How do you get into business with Bill Murray? Well, start by owing him a lot of money.
In an interview with Entrepreneur, the founders of theCHIVE—brothers Leo and John Resig—discussed what it's like to work with the legend on William Murray Golf, a line of high-end golf apparel created by the three golf lovers.
Back in 2008, Leo and John designed theCHIVE based on three pillars: humour, hotness, and humanity. But really, what the brand is especially known for is its quirky T-shirts and content—and now, for its association with Bill Murray himself. According to the brothers, it all started when they started selling a ton of T-shirts with Murray's face on them. They couldn't get ahold of Murray to give him licensing payments, but he found out they existed after they started selling like crazy:
"[W]hen it came to raise money and awareness for his Caddy Shack charity golf tournament in St. Augustine, Bill told the board members, 'I know a couple of boys that are back on the rent, give the Resig brothers a call!' We had been ferreting away all the licensing money that we'd one day owe Bill. I can't tell you how much it was, but there were a lot of zeroes! And when we told him how much, he said, 'Give it to charity.' That's the substance of his character."
Leo told Entrepreneur that while Murray shows up to business meetings, "you never know when he's going to walk through the door." The element of surprise is raised considerably when you consider that it's practically impossible to get ahold of him, according to John:
"The legend is true—you really can't get a hold of the man. He has no agent and has an 800-number that you can leave a message on."
In addition, Murray is "very detail oriented" and hands-on with the project:
"We're going to sell a straw hat and he held it up to the light and he said, 'The sun is going to penetrate this and older gentlemen who are bald are going to get sunburn on their head. So we need to tighten up the thatching.' And he was exactly right. That's the level he was involved."
(H/T Entrepreneur)
