From Brick to Brand
How do brands get started? Many ways no doubt, and FISHMO being no exception, got started back in 2015 one day when the founder, Pete Sommerfeldt, on a visit to Georgetown, DC spotted a single brick atop a fireplace mantle with the word "FISHMO" stamped on it. Pete asked the homeowner what FISHMO was, and the owner said "Google it." He did on his cell phone, and up popped the Urban Dictionary reference that read "Fuck It. Shit Happens. Move On." They both laughed when he read it aloud, and it instantly stuck with Pete, as he thought "phew, boy do we all have our own shit!" Legend has it that the acronym was originally coined by US Special Operations Forces.
Pete, a veteran and entrepreneur, traveled back to his former home in Virginia Beach giving much thought to FISHMO, and within a week, called Legal Zoom and formed FISHMO LLC. His original idea was to sell tee shirts with a picture of the brick, but a couple of friends suggested having a logo developed instead. Within days Pete had the logo via email and fell in love with it. He started the trademark process from the start, and FISHMO is a registered trademark with the US Patent and Trademark Office.
Also from the beginning, Pete who is bipolar, decided that the company would have a positive impact on the community, and that meant a charity component for those who live with mental illness, in addition to the positive message that the acronym conveys for everyone. Knowing that the message is "catchy" and could have a positive impact on almost anyone, but realizing that the F-Bomb may turn off some people, he came up with alternate, less edgy, versions. (see page "Facts and Shit").
In the early years, Pete operated without much working capital to speak of (his mom invested the early money to get things started). Pete kept operating on a shoestring budget, working mainly odd jobs like selling RV's and driving for UBER. Over time, he gave out roughly 700 tee shirts, and 10,000 stickers in order to build the FISHMO fan base guerrilla marketing style. Nearly everyone he approached with the FISHMO concept related to it, and most loved it. It wasn't until he got locked up in 2018 (for 6 years) during a manic episode (shit happens) that he was afforded the time to start planning. As a matter of fact, when Pete was arrested, he was shirtless because he had given a homeless man in Baltimore his favorite FISHMO long sleeve shirt.
While incarcerated, he received stickers in the mail from his mom, and distributed them to fellow inmates, guards, and staff along with sending hundreds of pieces of mail with FISHMO art (on the backs of envelopes) and stickers enclosed...he NEVER stopped promoting.
Pete was released in the Summer of 2024, and has been promoting and building his team. As for products, ideas range from all sorts of apparel, to coolers and backpacks, fishing and outdoor gear, to virtually anything you can logo.
FISHMO currently has a national presence, and will likely go global, as shit happens to people all over the world.