Loose Threads Inside The New Consumer Economy

On the 22nd episode of the Loose Threads Podcast, a show about the intersection of fashion, technology and commerce, I talk with Josh Udashkin, the founder of Raden, an emerging smart luggage company that marries the best of luggage, hardware and software into the ultimate toolkit for travel. Josh founded the company after he realized that there were few new and dominant entrants into the luggage space in almost 50 years, and bringing a younger and more modern perspective to the entrenched industry might be a crucial differentiator. We had a great talk about the challenges of integrating hardware and software; how Josh architected Raden is a true product company; how he decided on the right distribution strategy and moved far beyond a strictly direct to consumer business model; and how he’s planning to build the company for the long term. Josh was great to talk to because of his pragmatic and non idealistic approach to every part of Raden’s business. This was especially true about the company’s distribution s