Category Archives: Lovesac Stuff

Want Company Culture? Just Do Stuff

From time to time I am interviewed for various podcasts or magazine articles about entrepreneurship, business, and the like. Besides the inevitable telling of the infamous Lovesac story, I get asked a lot about company culture–often referred to as “corporate culture,” which I bristle to just by nomenclature alone. (It is for this reason that you’ll never see us refer to “Lovesac Corporate.” Instead we use “Headquarters.”) But I digress…

Company culture is in the eye of the beholder. If people who work at Lovesac think our company culture sucks–then it sucks. If people who work at Lovesac think our company culture is awesome–then it is awesome. What people on the outside think doesn’t matter very much–except, of course, when it comes to attracting talent. Either way, it is my fault. And what’s really crazy is that after all these years, I can confidently say it always both sucks and is awesome at the same time…because you can’t please everybody all the time. Just get used to that.

But I find the perception from the outside is that Lovesac seems to have a really cool, alive, and vibrant culture. So I get asked that question over and over: How do you build company culture? My anti-climactic response: Do stuff. I vlogged about it…
We do some weird things at Lovesac HQ to keep things interesting…

Have an idea? Think of something that sounds fun, or cool, or interesting? Do it. Try it. Spend a buck and go for it. Many “cultural” events don’t cost much or even cost anything. A week ago while I was out of the office visiting Lovesac stores one of our HQ Sac’rs took it upon themselves to throw a spontaneous “Chips and Dips” party at like 3pm on a weekday. They gave a few days’ notice, sent an email around to everyone at HQ and who knew–they had an amazing turnout of chips and dips and people from all departments just hanging out, having a good time on a random Thursday.

You know you have culture when you don’t have to “do” it all.

But until that day–just do things. Whether you are the “boss” or not. We all end up spending most of our waking hours not with the ones we love, but with those we work with. It is kind of sad you think about it–but it is the human condition. With all of the time we must spend at work, it might as well not suck, so be sure about how to go about presenting a companies vision and begin with making your workers not hate the culture they’re surrounded by. After all, as I remind all department heads at Lovesac when we have our Tuesday meeting (which itself is a brick in the wall of our culture here): If our culture at Lovesac rocks–it is your fault. If our culture at Lovesac sucks–its your fault.

The truth is: It’s all our faults. Every last one of us is part of a company culture, and what are we doing to make it not suck.

Get off the couch and go make something happen.

— Shawn

Lovesac Founder & CEO

The Lovesac Story Unabridged: Episode 2 / 50

The saga of the Lovesac story continues with this second installment on my daily CEO vlog called “Get Off the Couch.” I do my best to recount every gory detail that went into the earliest days of the Lovesac–before it was even called a Lovesac! It was really just this huge not-beanbag thing that I had made and people loved.

I had to put it away for 2 years to serve a mission for my church and when I came back I had the good fortune to meet Dave Underwood–who became the head of Product Development at Lovesac and is still here today, 18 years later. Whether you are a budding entrepreneur or just someone who likes a good story, the history of Lovesac won’t disappoint…and I’ve never told it like this before, to anyone.

Enjoy. And subscribe to my channel on YouTube!

— Shawn

Another Lovesac Baby (store) Born Into the World

There is just nothing more fun than bringing a new Lovesac digital showroom into the world. If you’ve never been to a Lovesac Store Grand Opening, make sure to get on our email list or pay attention to our locations page as they are a party not to be missed. People come out in the hundreds to take advantage of amazing deals, free food, and just to share the love on grand opening day. Some people even drive hundreds of miles to get there. It is always so much fun. Check it out in the Facebook video below….worth a look.

LOVESAC, NOVI STORE OPENING VID

New Lovesac Store, Novi

Lines form for the Grand Opening of Lovesac in Novi, Michigan–just outside of Detroit

We LOVE our #LovesacFamily!!!

Keep Spreading the love.

