Dave the Slave – Putting Passion before Profit

www.slavesportswear.com

On a recent visit to Hanalei, a small town on the Hawaiian Island of Kauai I stopped by the local Saturday market.

There I met “Dave the Slave”. I was initially drawn to his booth displaying his clothing line SLAVE Sportswear with the tagline, “be a slave to your passion.” I was interested to learn more about the story behind this and was glad to see Dave there himself, who is the owner and founder. I liked the message and feel of the brand,  but I didn’t have any cash and asked him if he accepted credit cards. He said “no, but take it. You can pay me later.” He then handed us a business card that had the address on it. I was a bit surprised, but quickly accepted and promised to send him a check asap. He literally gave us $60 worth of his product on our word that we would pay. I had a smile on my face as I had just witnessed a pure act of integrity. I showed him no more reason to trust me than anyone else, and he knew nothing about me (other than the fact that I tried on a XL t-shirt and it was too big) but you can tell he isn’t doing this for the money; he is following his  passion.

Here is a bit more info about SLAVE Sportswear from the website, www.slavesportswear.com

Dave the Slave – Earned his nickname from being the hardest working Tile and Stone Contractor he could be.  He brought his family to Hawaii in 1987 where he continued working in the trades. Surfing was always the most important part of his life along with his family.  He worked hard and each year booked a trip with his family to some unusual destination traveling throughout the world in search of the perfect waves.  Inner strength, desire, commitment and being a Slave to his Passions have led to a fulfilling life.

One day he took a surf trip with Team Polar Bear to Nicaragua where he received this photo of himself. On his return he shared his tales from the tube with a friend and e-mailed him the photo.  His friend e-mailed it back with the word SLAVE on it. A light went on and Slave Sportswear was born.