[Voiceover]: Welcome to the checkout. We catch up with previous add to cart guests and ask them five quick questions to get to know them better and leave you with a little extra inspiration to get you through your Friday.
Nathan Bush: Today's checkout features Davey Fogarty, founder of the Ooty. The original oversized wearable blanket that turned Davey's last $500 into into a $250 million business. And it now sits inside the Davey Group alongside Pupnaps, Zoetech Australian furniture warehouse and more. Davey, thank you so much for joining
Nathan Bush: us on the checkout.
Nathan Bush: We've heard all about the Oodie and
Nathan Bush: you sharing all your incredible e commerce tips in the main episode. I've got five quick questions to get to know you a little bit more. Number one, what's the weirdest thing that you've ever bought online?
Davie Fogarty: The other day I bought those inflatable T Rex costumes and got drunk with one of my friends and we were jumping around in them. That was pretty weird.
Nathan Bush: That's awesome. In public?
Davie Fogarty: No way. At my house. Although you wouldn't have known if I was in public because their face is covered. So could have done it.
Nathan Bush: That's amazing. Do you do custom designs at the Ooty?
Davie Fogarty: We're looking into it at the moment, which is typically. It's a bit challenging, I was about to say.
Nathan Bush: And you get some weird requests through that.
Davie Fogarty: Yeah, we got a Nicolas Cage request. Pretty some really like Nicholas Gage.
Nathan Bush: That's cool. You could do the Face off thing where it's a different design on the outside and then you flip it on the inside.
Davie Fogarty: Love it.
Nathan Bush: The options are endless. All right, who is your favorite retailer?
Davie Fogarty: So favorites. Hard word because they're the ones that rip us off the most and cause us the most grief. But in terms of like business quality.
Nathan Bush: Yep.
Davie Fogarty: In terms of business quality, it would have to be just execution wise. I'll give you two. Kmart and Cotton. Kmart. In terms of predicting trends and stuff like that, they are just really on the ball and their ability to execute. Cotton on did something like $200 million profit as a private company. Globally diversified. Also really good at predicting trends. So both of them are some pretty. Pretty nice businesses to have a look at.
Nathan Bush: Phenomenal. And Cotton on does such an amazing job in retail in general, but I feel goes under the radar a bit.
Davie Fogarty: Mm. A hundred percent. A hundred percent.
Nathan Bush: Number three, which e commerce practice do you wish was? History.
Davie Fogarty: Dropshipping. I think people should be building quality brands, not dropping the quality of of product just nonstop and doing six months shipping time. It's just absolutely ridiculous. So, look, it's good to get started in the e commerce industry. Learn your first business, learn how to arbitrage ads, but then move on to building a brand that actually creates value into the world.
Nathan Bush: Yeah, I feel the heat is coming off drop shipping at the moment. People are kind of getting burnt.
Davie Fogarty: Yeah, I think, I don't know. I think, I think it's always going to be there. It's always going to be there. Unfortunately. Yeah.
Nathan Bush: All right, number four, can you recommend a book or a podcast that our listeners should immediately get into?
Davie Fogarty: Yeah, I'll give a couple Good to Great by Jim Collins. Built to Last by Jim Collins. Just Anything by Jim Collins. But I think my First Million is also a really good podcast. Anyone that wants to launch new businesses, all in podcast is also great. Perfect.
Nathan Bush: Great recommendations. Thank you. And finish this sentence. The future of retail is.
Davie Fogarty: It is diversified.
Nathan Bush: Fantastic. I thought you were going to say living in Noosa.
Davie Fogarty: Living in Noosa. Yeah. Done. Future of retail is not. Not me.
Nathan Bush: No. Diversified.
Nathan Bush: I love it.
Nathan Bush: And that's definitely what you're doing at the Davey Group.
Nathan Bush: Thank you so much for joining us.
Davie Fogarty: Thanks, mate.
Nathan Bush: To hear more from Davey, jump back into episode 270 where Davey shares how he's made sure that the Ootie goes beyond just being a fad and into a brand that stuck around for the long term. He also goes into detail on the biggest threats to your own e commerce business and also shares why he's a little bit disappointed in Lady Gaga. Nothing to do with A Star Is Born. I promise that movie is absolute gold. Thanks for listening. And until next time, keep adding to car.
