Sensational Socks and Stories that Sweep the Nation
I’ve known about John’s Crazy Socks for some years now. Every time we (HCQU team) opened an order to add socks to a conference raffle basket or a Direct Support Professional appreciation bundle, it felt like Christmas. The large variety of cute, funny, quirky socks to tickle your toes has impressed me. With thousands of designs, John’s Crazy Socks is considered the world’s largest socks store. Who doesn’t smile at a unique pair of socks?!
Sock Stories
John Cronin and his dad, Mark, make a great sock-selling team. Their launch story is pretty incredible. They started with personal, local deliveries in red boxes with candy and a thank you note. That personal touch really stood out to me because finding the company after it was well established, I knew the zany sock shipments arrive in a vibrant red bag with candy and a note. What a beautiful detail sticking to the roots of their launch!
You’ve heard me say it many times, stories matter. John’s story is more proof of that because it was word of mouth and customer’s posting pictures of their fun socks on social media that really propelled the online store. If you read their full story on the website you’ll see that they shipped 452 orders by the end of their first month in 2016. That’s about $13,000 in revenue.
Besides working with a lot of suppliers to stock socks for anyone, they sometimes design socks themselves. Those awareness socks are often the most successful and a portion is donated to charity partners including Special Olympics.
The last few years, John’s Crazy Socks has held an annual Design a Sock Contest open to the public. First place winners not only receive a monetary prize but also their design becomes reality printed on socks. Runner ups receive gift cards to the store. Even if you don’t design a sock, you can participate in voting for the year’s new design. This contest is just another way the company engages with the community in a fun, creative way.
Positive Podcasts
You can invite John and Mark to your event. As a matter of fact, they have held speaking engagements with large organizations like Microsoft and Campbell’s or colleges and universities like Rutgers and University of Houston. Furthermore, they’ve also been featured by CBS, TODAY, Good Morning America, Fox & Friends, and more.
John and Mark Cronin also started The Spreading Happiness Podcast in 2022. They share real life stories, business tips, and tackle a variety of subjects. The fun-loving conversations are about a half hour and are certain to make listeners smile. They sometimes include a business highlight or add to the social conversation on advocacy and inclusion. The mission to show what’s possible, make people smile, and spread happiness is definitely one to get behind. You can start listening on various platforms including Amazon, Apple, Spotify, iHeart, and PodBean. Those of you with your own Podcasts, can even invite John and Mark to be guest podcasters.
You can help spread joy and support employment for people with disabilities by purchasing fun socks, posting about it, or sharing the story. Shop for your next pair of super socks or treat a friend by browsing at https://johnscrazysocks.com/ Check out this year’s sock design contestants or past winners. Don’t forget to Like on Facebook. Listen and share The Spreading Happiness Podcast.
