a celebrity wrestler to wear his product, and sales promptly started picking up. As he went through the initial ups and downs in sales, Sammy took a deeper look into the developments of his part-time start-up business, and developed some catchy designs focused on mental health. Mental health was something he came to understand throughout his own turbulent youth as a critical need for doing well. As his clothing company “DREAM” grew, he started supporting non-profit organizations that advocated mental health, and his products increased in
popularity, so much so, that some people even tattooed his designs on their bodies! By realizing how much he grew year over year, Sammy worked up the courage to leave his employer and take on “DREAM” as his sole venture.
When the pandemic hit in early 2020, Sammy found his business taking off even more than before. Working from home provided him the time he needed to engage in direct conversations with customers, leading to better attunement into their desires, and even greater success in sales.
Today, DREAM is doing very well, and Sammy admits that he learned some important lessons along the way. There was a time that he became too comfortable with the status quo, and lost focus of what really mattered in running a successful business: he landed in “autopilot” mode, and mechanically went through the motions of ever-increasing production without any meaning and void of innovation. He finally realized what was happening, called himself to order, and re-concentrated on the purpose of his business.
Sammy Sucu’s next goal is to focus the theme of his clothing on greater social wellness, and not just mental health. He also shared three tips that may be useful for budding entrepreneurs:
- If you have an idea, just do it!
- Never get comfortable.
- Don’t be afraid to change.
So, while Sammy is now preparing for some innovative developments with his clothing line, he realizes that, as long as he remains genuine, the chances for success are good, and the new directions will be rewarding.
Last Updated: November 14, 2023