Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Russina.
Hi Mike, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began my career early on, at age 17, as a co-op student at Citicorp Mortgage in St. Louis. After college, I was hired by Southwestern Bell Corporation, which moved me to Texas. A few years later, a group of 7 of us was asked to start Southwestern Bell Internet. We brought the Internet to many customers for the first time. I realized in the late 1990s that the Internet was changing everything. From Texas, I put my mom’s retail store in the Central West End in St. Louis online, and it suddenly became a global retail store. I hired a photographer and models and put the entire store online. For legacy brands like CK, Hugo Boss, and 2xist, we were among the first to offer their product online.
I took an early retirement opportunity from Southwestern Bell/AT&T and didn’t look back. I moved back to St. Louis, started learning to read Google Analytics data, and marketed the retail store site accordingly. We tested everything there was to test about the website. CK has always promoted its brand with semi-annual sales. We were operating in a 750-square-foot store with a basement at the time. I placed an order in advance to prepare for the sale. All our shipments typically arrive by UPS. But this time, CK sent our shipment by freight. We had a semi-truck on Euclid Avenue with a delivery that filled the entire front of the retail store with cartons of underwear 6 feet high! We had to close the retail store for 2 days to find places to put it. That’s when we knew.
Over the next 15 years, we built a purely data-driven company; we learned fast and built many of our marketing systems because what we needed wasn’t commercially available yet. Workflow automation leveraging email was a big one. Then, an importer of many South American brands wanted to create a direct-to-consumer business model and bought the business in 2018. Fast forward to when COVID hit, and I lost my partner. I was splitting my time between St. Louis and Mexico City.
After COVID, I returned to my career with MBT physiological footwear, a global brand heading up the United States and Canada subsidiaries. This brand is amazing to me; it’s such an underdog. The rocker bottom shoes MBT offers are a game-changer for those developing aches and pains in their feet, joints, and lower back from improper footwear or lazy posture in their mid-life. Personal testimonies from existing customers are the most powerful reviews I’ve ever read!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been fairly smooth?
Time is not a luxury. There are so many things I want to accomplish, and the challenge is to create success with the MBT brand in the US and Canada in a shorter period without blowing up the budget.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Consumers call MBT shoes some of the most comfortable on Earth and frequently report the health benefits they provide. MBT Shoes offer innovative technology in their patented curved soles and varying levels of rock that provide ultimate comfort and stability while standing or moving. The curved sole combined with SensorTechnology and a strong Pivot Axis gives you a rolling movement that disburses weight with less foot movement, relieving pressure in the heel and toes.
The design and technology built into each curved sole offer different levels of rock based on your needs and preferences:
- High (Level 3) Rock: A strong sole curve and Pivot Axis generates an increased level of rock to provide extra cushioning and maximum muscle activation.
- Medium (Level 2) Rock: A medium-strong sole curve provides ample cushioning and muscle activation for walks, runs, and everyday wear.
- Low (Level 1) Rock: The lower sidewalls and Pivot Axis offer a lightweight yet supportive option for short- to medium-distance runs, walks, and lifestyle.
- Recovery (No Rock): The footbed supports arches and helps with natural alignment.
Most MBT shoes have received the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA) Seal of Acceptance and Seal of Approval, which is granted to products that promote good foot health.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Whether they are more senior management, employees, or trading partners.
Books: Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” teaches you everything you need to know about how to anticipate and work with people’s actions and reactions in business.
Apps:
WhatsApp: On any given day, I communicate with friends and colleagues in Spain, Israel, Colombia, Mexico, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia. Its group chat enables business communications like never before.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://us.mbt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mbt_us/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MBT.US/
