Solo Stove: Spencer and Jeff Jan

Over a nine-year period, Spencer and Jeff Jan grew Solo Stove from a DIY project into a 9-figure brand. Their original idea was modest: work a four-hour week and earn a passive income from a DTC camping stove, which was easy to use and as sleek as a spaceship. When they launched the business in 2010, the brothers lived thousands of miles away from each other: Spencer in Shanghai, where he located the manufacturer for the stove, and Jeff in Dallas, where he managed logistics out of his garage. Using all the tools at their disposal—Kickstarter, Amazon, and Starbucks for office meetings—the brothers grew the brand to where it attracted a 9-figure acquisition. Which actually happened twice—making them both wealthy enough to enjoy a 0-hour work week. This episode was produced by Carla Esteves, with music by Ramtin Arablouei. Edited by Neva Grant, with research help from Casey Herman. You can follow HIBT on Twitter & Instagram, and email us at hibt@id.wondery.com. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Guy Raz interviews the world’s best-known entrepreneurs to learn how they built their iconic brands. In each episode, founders reveal deep, intimate moments of doubt and failure, and share insights on their eventual success. How I Built This is a master-class on innovation, creativity, leadership and how to navigate challenges of all kinds.New episodes on Mondays and Thursdays. Listen to How I Built This on the Wondery App or wherever you listen to your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. Start your free trial by visiting https://wondery.com/links/how-i-built-this now. Get your How I Built This merch at WonderyShop.com/HowIBuiltThis.