ABC’s Scandal averages 10 million viewers every Thursday night.

I was watching ABC’s Scandal last night and Mellie Grant (played by Bellamy Young) was continuously grieving over her dead son for numerous episodes. During these episodes, I noticed just how often they focused on the UGG boots Young was wearing as a symbol of comfort. I wondered, how on earth did the brand become so massive?

Mellie Grant in her “casual” outfit on ABC’s Scandal.

At first glance, the majority of UGG boots aren’t the most visually appealing. They are bulky, high maintenance and also sport an expensive price tag. How did the brand manage to skyrocket to success? Brian Smith, founder of UGG Australia, shared six characteristics that he saw in all successful entrepreneurs. 

• Ignorance
• Perseverance
• Knowledge of their audience
• Starting small
• Love for what they do
• Knowledge of when to step back

UGG Australia struggled to market their product for all-seasons.

In founding the worldwide success UGG Australia, Brian Smith displayed all of these traits admirably. In reality, all of these traits go hand in hand. All the odds were against Smith when he first launched his product in the early 1980s but he was ignorant enough to trust his product and maintain his faith because he truly loved what he did. With passion, he was able to persevere through the rough patches and eventually grow his small door-to-door business into a moderate success. He knew the majority market was the American demographic so he focused his advertising on that audience. After doing all he could, he sold his brand to Deckers, who elevated the brand to its full potential.

Through Smith’s story, I learned that more often than not, success is not spontaneous – especially in business. It isn’t enough to simply rely on luck to carry you to the top. A brand that I thought magically fit into consumer values actually had a long history of hardship before its massive success. Through UGG Australia, I feel more confidence in pursuing my own brand in the future and hopefully my hard work will pay off too.