J. Alexander Martin on Starting FUBU, LL Cool J Wearing FUBU Hat in Gap Commercial (Part 2)

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In this clip, J. Alexander Martin spoke about his decision to go into the Navy after leaving high school, and he spoke about wanting to get out every day. Martin explained how he excelled in the Navy, but his career was cut short after being partially paralyzed after a car accident on base. Martin explained that he was medically discharged, and he added that he is currently 50% paralyzed, but he manages his pain. From there, Martin enrolled in FIT, where he reconnected with Daymond John, who had just started toying around with the idea of FUBU. It was Martin who suggested that he help Daymond invest into the brand, which started with tie top hats.

Moving along, Martin spoke about working with Daymond John to get FUBU started with modest beginnings and “flipping t-shirts.” Martin went on to explain how their connection to LL Cool J and other artists helped get them more marketing for FUBU. Martin also spoke about Daymond John mortgaging his home to get another seed run for FUBU, and Martin added that they wanted to get in trade shows. Martin then explained how Daymond John was working at Red Lobster while he was working at Macy’s and also running FUBU out of John’s house.

Finally, Martin spoke about FUBU starting to get off the ground, which is when they started working with Samsung. Martin explained that the company came on as a distributor for their textile division, which helped them with distribution and warehousing their goods. It was around this time that LL Cool J did a Gap commercial while wearing a FUBU hat and using the company’s name in his rhymes for the ad. This led to FUBU becoming a real company, which you can hear more about above.