February 28, 2025
LAS VEGAS – Another piece of the Prosper Show puzzle fell into place this week when Bryan Porter (pictured), co-founder of Simple Modern, agreed to give the opening Keynote Address. Scheduled for Wednesday, March 26 (9:00 a.m. – 9:40 a.m. PST) at the Keynote Hall (Las Vegas Convention Center), Porter will talk about the journey of building Simple Modern while sharing the core principles that drive the business.
“Instead of fearing loss, we get the joy of using resources to make an impact,” says Porter, who graduated from the University of Oklahoma College of Business in 2009. “That’s fulfilling. Generosity takes our focus from transactional to relational.”
Porter joined an eComm startup called QuiBids out of college, a six-year stint that he describes as the “perfect experience for what looks like a career in CPG and eCommerce.” He worked closely with Mike Beckham during this time, and in 2015 they started Simple Modern, a company which gives away 10% of its profits. Prosper Show sat down with Porter to learn more about the philosophy behind Simple Modern’s success.
Prosper Show: Why is charitable giving such a key part of the company’s primary mission?
Porter: We don’t see generosity as a means to drive more sales, but instead a healthy practice that is a part of the good life. We’re influenced by The Bible and Jesus’ thoughts on how we were made to live. It’s counterintuitive, but generosity is a vital component of human flourishing. It frees us from the idea that life is about accumulation.
Prosper Show: How important is it for young entrepreneurs to feel as if they are doing something moral/ethical, in addition to making money?
Porter: Whether or not we know it, we all are after purpose in life. Most entrepreneurs who build a company and sell it for life-changing money feel empty on the other side. We’re 10 years on and the core group is still motivated to continue the growth. We don’t have a desire to sell because it is a resource that we think can produce impact for years to come.
Simple Modern employees are a community of people who have bought into this idea. We’ve had a remarkably high retention rate with employees because there is a lot of purpose wrapped up in our operation of the business. We also have very strong partnerships with our manufacturers, 3PL [third party logistics] and retail partners because we prioritize the relational over the transactional.
Prosper Show: What’s your response to cynics who believe your charitable philosophy is simply an “angle” to boost sales?
Porter: Our desire has never been to get a pat on the back or make more money off of marketing charity. Our heart is in sharing the journey in hopes to influence other companies to join us. If cynics believe our giving is selfishly motivated, that’s disappointing because they aren’t hearing the bigger picture behind our motives. If we hold on to more customers because of our company’s mission, that’s great because it grows the company’s impact.
Prosper Show: What do you say to sellers who fear that it’s “too late” to succeed and the “good ol’ days” are gone?
Porter: It’s true that eCommerce is more mature today than 10 years ago. There are more sellers to compete with on Amazon and more companies spending on Meta. That’s the natural cycle when there is an outsized opportunity like there has been with online selling.
We just launched a new brand in the Amazon Marketplace called Trevi, because there is still opportunity out there. We have very high hopes for this brand and have seen good returns so far. We believe we can improve the category with how we are strategically positioning Trevi. It’s harder to launch a brand now, but there is still huge opportunity.
Prosper Show: You sell directly from your website, as well as on Amazon. How important is a multi-platform strategy?
Porter: Moving into physical distribution was a game changer for us. We now acquire as many customers in-store as we do online. It allows brands to reach a wider customer base. For website distribution, it depends on the brand. We’re able to offer unique features like personalization on our website, which resonates with customers. DTC [direct to consumer] has been helpful, but it isn’t driving the brand forward like Amazon, Target, and Walmart are.
Bryan Porter is co-founder of Oklahoma-based Simple Modern where he serves as chief eCommerce officer.
Check Out The Prosper Show Agenda – https://prospershow.com/conference/agenda/
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