2020 Issue 6 Nov/Dec - Focus Mid-Tenn Magazine

name that made sense.
As I mentioned before,
I was born and raised in
Cincinnati, Ohio. More
importantly, the hospital
where I was born is in the
Clifton neighborhood of
Cincinnati. Clifton was
literally where I got my
start.
Leopold means a “brave
man or brave one” and if
I was going to do this it
would take a fair amount of
bravery and a good dose of
vodka every now and then.
But at the core I do feel like
a brave man, so Leopold
really resonated with me.
Finally, when you take
their initials, they are the
same as mine. This was
something that wasn’t
obvious until the first time
I wrote the names together
but none-the-less an
impactful moment when I
did. It felt kismet in nature!
Here was a way for me to
infuse myself in the brand
without being the brand.
How was the experience
starting your business
during a pandemic?
This is probably the
question I get the most
and every time I start my
response the same way. “It
makes for one hell of an
origin story.” It also feels
totally on-brand for us. One
of our mission statements
and a mantra we openly
share with our community
is — Live Your Best Life.
And to live your best life,
you have to take risks.
I’m super lucky to have
so many amazing family
members, friends and
colleagues around me.
Anytime I lack clarity, they
are quick to loan me their
strength and help me
refocus and get back on
track. The launch was no
different.
I actually started working
on Clifton+Leopold in
October of 2018. That’s
when we created the LLC.
It wasn’t long after that
I started talking about
it with a small group of
friends and family. It is also
when I finally sat down and
created a long list of things
that had to happen to make
it real.
I was determined that
we would make 100% of
our products here in the
U.S. That conviction alone
would take over a year
to answer. There was so
much to do and looking
back I know there were
times I could have moved
faster (hello to the five
weeks I took to decide on
the perfect shipping box).
That said, like all things,
the timing was playing
out exactly how it was
supposed to.
So there we were in
February 2020 working
through our final six-week
launch plan. Then COVID hit.
My first thought was
there was no way we could
launch during COVID. I
mean, our entire premise is
about people going out and
getting dressed up.
This is why it’s so
important to surround
yourself with people who
aren’t afraid to challenge
you. And believe me, that is
what my friends did — in all
the best ways.
By the time our official
launch day came on May
1, I knew they were right.
I’d spent a lifetime building
a network of amazing
humans who were there to
support me. And support
they did. They made
purchases, shared our
posts, told their friends and
showed up. A statement
Christopher is
wearing Tie:
Montgomery,
Pocket: Hazel, and
Silk Lapel Pin
by Clifton+Leopold
that is as true today as it
was on that Friday morning.
Now here we sit finishing
up month six and I couldn’t
be more thankful! It has been
a crazy ride but also the best
thing I’ve ever done.
If you could go back
through the startup
process, is there anything
you would do differently?
This is easy! I would enjoy
it more.
Starting a company and
giving all your energy to
a new idea is hard. It’s
daunting. It’s scary. And
in more ways than anyone
who has never done it can
understand — it’s lonely!
I can’t say that enough...
it’s lonely! And that makes
sense, right? So much
of the process is in your
head and underbaked or
unrealized yet so it’s hard
to share.
Page 14 / focusmidtenn.com / NOV+DEC 2020 / CHEERS!