FADE IN:
“The things I thought were setbacks were really setups for something greater.” — Daymond John
ONE
HOLLIS, QUEENS
EXT. HOLLIS, QUEENS — NEW YORK — DAY — 1989
Hollis Avenue, Queens. The birthplace of Run-DMC and LL Cool J. Row houses with chain-link fences. Bodegas on every corner. The bass of hip-hop thumps from passing cars. This neighborhood runs on hustle.
YOUNG DAYMOND (20) stands on the corner, watching the fashion. Everyone in the neighborhood wears oversized everything — baggy jeans, huge jackets, bucket hats. But the brands are all European luxury houses that want nothing to do with hip-hop culture.
YOUNG DAYMOND
(to his friend)
Look at this. Everybody out here wearing Gucci, Versace, Tommy — brands that don't care about us. Don't even want us wearing their clothes. Where's the brand that's for us? By us?
FRIEND
There isn't one. That's just how it is.
YOUNG DAYMOND
Then I'm going to make one.
INT. MARGOT JOHN'S LIVING ROOM — HOLLIS, QUEENS — NIGHT — 1992
A modest living room converted into a garment factory. A sewing machine sits on the dining table. Fabric scraps cover the floor. YOUNG DAYMOND sits at the machine, sewing ski hats — each one topped with the logo he designed: FUBU. For Us, By Us.
MARGOT JOHN watches from the kitchen doorway. She works as a flight attendant. She has given her son the entire first floor of her house for his operation.
MARGOT
How many did you make today?
YOUNG DAYMOND
Forty. I sold twenty on Jamaica Avenue for ten dollars each. That's two hundred dollars. The fabric cost me sixty.
MARGOT
That's good, baby. That's real good. But you need to think bigger. Hats are a start. You need shirts, jackets, jeans. A full line.
YOUNG DAYMOND
I know. But a full line costs real money. Money I don't have.
Margot is quiet for a moment. Then:
MARGOT
I can take out a second mortgage on the house. That would give you maybe a hundred thousand.
YOUNG DAYMOND
Mama, no. That's your house. If this doesn't work —
MARGOT
If this doesn't work, we figure it out. But I believe in you, Daymond. I've watched you sew hats every night for two years. You work harder than anyone I know. The house is just a building. You're my investment.
Daymond stares at his mother. The weight of her sacrifice lands on him like a physical thing. He will carry it for the rest of his life.
Margot John mortgaged her home for $100,000 to fund FUBU. The ad she placed in the New York Times read: “$100,000 in orders. Need financing.”
EXT. JAMAICA AVENUE — QUEENS — DAY — 1993
Young Daymond and his three partners sell FUBU hats, T-shirts, and hockey jerseys from a folding table on Jamaica Avenue. The presentation is slick — clean display, organized sizes, the FUBU logo prominent.
A man in an Adidas tracksuit stops. Picks up a hockey jersey. Examines it.
CUSTOMER
For Us, By Us. What's that mean?
YOUNG DAYMOND
It means this brand isn't made by some fashion house in Italy that doesn't know your name. It's made right here, in Queens, by people who look like you, for people who look like you. Every dollar you spend stays in the community.
CUSTOMER
How much?
YOUNG DAYMOND
Forty dollars. And it's better quality than anything at the mall for twice the price.
The man buys two. And tells his friends.
INT. RECORDING STUDIO — NEW YORK — NIGHT — 1994
Young Daymond waits outside a recording studio in Manhattan. He has a duffel bag full of FUBU clothing. He has been waiting three hours. Finally, the door opens, and a RAPPER emerges — a stand-in for the caliber of LL Cool J.
YOUNG DAYMOND
Excuse me — I know you're busy, but I have a brand I think you'd want to see. It's called FUBU. For Us, By Us.
THE LL COOL J MEETING
(skeptical)
You're selling clothes outside a studio at midnight?
YOUNG DAYMOND
I'm not selling. I'm giving. I want you to wear it. If you like it, wear it on camera. If you don't like it, throw it away. No pressure. I just need the right people wearing it.
The rapper opens the bag. Pulls out a hockey jersey. Holds it up. The FUBU logo is bold, clean, unmistakable.
THE LL COOL J MEETING
For Us, By Us. I like that. That means something.
He takes the jersey. Two weeks later, he wears it in a national commercial. FUBU explodes.
LL Cool J wore FUBU in a Gap commercial, creating millions of dollars in free publicity. When Gap realized it, the commercial had already aired. FUBU orders went through the roof overnight.
INT. RED LOBSTER — QUEENS — NIGHT — 1995
Young Daymond works the closing shift at Red Lobster. After the restaurant closes, he drives home and sews FUBU until 4 AM. He sleeps three hours. Then gets up and does it again.
RED LOBSTER MANAGER
Daymond, you've been late three times this week. What's going on?
YOUNG DAYMOND
I'm building a company. I work here to pay the bills, and I work on FUBU to change my life. Right now I need both. I'm sorry about being late. It won't happen again.
He finishes his shift. Drives home. Sews until 4 AM.
