JUST Branding S06.EP20 - From Kickstarter to Cult Brand w/ Brandon Kim, Brevitē
Dec 19, 2025
Brandon Kim, co-founder of Brevitē, shares insights from transforming a humble Kickstarter into a vibrant camera bag brand. He recounts their unique approach to design, creating bags that don't look like traditional camera gear. Discover how community feedback shaped their products and how bootstrapping allowed for creative freedom. Brandon emphasizes genuine connections over vanity metrics, revealing his vision for evolving Brevitē into a lifestyle brand while maintaining authenticity. His quick tips for founders highlight the importance of simplicity and adaptability in branding.
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Iterate Constantly During Long Development Cycles
- Do build many parallel product projects and gather feedback throughout development stages.
- Use early sampling, team testing and user trials to improve hit rates for long 9–18 month product cycles.
Values Guide Decisions And Culture
- They used systems dynamics to derive mission, vision and values and actually live them.
- Values like 'we're serious about play' and 'we're fair in all we do' guide hiring, culture and tough decisions.
Bootstrap To Protect Creative Control
- Avoid taking outside investment if you can sustain growth and want long-term creative control.
- Bootstrapping kept Brevitē tightly run and preserved founders' vision across years of growth.