A Founder’s Tale
A gentleman named Bob once told me there are three phases in life: learning, earning and returning. While all three have always occupied space in my life, Deviation33 is the official start of my returning phase.
Yep, that’s me, the happy kid on roller skates who then raced motorcross well but not well enough to make a real living at it; who became an artist that designed company logos and sold a few paintings; who became a marketing guy, a global business development guy, a product designer with a utility patent, a good listener and an instinctive, successful business builder.
The journey began in 1981. With my father-in-law’s $10,000 no strings attached gift, older brother Ron and I founded RSD3, which grew to become an award-winning point-of-sale display design and production house with A-list clients including Levi Strauss, Safeway Stores, Sony PlayStation, Bell Sports, Specialized Bicycles, and RockShox. I learned buckets full about consumer communications and experiential marketing from our clients.
Next came business #2, GaleForce Sports Marketing, which cofounded the Sea Otter Classic, returned World Cup MTB racing to America in Napa, introduced Short Track as a National Championship discipline in the late 90s and likely organized the very first mountain bike enduro in 1998. The company organized 50+ world-class events, many of which were broadcast internationally.
Plus3 was business #3, a digital health and employee engagement platform. Users converted daily healthy and wellbeing actions into points redeemable as personal rewards and/or employer-sponsored community giving. A first-of-its-kind engagement platform that moved over $4million to charities worldwide. We were flattered when a few big players in the employee benefits world blended intrinsic and extrinsic rewards in a similar fashion. Plus3 ignited my ongoing infatuation with behavioral economics.
I un-retired mid-2021, invited by Enduro Bearings, manufacturer of world-class bicycle bearings and components, to lead a successful global rebranding and business development project that fostered stronger B2B relationships and substantially increased global aftermarket brand awareness and revenues.
In each instance, whether working for myself or others, great businesses are built upon a foundation of quality products or services. What comes next is tricky: creating a cost-efficient, authentic brand strategy that fosters trust while extolling product features and benefits. It requires a balance of patience and urgency. An ingrained empathy for and appreciation of those who purchase products, regardless of how desperate one may be to empty the warehouse. In a nutshell, an audience-first, product-second bias.
Brands hear, but are they listening? Brands see, but are they observing? It took me a few years to learn the joy of listening and observing more and talking less. Listening brands become trusted brands. Trusted brands are invited into homes and are difficult to replace. Noisy, transactional brands are stored in the pantry or garage and easily forgotten.
GRATITUDE
It would be a shame to sign off without thanking my better half, Gail, for decades of unwavering support. Same for our kids, Geoff and Robyn. To my journey joining co-founders, mentors, colleagues, clients, event participants, volunteers and friends…thanks for joining the fun. Extra fist bumps to Gloria, Heather, Steve, Jonathan, Jim and Joe for your contributions.
I owe all of you big for pulling me through never-ending headwinds and over mountain tops.
See you out there!
Rick Sutton
The D33 Collective
We are an un-agency. There are no rules of engagement. No 20% add-on fees. You can work with me on strategery and D33 coordination. You can contact one or more D33 Collective members directly if you like; there’s no toll booth to gain access. Each expert will invoice you for their services.
Should I assist you with brand building and biz dev, clients will donate to one of my favorite youth organizations: Cake4Kids, NICA, and Rancho Cielo.
Please take a few minutes to meet the team. You’ll find a talented group of subject-matter experts I’ve had the pleasure of working with for many years. On more than one occasion, they’ve saved my entrepreneurial ass by delivering on time and above expectation.
Community Building
We’ve listened to the drumbeats regarding the fracturing of, or lack of, a cycling community. And we agree. D33 is acting through two homegrown, returning phase projects that draft off one another. One recognizes cycling’s hidden heroes, the other shares cycling’s behind-the-scenes stories. Neither project is performance-based or brand-centric.
Travel by cursor to learn more about the Unsung Cyclist Awards and the Sutton Speakeasy Series.