— Lovesac

Flip Into the Largest Lovesac Pit in the World

We had the pleasure of dropping by our our good friend, Travis Pastrana’s, place this week down in Maryland to see what might be possible if we filled his well-worn foam pit with some Lovesacs. His whole house is already Sac’d out, why not the back yard too? Invite a couple of the biggest YouTuber / Social Media Celebrities in the world, namely Logan Paul and Roman Atwood, and the chaos is sure to take care of itself.

Given so many Lovesacs at his disposal, Logan of course went immediately to: “Think we could launch a Lovesac from a slingshot–at a flying Travis Pastrana?” Well, here it is…

Roman came with a personal goal of learning to backflip a motorcycle into a foam pit full of Lovesacs from none other than the best in the world, Travis Pastrana. Somehow he nearly gets Travis killed. Here it is…

Thanks to Travis Pastrana, Roman Atwood, and Logan Paul….all good friends of the Sac. All of them have Lovesacs and Sactionals filling their entire living rooms. We love you guys–proud to have you in the #LovesacFamily.

— Shawn

Win a Free Lovesac!? #SacAcrossAmerica

Where is the craziest place you’ve taken your Lovesac? Post a photo of your Lovesac in action and win one! Check out the  contest here, via Lovesac’s Facebook. Or just use #SacAcrossAmerica on Instagram.

Even though Lovesac is an up-and-coming trendsetter in American home décor, our roots are not really in the home. When I invented the very first Lovesac, I conceived it while sitting on my parent’s couch and chopped up the foam to put inside of it in the basement. But it spent almost no time in front of the TV in those days.

Lovesac Camping

First Sac Ever Made, Camping in Moab, Utah

We immediately tossed the massive Sac in the back of a pickup truck, or between the roll-bars of my roofless 1976 classic Bronco and dragged it to the drive-in movies or even the sidelines of the soccer game. We took it up the nearby canyons in Utah and cuddled 4 or 6 at once next to the fire, and even slept on it next to the shores of my favorite place on the planet: Lake Powell. Whatever the case, between the ages of 18 and 23, when Lovesac was just me and my friends making Lovesacs by hand for neighbors and their friends, we had no homes of our own, and these giant orbs of comfort lived the nomadic life of a college student-turned-entrepreneur.

Lovesac at the Lake

One of the earliest ever Lovesacs dragged down to Lake Powell to sleep on

Fast-forward to today. We are now grateful to be selling thousands of Lovesac each month, most of which find their way into the living rooms, movie rooms, and bedrooms of real people all over the country. But if there is one thing I know—I know they don’t always stay there. I come across photos all the time of Lovesac fans around the country leaping off of roofs, staircases, trucks, and trees into their Lovesacs in all kinds of unlikely locations. I know I’m not the only one who’s had the pleasure of stuffing a Lovesac into the back seat of a car that is probably smaller than the Sac is. Yes—a Lovesac will fit into the back seat of a car—any car, if you shove hard enough. Of course, Lovesac now has the Cinch Cover to make moving your Lovesac a lot easier. (Where’s the fun in that though!?)

Sac in Subaru

Cram a Lovesac into the back of any car!

One of our former employees and good friends had to leave Lovesac HQ in Stamford, CT a while back for a new life on the west coast. He loaded up his car, taking his Lovesac and Cinch Cover, along with his girlfriend and all his possessions on a coat-to-coast road trip to end all road trips. Check out the whole adventure on Lovesac’s Tumbler page. Its worth the look.

Sac across America! #Lovesac

What is the coolest trip you’ve ever attempted with your Lovesac?

Post your own photos on Instagram #SacAcrossAmerica, or post here and have your friends vote to WIN A FREE LOVESAC.

— Shawn

Lovesacs For Kids With Sensory Issues

My favorite unintended consequence of inventing Lovesac has been to find out from hundreds of parents that it can be majorly therapeutic for kids with Autism, Muscular Dystrophy, and a host of other sensory issues. But don’t take it from me…

Thank you Suzanne!

— Shawn

People Line Up Overnight for Sactionals

Lovesac celebrated its 59th Store opening on Saturday with a Grand Opening event unlike any other. The first 50 people in line would receive a Sactionals “Starter Couch” (aka 2 Seats + 2 Sides) and we were hoping that the word would spread. It did.

