Bootstrapping A 100M+ E-Commerce Company: OpticsPlanet CEO Mark Levitin (Part 3)

Sramana: Did you own LOMO America Inc, and did you make LOMO America Inc an investor in OpticsPlanet.com?

Mark Levitin: I did not have 100% ownership. I was a shareholder. LOMO America Inc was not an investor in OpticsPlanet.com. I funded it personally with some other partners.

Sramana: What were the first few things you did to get OpticsPlanet off the ground?

Mark Levitin: The first step was to build the website. We did not have a master plan. In many ways it was a wild, growing organism. We were busy with other things. The driving force was our desire to own the relationship with the consumer. Our problem at LOMO America Inc was that we did not have a direct path to the consumer. My motivation for founding OpticsPlanet was to get that direct path to the consumer. We wanted to build the consumer relationship without having a middleman involved.

The power of the platform that we developed is that we gained that relationship. Everything from content to product presentation was under our control. We were not purveying a product; we were selling into the consumer lifestyle. That was something that we felt was unique, and we had certainly not seen it before. There are not many companies of comparable size who are capable of building this lifestyle connection with their consumers.

Sramana: What segments of consumers were you going after? You have mentioned hunting and bird watching.

Mark Levitin: There are four major segments that are divided into sub-segments. The first major segment for us is outdoor enthusiast. When I say ‘outdoor’ I refer to a very broad range of activities which can be done outside. Hunting is a significant portion of what we cater to, yet bird watching is another significant market. Obviously those are different lifestyles, yet they fall under the same category. You cannot market to those two segments using the same methods. Sometimes there is tension between those two segments. It is almost comical how the divide goes. They are split down their political views as well as how they spend their money.

We respect their lifestyles. They both love outdoors, and I think they both contribute to society. Of course there are other examples I could give. Golf is another category. We became a destination for someone who is passionate about outdoor activities. Those could be professional or recreational. Baseball is another destination. We sell range finders which apply to construction, hunting, or golf. We sell gear that applies to multiple market demographics. Concept destination for us is very important.

The second segment for us is the ‘heroes’ segment. That involves law enforcement, public safety, military, and firefighters. We do not sell guns and ammunition. Anything else that those people carry or use for their occupation can be found on our site. These are serious occupations and we are a major destination for them.

This segment is part 3 in the series : Bootstrapping A 100M+ E-Commerce Company: OpticsPlanet CEO Mark Levitin
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