Meet Ryan Moses | CEO of DoGud Clothing

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ryan Moses and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ryan, what do you attribute your success to?
I believe the most important factor behind my success is my past. My experience in the foster care system growing up forced me to grow up at a young age. After 12 different homes and eight different schools, my path was supposed to take me to a dark place — a place where only 3% of foster youth graduate from college. I use this to motivate me. I use my past pain and experience as fuel. It drives me to make a better tomorrow for the foster children of today. I don’t want anyone to go through what I went through and that is what led to the creation of DoGud Clothing. With the help of my team, we have been able to cultivate a community dedicated to bettering outcomes for foster children. Our brand is a message to everyone that we need to pay attention to this population and Do Gud by them. With this community dedicated to helping kids like me, DoGud has been able to achieve great things. During foster care awareness month, I reached out to the non-profit organization which introduced me to the family who would ultimately become my personal saviors from the system and help me overcome the adversity it presented. CASA LA or Court Appointed Special Advocates was excited to partner with us and together we raised over 7,000 dollars in the inaugural DoGud Lapathon. This money all went directly to helping foster children receive mentors from CASA just as I did during my time in the system. So what drives the brand is our past and mission to make this world easier for such a vulnerable population. Therefore DoGud is more than a brand, it’s a message, it’s a movement, but most importantly it is our way to give back and DO GUD!!!

What should our readers know about your business?
Please tell us more about your business.

Dogud clothing is the clothing brand that gives back to foster children by giving back 10% of every purchase and partnering with the organizations that had a huge impact on me and continue to have a huge impact on foster children today.

What sets you apart from others?

What sets us apart is our mission, we are dedicated to cultivating awareness of the foster system and how badly it can affect youth. We don’t just sell clothes, we are trying to make a change.

What you are most proud of or excited about?

I am most proud of our partnership with CASA, it is an amazing achievement that goes back to my roots and has so much meaning behind it!

How did you get to where you are today business-wise? Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?

Getting to where I am today was a long road of trial and error. I’ve dropped out of college, I have been hooked on drugs, and seen the bottom of bottoms. Somehow through all that, my spirit was still strong and I had enough left in me to keep fighting. Easy is the last word I would use to describe my journey here. Although, the challenges helped fortify me along the way. I think what kept me going and continues got keep me going is my continued fight to make this world an easier place for foster children to exist. I have made many mistakes along the way, but the biggest lesson in my life is to take those mistakes and learn from them.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

I want the world to know DoGud is here to provide fresh fashion while making a change.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would have to take my best friend to Teddy’s Red Tacos and catch a concert somewhere in LA. I love to hang out in Manhattan or Hermosa beach a lot of the time. The beach is home to a lot of my best ideas and also best times with friends. I feel like no matter where you are in LA, as long as you’re with the right people and have an open mind — this city will take care of you.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give a huge shoutout to the amazing people who took me in and called me their own. From the bottom of my heart, thank you Catherine and Leonard Walker. Without you two, none of this would have ever been possible. Love you Mom and Dad!

Website: thedogudcollective.com

Instagram: @fiscalmoses // @thedogudcollective

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-moses1

Image Credits
Kaylee Green