NOTAPYRAMID

THIS IS NOT A PYRAMID SCHEME. IT WAS ONCE BEFORE, WHEN TWO YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS WHO DIDN’T KNOW WHAT THEY WERE DOING WANTED TO MAKE A COMPANY. THEY HAD DONE MINOR GIGS BEFORE; TEACHING GUITAR LESSONS, LAWN WORK, CLEANING, AND OTHER MINOR ONE-OFF WAYS TO MAKE CASH. THIS BRAND, HOWEVER, WAS THEIR FIRST ATTEMPT AT SOMETHING SERIOUS. SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS AND MENTORS WHO WERE DIFFERENT, WHO TOOK HOLD OF SOMETHING THEY APPRECIATED AND RAN WITH IT. THESE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT INSPIRED THIS COMPANY. THEY ARE THE ONES THAT MOTIVATED ROLLIE KEEL AND MESFIN MCMANAMY TO BUILD A CLOTHING COMPANY NAMED MMRK AFTER THEIR OWN INITIALS. THIS COMPANY PLANNED TO PAY EARLY “RECRUITS” TO RECRUIT MORE “RECRUITS”. THE CATCH WAS THAT EVERY RECRUIT HAD TO BUY A PRODUCT FIRST, SO ROLLIE AND MESFIN ALWAYS HAD A CUSTOMER, AND THE MORE THEY HAD, THE MORE THEY WOULD GET. UNFORTUNATELY THE PLAN DIDN’T PAN OUT LIKE THE TWO HAD HOPED. TURNS OUT PEOPLE AREN’T AS WILLING TO BE A PART OF A SHADY SCHEME FRONTED BY TWO FOURTEEN YEAR OLDS. BUT THEY CONTINUED WITH THE COMPANY, EVENTUALLY SELLING A TOTAL OF ONE ITEM. IT WAS A LIGHTWEIGHT SWEATSHIRT WITH APPLIQUE TRIANGLES ALL OVER IT, AND THEY SOLD IT TO THEIR BOSS, KATHRYN SWANSON. FOR MANY MONTHS ROLLIE AND MESFIN, PRODUCED T-SHIRTS FOR HER SECOND HAND FABRIC STORE. THE PAY WAS MINISCULE, BUT THE JOB PROVIDED PRACTICE AND OVERSIGHT WHICH THE TWO KIDS CLEARLY NEEDED IF THEIR BRAND WAS GOING TO SUCCEED. THE BRAND DIDN’T SUCCEED. THEIR AMBITIONS WERE TOO GREAT, AND ONCE THEY FINALLY SOLD THEIR FIRST PIECE, THEY WERE LAID OFF, AND THE COMPANY SLOWLY DIMINISHED. HIGH SCHOOL BECAME A CLOSER AND MORE DAUNTING PRESENCE, AND ROLLIE WAS LEAVING FOR BOARDING SCHOOL IN VERMONT WHILE MESFIN WAS STAYING CLOSE TO HOME. FOR THE FIRST COUPLE MONTHS OF FALL 2021, MMRK WAS GONE, BUT SOON TO BE RESURRECTED UNDER THE NEW ALIAS; NOTAPYRAMID. A NAME ADAPTED FROM THE FORMER BRANDS EARLY YEARS, NOTAPYRAMID WAS NO LONGER SET ON BEING A BUSINESS. IT WAS SET ON BEING A PROJECT. SOMETHING THAT COULD TURN INTO SOMETHING MORE. IT WAS NO LONGER THE CHILDISH TOY OF TWO BORED YOUNGLINGS, BUT A GENUINE ATTEMPT FOR SOMETHING MORE. ONLY ROLLIE REMAINED, THE SOLE CREATIVE FORCE BEHIND THE NEW COMPANY. HE MADE COLLECTIONS AND COLLABORATED WITH FRIENDS. HE SOLD MANY ITEMS, BUT IT WAS BECOMING REPETITIVE AND THERE WAS LITTLE PAY, SO ROLLIE CHANGED HIS STRATEGY. HE GOT RID OF THE WEBSITE AND STARTED WORKING ON NEW DESIGNS. EXPERIMENTING WITH DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES, COLORS AND FABRICS. HE BEGAN BUILDING A NEW IMAGE FOR NOTAPYRAMID. ONE THAT WAS INCONSPICUOUS AND CONFUSING. NO ONE WAS QUITE SURE EXACTLY WHAT NOTAPYRAMID WAS, AND THIS IS ALL BY DESIGN. I WANT NOTAPYRAMID TO BE SOMETHING DIFFERENT. NOT ONLY A FASHION COMPANY, NOT ONLY A BRAND, BUT A PROJECT. SOMETHING THAT CAN GROW. SOMETHING THAT HAS VALUE. I WANT NOTAPYRAMID TO BECOME AN INSTITUTION. SET ON REFORMING THE SOCIAL VALUES THAT PERPETUATE GREED AND HATE. I WANT TO INSPIRE PEOPLE, AND PROVIDE A REAL PLACE FOR CHANGE TO HAPPEN. THIS IS MY DREAM, AND THIS IS WHAT NOTAPYRAMID IS. NOT SOME RANDOM CLOTHING COMPANY. NOT SOME STRANGE IDEA OF A “SOMETHING”. RATHER A NAME THAT PEOPLE COLLECT UNDER. WHERE PEOPLE WORK TOGETHER TO FOSTER MEANINGFUL AND FREE LIVES.