Reinventing Furniture: How Lovesac Scaled from Side Hustle to Household Name | Shawn Nelson
Millionaire University
Scaling pains: Franchising, VC, and restructuring
Shawn recounts rapid expansion, mixed franchise results, raising venture capital, shrinking back, and surviving the 2008 financial crisis.
#602 What does it really take to build a billion-dollar brand from a side-hustle idea? In this episode hosted by Kirsten Tyrrel, Shawn Nelson, founder and CEO of Lovesac, shares how a giant foam-filled beanbag he stitched together after high school sparked a 25-year entrepreneurial journey. From maxed-out credit cards and a scrappy first retail store to reinventing the furniture industry with modular couches, Shawn opens up about the mistakes, resilience, instincts, and culture that fueled Lovesac’s rise to 300+ stores and thousands of employees — all while staying true to a “design for life” philosophy and building a company people genuinely love!
What we discuss with Shawn:
+ Origin of Lovesac in 1998
+ Giant beanbag side hustle
+ Missionary years in Taiwan
+ First retail store launch in 2001
+ Lessons from early mistakes
+ Pivot to modular couches (Sactionals)
+ Importance of instinct in business
+ Culture, fun, and company values
+ Scaling through marketing & DTC model
+ Redefining success beyond money
Thank you, Shawn!
Check out Shawn Nelson at ShawnDNelson.com.
Check out Lovesac at Lovesac.com.
Follow Shawn on Instagram.
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