You could call Hawkers investor Alejandro Betancourt a disruptor in the sunglasses sector. He saw something in the Hawkers brand and brought his visionary use of social media to the table to catapult the company into the accessories stratosphere.
“I believe that you have to understand that the world is changing so fast, and with the world of markets, the appetites, the cultures, everything changes, and more technology, there is more adaptation; it’s needed,” he admits.
Before Hawkers and Alejandro Betancourt López came along, where you bought your sunglasses depended on many things, but budget was an important consideration. You could go to any grocery or convenience store and get a cheap pair, though you might break them in the first five minutes or lose them within a week. Since you didn’t make a big investment in the first place, it wasn’t a great loss. Alternatively, you could visit an upscale boutique — maybe even a retailer specializing in designer, deluxe eyewear — and spend a lot of money on a fancy pair. If you’re careful, they could last for years, but if they accidentally crack or you lose them, the financial pain might be significant. But all millennials need to do is click or swipe and a shiny, affordable new pair of Hawkers sunnies will land at their doorstep.
“About 25 years ago, it was normal to receive a fax. The new generations don’t understand what even is a fax machine. Something like TikTok changed the world in three years.”
Alejandro Betancourt’s Social Media Success
Alejandro Betancourt knew the way to sell a hip accessory was through the burgeoning platform of social media and the influencers who peddled their preferences there.
Since the beginning, Hawkers has been active in Facebook Ads. For a small investment of $45 in ads, Betancourt’s company connected with a large audience and made it easy for recipients to order or share posts, further extending their reach. Today, the company spends $14,000 per day to continue to grow its 6 million strong— and counting — Facebook audience, according to businesses.au.com.
The official Hawkers Facebook page has more than 6.6 million followers, and the founders have even been asked to present their business journey to Facebook executives and other online entrepreneurs.
Hawkers is also active on Instagram, which allowed ad purchases and boosts, easily connecting with influencers and sharing tags such as #hawkers or #hawkersco, which together have appeared more than 630,000 times. Influencers learned they could get a discount on their own purchases, and sometimes even free products, plus a commission for every order generated from their social media posts.
Alejandro Betancourt and the rest of the Hawkers team came up with special promotions to get satisfied customers talking online about their sunglasses.
Hawkers also constructed groups of campus representatives at different colleges. More than 5,000 ambassadors worldwide wear Hawkers around their schools, create social media posts about doing things and visiting places with their shades, and let their followers know how to order Hawkers. In exchange, they get access to various exclusive prizes and incentives, such as concert tickets and travel vouchers.
Hawkers also offers product to photographers, stylists, personal assistants, and fashion industry insiders, hoping Hawkers will appear in formal shoots. Then, rather than asking for the sunglasses to be returned, the stylists, models, or celebrities can hang onto them and wear them.
Additionally, Hawkers created limited-edition sunglasses lines for different brands, building greater demand and interest.
How Hawkers Hatched
Around 2010, a group of friends from Spain found an affordable but higher-quality brand called Knockarounds that they liked in the U.S. and came up with a small investment of about $300 to export them to Spain.
Since they didn’t have much money at the beginning, they sold online through a classified site. Their first batch of 27 sold well, so they ordered more, eventually becoming the company’s official distributor in Spain. Soon, they decided to create their own line and began working with a manufacturer to craft a product they called Hawkers.
Although online sales were strong, the company remained financially weak — until it attracted the attention of Alejandro Betancourt, who has a history of investing in various sectors and an exceptional track record helping companies grow.
After studying business in the U.S., Alejandro Betancourt returned to his native Venezuela, where he was successful in developing a bank and an internet service provider, as well as bringing nuclear power to the country. He then began looking for ways to help others.
Once he learned about Hawkers, he realized it was a perfect match. He helped the company raise about $56 million, but he also wanted to be involved in operations and leadership. In November 2016, shortly after he raised those funds, Hawkers appointed him president.
Hawkers’ Soaring Success
In 2016, Hawkers reported sales of 60 million euros (approximately $59 million) and credited 54 million euros from word-of-mouth advertising via social media. The brand claims as much as 90% of its business is generated from social media. In 2017, it reported a record 3.5 million sales in more than 50 countries; its sales rose to 4.5 million in 2018. Today, Hawkers sees annual profits of approximately 70 million euros and sells more than 10,000 sunglasses daily.
Alejandro Betancourt helped raise even more money in 2018, and is now the majority shareholder.
“Nobody’s a single player who makes everything happen by itself or by themselves,” he says. “That’s basically not true. If you want to make an impact on whatever you’re trying to transform or achieve, and if it’s substantially significant, you are going to need the right team. You need the right trainer. You need the right coach. You need the right instructor. You even need the right driver. That matters.”
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