Checkout this quick clip of some of the madness that I got to face myself at 7am as the line stretched through the mall courtyard…

So make sure you get on Lovesac’s mailing list (bottom right of page) to find out about the next ridiculous store opening party we throw so you can, at the very least, tell your friends to go wait in line for you!

People camped outside of Lovesac

7 am and the line for Baybrook Lovesac’s Grand Opening stretches through the courtyard

Bay brook Grand Opening

Helping as many people as fast as I can as the Grand Opening crowds file in

Thanks for all of your support. I’m grateful for our #LovesacFamily.

— Shawn

Thursday Thought: New Years Eeeeeeeeeve

“Although no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.”
— Carl Bard
[ An excerpt from an internal email sent to all Lovesac employees 12/31/2015 ]
As cliché as it may be, I am a strong believer in finding a quiet corner—maybe just in your car or closet—to clear your mind, reflect on what you achieved in 2015, and make not more than three crystal clear and achievable new year’s resolutions with a simple action plan to stick to them. Do it! Make time for it!! Our Lovesac Family is not a thing—it is a collection of 350+ individual human beings, and we are only as great as each individual is. We all rely on each other.
Shawn Nelson

Its time for big things

But besides it being a time for resolutions, New Year’s Eve is a time to celebrate—and we have a lot to celebrate! Together, we have made great things happen this year. As tired as you may feel, or as “not pretty” as it sometimes is around here, YOU are absolutely responsible for Lovesac’s turning some major corners in 2015 and setting this company on a path to achieve growth and success at a rate that will make the past few years feel slow.
It may or may not feel like it to you, but we are in a good and stable position as a company, and is your fault that we are there. We certainly have endless work left to do, a hundred shortcomings, and a thousand things to improve upon…but we should all feel good about what we have achieved this year. I am really proud of what we have done and I’m also proud of the chance we have to influence this world going forward—filling it with product that has been designed-for-life, growing the overall economy and providing opportunities for more people to work and share in our spoils along the way. We should all be proud of that. We are not just selling stuff—we are building a company—together.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO US!!!
— Shawn

Thursday Thought: OUR Holiday

Internal email sent to all Lovesac employees: Dec 23, 2015

No one has ever become poor by giving. 
— Anne Frank
 
To my Lovesac Family,
I am so grateful for retail. For some people, “the Holidays” is really just a couple of days each year….a mad rush to squeeze in some shopping and wrapping and cooking to prepare for all of the craziness of holiday dinners, visits to and from extended family, and everything else that comes along with it.
Our Holiday is more-than-a-month-long event. We are subjected to all of the frenetic energy, timeless music, and that extra little bit of goodwill that comes (or should come) with the Holiday Season for a stretch of many weeks. After 15 Lovesac Christmases, I still absolutely love it, and I would encourage all of us not to “wish it away.” Just like many of the best things in life, the Holidays will come with all of its accompanying high stress, low funds, and limited time…but the Holidays will also go, and then we’re just left with winter.
Thanks to ALL OF OUR collective hard work, we have put ourselves in a position where we can, and should just relax and enjoy it. SO PLEASE—MAKE THE EFFORT TO ENJOY IT! Why don’t you go ahead and TAKE FRIDAY OFF…all of you! I know—its generous.  🙂  But seriously, TAKE IT COMPLETELY OFF and be totally PRESENT with the ones you love.
Find every opportunity to give. Take the time over the next few days to open more doors, illicit more smiles, tip a little larger, anger a little slower, share more Holiday well-wishes, and generally SPREAD THE LOVE. Nothing matters more than love, and we get to be its namesake—in furniture form.
Please enjoy this fantastic video that reminds us that there are many ways to give, and of the power behind our smallest of actions. Its worth the watch:

I love you. I appreciate what you do to keep us all mutually employed and feeling successful this year. We are all in this together, and we all owe each other for our collective success.
Merry Christmas, Happy belated Hanukkah, and HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO US ALL!
Feel good. We’ve earned it.
— Shawn