SNOHOMISH — When Mark Brandsma wanted to start a small business, he thought big.
His Six-8 Clothing Company specializes in casual clothing for men in the 6-foot to 7-foot range.
Brandsma’s company, dubbed for his own height, offers 189 individual styles and colors of shirts and jeans.
From polo shirts and T-shirts to three styles of jeans, the line continues to grow. A collection of flannel shirts were introduced in October. Casual slacks are now in the design phase.
While specializing in niche markets has been a marketing dream for many small businesses, success stems from a firm foundation of expertise, passion and flawless execution, according to Brandsma.
The 54-year-old’s passion for fashion was sparked as he grew up in his native Netherlands.
His father worked for C&A, an international Dutch chain of fashion retail clothing stores, in the men’s department for 37 years. When Brandsma was old enough, he joined the company working the floor at his father’s side. As he grew, he was frustrated to see all the fashion options offered at retail that he couldn’t fit into.
As he continued to grow, Brandsma decided to move to the United States.
“I was a basketball player born in a soccer country,” he said. “I kept looking for avenues that would take me to the United States to play.”
That opportunity came to Bandsma in his early 20s. But it came in the form of cute American girl visiting her mother’s family in the Netherlands. Now married 33 years, the couple met while out on the town with friends.
Brandsma moved to Texas with her and was a walk on to a Division 1 team, the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg near the Texas-Mexico border.
When it became clear he was not professional basketball material, his summer job at the fast food chain Whataburger became a 10-year stint with the company. Over that time he moved up the ranks into regional management.
“The restaurant business is hard work, long hours and I was gone from home a lot,” said Brandsma.
He reached out to his father for connections that would lead him back into the fashion business. His C&A past put him in a prime position to join their Miller’s Outpost clothing store group. Following years in the Southern California market, he was moved to the Northwest in late 1997 to open 20 stores in 24 months. He settled his family in Snohomish because of the country lifestyle.
When C&A sold the chain to a venture capital firm, Brandsma was a casualty of corporate restructuring. He found another position with Family Christian Stores as the Northwest district manager, opening new stores in the same shopping centers as he had with Miller’s Outpost. After eight years, another corporate repositioning put Brandsma’s name on the layoff list. He then set out on his own.
“I had some savings and funds from severance packages,” he said. “When I explored various areas I took stock in what I know and where my passion was. I do love clothing and I do know tall.”
Being in the height range of his customers, Brandsma is well poised to be the line’s lead designer.
“You cannot simply add length and call it ‘tall’,” he said. “We have bigger hands which means shirt buttons and zipper pulls have to be bigger, front pants pockets need to be 11-inches deep and there needs to be 6 3/4-inch back pocket openings. Little things mean a lot to big guys.”
Those designs are turned over to a local pattern maker who supplies the patterns for production at a Tukwila-based manufacturer. Brandsma likes having a factory so close to home to reduce shipping costs. Plus it makes checking on the garment quality easy.
The business lessons Brandsma has learned are too numerous to count, he said.
“In hindsight I should have started with a women’s line. I would have been further along,” he said. “Women shop better and more frequently for clothes than men. Now seven out of 10 of Six-8’s shoppers are women who experience the fit frustration of their sons and husbands.”
Making the decision to use online marketing was not that difficult. Brandsma believes that tall customers, who cannot find their size in stores, are already online seeking for clothing solutions.
His notion about online is underscored by a National Retail Federation overview pegging a full 50 percent more tall men buying clothing online than their regular-size counterparts.
Brandsma also has taken his line to customers at fairs, gift shows and basketball and volleyball tournaments this past year for the first time.
“The main reason to have face-to-face time with customers is to give them an opportunity to try on the clothing and touch the fabrics,” Brandsma said. “I also learn from listening to people. You cannot get that experience with online sales only.”
Online sales account for 65 percent of Six-8’s sales, with special showings resting at 35 percent, according to Brandsma.
As the company marks its first year of operations, Brandsma reports there are still challenges that can only be met with determination.
“It has been a huge risk,” he said. “It takes total family support.”
Brandsma’s daughter, Rachel Oxnevad, 29, fills orders and helps with sales. His son, Nick, 27, sets up the “store” at the fairs, exhibitions and sporting events.
“You have to dream big and live a day at a time,” said Brandsma.
Six-8 is heading to Europe and Africa this month to explore expanding sales outside the U.S.
More info: www.six8clothingcompany.com.
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