DAYMOND (V.O.) (breaking the fourth wall)
People romanticize entrepreneurship. They see the success and they think it's glamorous. Let me tell you what it really looks like: it looks like closing at Red Lobster at midnight and sewing hats until 4 AM. It looks like your mother mortgaging her house because banks won't give you a loan. It looks like standing outside recording studios at midnight, begging rappers to wear your clothes. That's entrepreneurship. It's not glamorous. It's desperate. And desperation is rocket fuel.
TWO
THE EMPIRE
INT. SAMSUNG HEADQUARTERS — NEW YORK — DAY — 1996
A corporate boardroom. THE SAMSUNG EXECUTIVE sits at the head of a polished table. Daymond sits across from him, wearing head-to-toe FUBU. His business partner sits beside him with a binder full of order sheets.
SAMSUNG EXECUTIVE
Mr. John, you have $2 million in unfulfilled orders. You can't manufacture at scale. You need a distribution partner. Why should Samsung Textiles back you?
DAYMOND
Because hip-hop is the future of fashion, and nobody else in this building understands it except me. I'm not selling clothes. I'm selling culture. Every kid in America wants to dress like the people they see in music videos. FUBU is the only brand that those people actually want to wear because we're one of them.
SAMSUNG EXECUTIVE
The fashion industry says urban streetwear is a fad.
DAYMOND
The fashion industry said the same thing about jeans, sneakers, and baseball caps. They were wrong every time. You can listen to them, or you can listen to the streets. The streets don't lie. I have two million in orders sitting in that binder. Real orders from real stores. All I need is manufacturing.
The executive flips through the order binder. Page after page of purchase orders from Macy's, Nordstrom, Foot Locker.
SAMSUNG EXECUTIVE
We'll fund the manufacturing. But I want to meet the team.
DAYMOND
You're looking at the team. Me and my three partners. We sew in my mother's living room.
The executive stares at him. Then slowly nods.
Samsung Textiles provided FUBU with manufacturing and distribution. Within two years, FUBU did $350 million in annual revenue.
INT. MACY'S FLAGSHIP — HERALD SQUARE, NEW YORK — DAY — 1998
A massive FUBU display in the center of Macy's Herald Square. The brand has arrived. Daymond walks through the store, touching the merchandise, adjusting displays. He is wearing a FUBU suit.
His phone rings. His partner.
PARTNER
(on phone)
D, we just got the numbers. Three hundred and fifty million in annual sales. FUBU is the biggest urban fashion brand in the world.
Daymond leans against a display. He looks around Macy's — the most famous department store in the world — and sees his brand at the center of it. The kid from Hollis who sewed hats on his mama's sewing machine.
DAYMOND
(to himself)
We did it, Mama. We did it.
INT. FUBU HEADQUARTERS — NEW YORK — DAY — 2003
The fashion industry has shifted. Urban streetwear is cooling. New brands are emerging. FUBU's sales are declining. Daymond sits in an office that was bustling two years ago and is now half-empty.
ACCOUNTANT
Daymond, the numbers are bad. Revenue is down 60% from peak. We overextended — too many product lines, too many licenses. The brand is diluted.
DAYMOND
I know. I see it. I grew too fast and lost focus. I put the logo on everything — cologne, eyewear, shoes — and people stopped knowing what FUBU stood for.
ACCOUNTANT
What do you want to do?
DAYMOND
(long pause)
I want to learn from this. I want to understand what I did wrong so I never do it again. And then I want to start over.
INT. MARGOT JOHN'S HOUSE — HOLLIS, QUEENS — NIGHT — 2005
Daymond sits at his mother's kitchen table. The same table where she fed him as a child. The same house she mortgaged for FUBU. He looks exhausted.
MARGOT
You lost money. You didn't lose yourself. There's a difference.
DAYMOND
I feel like I let you down, Mama. You put your house on the line for me.
MARGOT
And I'd do it again. You took hats made in this living room and put them in Macy's. You employed hundreds of people. You showed kids from this neighborhood that they could build something. That doesn't go away because sales dipped.
DAYMOND
What do I do now?
MARGOT
You do what you've always done. You start from zero and you build. You're good at zero. You're better at zero than most people are at a million.
INT. ABC STUDIOS — LOS ANGELES — DAY — 2009
Shark Tank — Season 1 audition
Daymond sits across from ABC executives who are casting a new show about entrepreneurship. They want investors with real business experience. Daymond tells his story — sewing hats, Red Lobster, the mortgage, the billions, the fall.
ABC PRODUCER
Why should you be on this show? We have billionaires. We have tech people. What do you bring?
DAYMOND
I bring the streets. I bring the hustle. Every person who walks into that tank is me twenty years ago — broke, scared, and betting everything on a dream. The tech people and the billionaires? They're brilliant. But they've never sewn hats at 3 AM in their mama's living room. I have. I know what it feels like to be broke and to make it work anyway. That's what I bring.
Daymond John has appeared on every season of Shark Tank since its premiere in 2009. He has invested in over 100 businesses on the show.
