"Whenever things don't go so well,
and you want to hit the wall and yell,
here's a little dammit doll,
that you can't do without.
Just grasp it firmly by the legs
and find a place to slam it.
And as you whack the stuffing out yell,
'Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!'"
This however is not the first "dammit doll." In 1964, a woodcarver named Thomas Dam invented the troll doll. He carved a troll doll in his own image for his daughter. He was too poor to afford a present, so he took his woodcarving skills to test and invented these wooden trolls named "dammit doll" after Thomas Dam, more commonly known as Good Luck Trolls.
The dolls we know today as Dammit Dolls were created in 2010 when Drew Levich was working on another job. Everyone who knows him would agree with Levich when he says that he wasn't smart enough to start a tech company, but he did always want to be an entrepreneur. Therefore, he started a small company where he had numerous dolls piled up in the back of his Prius. At first Dammit Dolls were not sold online or to big retailers with the exception of Nordstrom's and some locally owned Hallmark stores.
In an interview with Fox, Levich explain that the key is execution. We always hear and read about these amazing entrepreneurs like Jay Z and Bobbie Brown. You have to put that aside and say "here's my plan. Here's the time table. Here's how we are going to execute. Here's the business model" and you have to be able to work with that. Dammit Dolls launched right away, presented at trade shows, and they kicked off. The company retweeted the dolls a lot to promote its practicality and the uniqueness of each doll.
Every month a new production is ran where dolls with different colors and patterns come out. These dolls are always being switched up, and that is why each doll is so unique and brings people together. If someone shares their Dammit Doll with you, it's unlikely you will find that doll in stores anymore. While these dolls are good products for releasing anger, they are also good at bringing people together due to their limit edition nature. Today, these dolls can be found on their main website, amazon, and sporadically throughout certain stores. They are sold at $15 each and are intended for ages 18+. Since the first launch, new categories of Dammit Dolls in addition to the classic dolls have come out including sports dolls, political dolls, and cancer dolls.
I'm glad Drew Levich took a risk inventing these dolls and collaborating with local small businesses to promote his creation. On particularly bad days, I know I can go home, grab the Dammit Doll by the legs, and whack it on the table while I yell 'Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!'
Advice from Levich on creating a new product and life in general, "Give yourself permission to fail because you learn from failure and learn to push forward."
Sources:
https://www.visitdenmark.com/denmark/good-luck-troll-danish-phenomenon
https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/12/22/troll-dolls/
https://video.foxbusiness.com/v/1795498122001/?#sp=show-clips
https://www.kansas.com/news/business/article1121784.html
This post was such a fun read for me because I actually have a "Dammit Doll!" I have an uncle who is known for giving crazy, outside the box presents for birthdays and other holidays, and a few years ago, he gave me a "Dammit Doll" for my birthday. Because they were a relatively new product when he gave it to me, I had never heard of it before. He found it at a small local business in Florida and said it was the craziest thing he'd seen, so he had to get it. I did not know how unique each doll was or how quickly the patterns change. I really enjoyed reading about Levich's creative process and his advice to let yourself fail. I know it's a common thing to say, but in practice, it's not as easy as it sounds. Clearly, Levich was not afraid to fail in the entrepreneurial world!
ReplyDeleteI think this is such a great concept. Having a fun, creative item to "whack" is such a positive outlet. Even though the product seems aimed towards adults I feel like it would also be positive for children/young adults for anger management at an early age. The fact that they are unique and only $15 makes them even more appealing. Honestly considering a purchase.
ReplyDeleteI love this product! I build up a lot of tension in my body, and I am always looking for new products to help me get rid of that tension in a healthy way; however, I have never thought about buying a product specifically for the purpose of whacking around. I think part of the creativity of these dolls is how each doll is unique. It was a very creative idea of Levich's to make all the dolls different so that people will feel special knowing they have a product that nobody else has. Levich proves you don't need traditional "intelligence" to be creative and be an entrepreneur. Props to Levich for not giving up on his dream.
ReplyDeleteI loved reading this post because of how relatable the product is, especially for college students. Because stress levels are so high at this point in our lives, I think these dolls would be perfect relievers of tension, similar to stress balls. I think it's awesome that Levich was able to turn a creative idea that was solely intended for his daughter into a successful product for the world to enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThis was a really fun article about someone you would never have known about if you didn't read this blog. The ability for Thomas Dam to use what he had around him to give a gift to his daughter is a heartwarming tale. His success later in life in his business of selling this product shows that if creativity is high enough, prosperity is possible from anywhere and for anyone.
ReplyDelete