How Spartan Race Became A $100 Million Brand

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Hey Friends,

Joe De Sena is one of the most ambitious and disciplined people I’ve met.

He grew up in Howard Beach, Queens, the famous territory of mafia boss John Gotti. He spent his early years as an entrepreneur — selling fireworks as a kid, running a multimillion-dollar pool business in college, and later building a lucrative career as an equities and derivatives trader on Wall Street.

But then he gave it all up. Joe was burnt out from Wall Street and wanted to pursue a healthier, happier, and more fulfilling life with his family. So after doing an IronMan and dozens of other ultra-events (100+ mile runs), he decided to team up with some friends and start a 24-hour event called “The Death Race.”

He spent $1 million on a domain name for the website, and the idea was to create the world’s most physically challenging and demanding race. For example, all participants were required to sign a waiver that explicitly stated, “I may die.”

But there was just one problem — no one showed up. The first event had only eight competitors, with just three completing the race. So after years of trying with little to no adoption, Joe was about to give up but decided to give it one last shot.

He rebranded the event as a Spartan Race and decided to use a more militaristic approach that encouraged team building, including obstacles like mud, barbed wire, walls, rope, and even fire.

This ended up being the right move. More than 700 people showed up for the first event, which was more than the previous several years combined, and the brand has since held 250 events across 40-plus countries with 7 million participants.

So I sat down with Joe De Sena for this week's podcast. We talked about everything you could imagine — what it was like growing up in mafia territory, when he knew it was time to leave Wall Street, the craziest endurance events he has ever attempted, the economics behind the Spartan brand, how he plans to raise successful children — and I think you guys are really going to enjoy it.

So go check it out on Apple, Spotify, or through the YouTube link below.

I hope everyone has a great day. We’ll talk tomorrow.

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