DAYMOND (V.O.) (breaking the fourth wall)
FUBU at its peak was a $6 billion brand globally. I built that from a sewing machine in my mama's living room. Then I watched it decline and had to reinvent myself. People ask me which was harder — building FUBU or losing FUBU. Losing it. Because when you build something from nothing, you know how to do that. But when you lose something you built, you have to learn how to let go and start again. That's the hardest thing in business. Not the building. The rebuilding.
THREE
THE SHARK
INT. SHARK TANK SET — LOS ANGELES — DAY — 2015
THE SHARK TANK ENTREPRENEUR walks into the Tank. She's young, nervous, holding a product prototype. She has $200 in her bank account and a dream.
SHARK TANK ENTREPRENEUR
Hi, Sharks. My name is Maya, and I'm seeking $50,000 for 20% of my company. I make handmade candles that —
The other Sharks look skeptical. But Daymond leans forward. He sees something.
DAYMOND
Maya, stop. Before you pitch, tell me this: why are you here? Not why is your product good. Why are you, personally, standing in front of me right now?
SHARK TANK ENTREPRENEUR
(emotional)
Because my grandmother made candles. She passed away last year. And she always told me I could build something from nothing. I'm broke, Mr. John. I have two hundred dollars. But I have her recipes and I have the hustle.
DAYMOND
That's the answer I wanted to hear. I'm in. Fifty thousand for twenty percent. And I'm going to tell you a secret: being broke is your greatest advantage. When you have nothing to lose, you have everything to gain.
INT. DAYMOND'S OFFICE — NEW YORK — DAY — 2018
Daymond's office is a museum of his career. Framed FUBU jerseys. Photos with LL Cool J. Shark Tank memorabilia. His book, “The Power of Broke,” on a shelf. He speaks to a room of young entrepreneurs at a mentorship event.
DAYMOND
I wrote a book called “The Power of Broke.” And people think it's a gimmick. It's not. Being broke forces you to be creative. When you have money, you throw it at problems. When you're broke, you think your way through them. The best entrepreneurs I've ever met started with nothing. Because nothing is the ultimate motivator.
YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR
But what about funding? Investors? How do you scale without money?
DAYMOND
My mother mortgaged her house. I worked at Red Lobster. I sewed hats by hand. You don't need a venture capitalist. You need a customer. Get one customer. Then get ten. Then get a hundred. The money follows the hustle. It always does.
INT. MARGOT JOHN'S HOUSE — HOLLIS, QUEENS — THANKSGIVING — DAY — 2022
Thanksgiving dinner. The same house. The same kitchen. Margot, older now, sits at the head of the table. Daymond is beside her. Extended family fills every seat.
DAYMOND
(standing, raising a glass)
I want to make a toast. To this house. This house that my mother put on the line so I could sew hats. This house that could have been taken from us. This house that is still standing, still ours, because of this woman right here.
He looks at Margot.
DAYMOND
Mama, everything I am is because you believed in me when I hadn't given you a single reason to. You bet the house — literally — on a kid with a sewing machine. That's not faith. That's insanity. And I'm grateful for it every single day.
Margot wipes her eyes. She doesn't say anything. She doesn't need to.
EXT. HOLLIS AVENUE — QUEENS — DAY — 2023
Daymond walks down Hollis Avenue. The same street where he sold hats. The neighborhood has changed — some gentrification, some new buildings — but the bones are the same. The bodegas. The barbershops. The energy.
He passes a kid on the corner selling custom T-shirts from a folding table. The kid has a portable speaker playing hip-hop and a hand-painted sign.
DAYMOND
(stopping)
How much?
KID
Twenty dollars. I designed them myself. Printed in my uncle's garage.
Daymond looks at the shirts. They're good. Bold designs. Clean printing. The kid can't be more than seventeen.
DAYMOND
I'll take five. And here's my card. When you're ready to scale, call me.
The kid looks at the card. His eyes go wide.
KID
You're... you're from Shark Tank.
DAYMOND
I'm from right here. This block. I used to sell hats right where you're standing. Keep going, kid. You're on the right track.
INT. MARGOT JOHN'S LIVING ROOM — HOLLIS, QUEENS — NIGHT
The living room where it all started. The sewing machine is gone, replaced by a comfortable couch and family photos. But on the wall: a framed original FUBU hat — the very first one Daymond ever sewed — under glass, like a work of art.
Daymond stands in front of it. Touches the glass. The stitching is uneven. The logo is slightly crooked. It's the most imperfect, most beautiful thing he's ever made.
He turns off the light. The house is quiet. The same house. The same bet. The same belief. From a sewing machine in this room to a $6 billion brand to a television empire to this moment — standing in the dark, in his mother's living room, exactly where it all began.
FADE TO BLACK.
FUBU generated over $6 billion in global retail sales at its peak. Daymond John has appeared on every season of Shark Tank and has invested in over 100 businesses through the show. His mother, Margot, never lost the house. She still lives in it. “The Power of Broke” became a New York Times bestseller and a philosophy embraced by entrepreneurs worldwide. FUBU stands for For Us, By Us. It always has.
THE END