Prodigal son of Fluevog Shoes recognized with BIV Forty under 40 award
CBC News | Posted: December 10, 2015 6:49 AM | Last Updated: December 10, 2015
Business in Vancouver’s Forty under 40 celebrates Vancouver's young and successful
Every year, Business in Vancouver's Forty under 40 highlights up-and-comers who they believe are the ones to watch.
Adrian Fluevog, the COO of the world-renowned Fluevog Shoes, is one of many entrepreneurs on that list. But he didn't take what some would consider the traditional route to get there.
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Fluevog spent five years at his father's company, then abruptly left to strike out on his own.
"I was doing quite well, running the wholesale department," said Fluevog. "Sales were doubling year after year."
He had finished high school, travelled for a year, and then went straight to work for his dad. But at 26, he realized that wouldn't be enough.
"I knew I always wanted to work in the family business, but I was like, if I really want to do this I need to get myself an education," he said.
He made the decision to put his work aside and go back to school, and told his dad he needed to leave.
It turns out it was a good decision for his father as well.
"He told me years later that he was actually going to let me go that day," said Fluevog. "He said it was the biggest relief he'd ever had in his life."
At the time he wasn't getting along well with his father, Fluevog said, on matters more personal than entrepreneurial.
"I don't think I was displaying leadership qualities," he said.
"Basically, I was in my early 20s, I was making good money, and in order to be a leader in the company, you need to step up your game."
He went to study at BCIT, and worked for a marketing company for about a year. It took persistence for him to convince his dad to bring him back into the fold.
"I started writing business plans, just on my own time," he said. "I kind of just beat him down with a stick, basically, until he had no choice."
It looks like that turned out to be a good resolution as well — for their personal and their business lives alike.
"I think I can say we've both been very, very happy with that decision ever since then," he said. "Company sales have doubled, and we get along great."
Fluevog now oversees 175 employees, 70 wholesales accounts, and 20 stores across North America.