When identical twins Mike and Alex Faherty launched their clothing brand, they made a daring move– launching wholesale, retail, and online, pretty much at the same time. Investors said it was outdated, maybe even doomed.

But that contrarian bet helped grow Faherty into a hugely popular brand, built on family, ingenuity, and obsession with detail.

The two brothers spent 12 years preparing for launch—Mike at Ralph Lauren learning the craft of fashion, Alex in finance learning the mechanics of business. In the early days they traveled the country in a beach house on wheels, pulling over on the PCH to sell bathing suits and board shorts. Mike’s designs—surf culture meets big-city chic—took hold online, in department stores, and even swanky boutiques in Japan, giving Faherty the momentum it needed to eventually grew to $250 million in sales.

What You’ll Learn:

Why the “all channels” strategy (wholesale + retail + online) can actually be a competitive advantage.
The power of 12 years of preparation prior to launch.
How to leverage factory relationships and suppliers as true partners.
Why old-school, in-person sales can be a killer marketing tool
How family, trust, and resilience became a core advantage of the Faherty brand.

Timestamps:

(05:41) Mike discovers Bergdorf’s, cashmere, and fashion inspiration as a teenager in NYC

(08:19) Mike gets grief from his basketball teammates for studying fashion at Wash U

(13:38) Mike lands a job at Ralph Lauren to learn fashion from the inside

(21:28) The moment Alex’s mentor tells him that starting a clothing brand is “the dumbest idea I’ve ever heard”

(31:41) The brothers launch Faherty online from a borrowed apartment in Puerto Rico

(35:00) Roaming the country in a mobile beach house that doubles as their first store

(41:34) Early wins with specialty shops

(59:14) The brand nearly runs out of money and gets rescued by a man from Nantucket

(1:07:14) A Covid-era gamble that pays off in massive growth

(1:15:04) How the identical-twin bond became a superpower for the brand

Follow How I Built This:

Instagram → @howibuiltthis

X → @HowIBuiltThis

Facebook → How I Built This

Follow Guy Raz:

Instagram → @guy.raz

Youtube → guy_raz

X → @guyraz

Substack → guyraz.substack.com

Website → guyraz.com

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode 3022 CWSA 11/18/25

Real Coffee with Scott Adams

Judge People by Their Response to Mistakes

The AI-powered Podcast Player