CULT BRANDS TAKE OFF
In today’s economy, it isn’t enough to make great products—you have to inspire passion. We gathered leaders from three of the most dynamic emerging cult brands—spin-class exercise chain SoulCycle, salon startup Drybar, and mattress-business disrupter Casper—to discuss how they think about their customers, their businesses, their competition, and their culture. In this candid conversation, led by Fast Company’s Amy Farley, the trio of leaders reveal how they cultivate love for their companies.
Each of your businesses has identified something that people consider a chore or a necessity and made it fun. Neil, is that where you started: There must be a better way to buy a mattress?
NEIL PARIKH: Why does every block have a mattress store? You go in, there are orange walls, there are salespeople [who earn commissions], a thousand different options. It’s like buying a used car. It’s one of the worst experiences ever. Why does this exist? It just doesn’t make any sense.
ALLI WEBB: We didn’t invent blowouts; we just created a much better experience. And we made it affordable.
MELANIE WHELAN: SoulCycle is an experience. From the beginning, we have treated it as a live production. Every hour on the hour, it’s curtains up. You have an instructor who is
