Shopify Masters How Purpose and Strategy Powered Actively Black’s Rise to $2 Million in 12 Months
Dec 9, 2025
Lanny Smith, a former professional basketball player and founder of Actively Black, shares his inspiring journey of turning purpose into profit. Before launching, he built a community of 10,000 followers, showcasing the power of demand-first thinking. Lanny discusses how purpose-driven branding led to $55,000 in first-day sales and $2 million in the first year, despite facing inventory challenges. He highlights key partnerships with brands like Marvel and emphasizes the importance of aligning values with investors and fostering long-term customer trust.
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Audience Before Product
- Build your audience before you build product and use them to validate demand.
- Reverse engineer product decisions from an engaged email and SMS list to ensure a strong launch.
Prelaunch List Powered A $55K Day
- Lanny had ~10,000 Instagram followers and 10,000 email subscribers pre-launch.
- That audience helped Actively Black generate $55,000 on launch day.
Purpose Trumps Product Novelty
- Purpose and messaging drove signups because the space lacked Black ownership.
- Emotional resonance trumped product novelty when building the waitlist.