Meet Jordan Scardino

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jordan Scardino a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jordan, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

Creativity can come in so many ways beyond just a visual or artistic sense. When it comes to keeping the creativity alive, you have to be wanting to push things further, think over how it could be different or better. For me and Calm Swings, I will set time to think about a fun idea. What is relevant in the world, where is the golf market, and what can I do art wise to capture that. I am constantly sketching ideas or jotting down notes of an idea to bring back. I’ll also revisit old ideas and see if I can evolve the idea further, change it to make it better, add new variables to it.

Keeping inspired is a great way to brainstorm. For Calm Swings, doing golf related apparel drawings, I’ll look at other inspirations like a Country Club, pictures in a clubhose, old photos of the greats, and from there devise ideas. Seeing how other artists draw in their style also helps me think about my own style more. “Can I incorporate that style” or ” I like that way of shading, let me try something similar”. Artistry builds off each other and pushes each other further.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Calm Swings came to be when my partner Wade and I began creating golf hats and patches for our annual boys golf trip in 2015. Our initial designs were based on our golf trip location, incorporating things from the area to be a remembrance of the time. As time passed, I loved doing these once a year and wanted to do it more often, and make a brand.

I came from a design background in college, studying graphic design and marketing. So incorporating these skills into my life again was fun and a great creative outlet. When I came up with Calm Swings (partially after a Palm Springs golf trip), the ideas of the brand and drawings flowed out of me like a waterfall. Every night I had new ideas, exploring new tools on my ipad, and translating them to apparel.

When NFTs came out, Calm Swings had a short spurt of exploring that area, though with little brand awareness, nothing took off. Back to apparel it was.

As we figured out which hats we liked, which shirts we wanted to use, I began to push the designs online. I had web development experience from college and my career in marketing at digital marketing firms. So all this was a way to freshen my marketing/design/web skills and have fun doing it.

Calm Swings is a brand for the golf youth. Not meaning those who are young in age, but who are young to the game. We aren’t all shooting par but that doesn’t mean we don’t love the game. For my designs, I try to include the downside of golf, hitting the ball in the water, out of bounds, breaking a club. I know 85% of the golf world can relate to these daily feelings, and I wanted to capture that on a shirt and hoped people would enjoy. I’m inspired by the people who have supported me, the customers who have came and came back, and the users who engage with us online.

If I would give anyone advice, it would be to stick to it. Even if you pour your heart into something and don’t get the response you wanted, keep going. One day, when you break through, the admiration will come for those old ideas, and you can see the growth you’ve stacked along the way.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

1. Determination – be willing to put in the work. I’ve noticed a lot of people will say they want to help, and when it comes down to putting in the time, they disappear. Be determined to reach goals, even if a small daily goal, larger monthly goal, or ultimate goal.

2. Audience – knowing your audience, where they are, how the act, what they like, etc. This is very broad, but this is how you can work on your web design, your social profiles, marketing and targeting. You should become an expert in the field even if you eventually can pass a task off to someone else. Know your business and the audience you want to reach.

3. Courage – starting something takes courage. It’s hard work to get things up and running. From creating an EIN, to building brand guidelines, websites, marketing, etc. It is a lot of work and you won’t feel the support you think you may have or want. When you do get things up and running, have the courage to keep going when it starts slow. You may feel embarrassed or self conscious of posting about it, but be courageous and let it fly. The people you are meant to reach will come and find you, and the people who are jealous or fake will gladly fall off.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

I would love to collaborate with other golf brands as an artist. Pairing up our business together can help spread the word of each others brands and continue our growth.

I’d also like to work with anyone with ecommerce skills who like golf. If they want to be a part of our brand, always looking for like minded people. Someone who loves golf, who likes marketing and design, photography, etc.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://calmswings.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/calmswings/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordanscardino/