Harry Potter has been my favorite series ever since I was a kid because even though it takes place in a universe full of witches, wizards, mythical creatures, and a scary bald dude with no nose who speaks to snakes, I was always able to relate to and grow with the characters. The one I looked up to the most was Luna, for the following reasons:

1. She was absolutely unafraid to be herself.

Luna was my favorite as soon as they introduced her because she was such an oddball and despite people calling her "Loony Lovegood" she was never anything but kind towards everyone she encountered. People made fun of her and even distanced themselves from her, but she didn't ever get down on herself or lash out at the world (unlike another bespectacled angsty teenage wizard we all know). 

2. Luna was a great friend during even the most difficult times.

While Ron and Hermione get all the credit for being Harry Potter's best friends, Luna was there on multiple occasions to help reassure Harry when the going got tough. They both knew what it was like to lose a parent, they both felt like outcasts in their own way, aaand at some point, they were both training a secret army to fight an impossibly powerful evil wizard. There was literally never a situation where someone came to her with a problem and she said: "I don't know man, you're on your own."

3. She brought a rational and positive perspective to just about everything.

Where other characters would brood, rant, or feel helpless, Luna would come in with a clear head and help them out of their funk, or at the very least, get them to see the light at the end of the tunnel. When Harry felt utterly alone in his struggle against Voldemort, he came to Luna and she shared this bit of wisdom:

Luna Lovegood: [about her father] We believe you, by the way. That He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is back, and you fought him, and the Ministry and the Prophet are conspiring against you and Dumbledore. 
Harry Potter: Thanks. Seems you're about the only ones that do. 
Luna Lovegood: I don't think that's true. But I suppose that's how he wants you to feel. 
Harry Potter: What do you mean? 
Luna Lovegood: Well if I were You-Know-Who, I'd want you to feel cut off from everyone else. Because if it's just you alone you're not as much of a threat. 

4. She was brave.

When Harry started Dumbledore's Army she was the first to sign up because it gave her hope, and she even went on to start it back up when Harry went on his quest away from Hogwarts to hunt down those pesky horcruxes. Then, during the battle of Hogwarts, she went up against Voldemort's most powerful right-hand woman Bellatrix Lestrange and held her ground. Aside from her magical abilities, she was a brave girl because she endured loss, loneliness, ridicule, and straight-up terrifying murderous wizards, and she still was brave enough to smile, fight, and lift up the people around her. 

All in all, I think Luna is one of the best fictional role-models out there. 

With Thanksgiving being two days away, I am assuming most of us are already in the Thanksgiving Day mentality. Meaning, we're probably already thinking of all the scrumptious food we're going to devour, all the football we're going to watch, all the fun we're going to have with our loved ones, and most importantly, we're probably already thinking of what we're most thankful for. At least, I know I am.

Now, I am not going to sit here and list everything that I am thankful for because that would take, well, forever. Instead, I'll keep it nice and brief. This year I am once again thankful for my health, my family and friends, and for this amazing SlideBelts team. You guys are the best and I thank you all for showing up each day and making my job that much more enjoyable!  

As of Thursday evening, we had completely sold out of our allotment of shoes for our collaboration with Benjamins Shoes. That means that we were able to sell completely out of a $480 product in 9 days. That's amazing. It was a great opportunity for us to get a collaboration under our belt, go through the marketing process, and see how a high-end custom collaborative item would sell. 

We started this process in January or February, so it took nearly a full year from my initial conversation with Benjamin to our official sell out last week. It was really a labor of love and I want to take a second to acknowledge everyone who helped turn my daydream idea (from almost 2 years ago) into a reality.

Brig, Michelle, and Rick had the crucial initial sign off on the collaboration and gave Nery and me the okay to move forward with the project. Michelle and Rick continued to be integral throughout the process, helping every step of the way and signing off on big decisions like leather and buckle choices, shoe silhouettes, creative, etc. 

Speaking of creative, the Creative Team hit everything with this project completely out of the park. From the video that Alex shot and edited to the gift card that Andrew designed and the emails and social media posts that Olivia and Jess perfected - everything turned out so, SO well. A product is only as good as how it's presented to customers, so the C Team is a huge reason why we sold out so quickly.

Saranya and Trevor did a lot of behind the scenes work on the product pages and the website, ensuring that the back end was functioning smoothly and efficiently. Of course, the Ops team will also have a big role in the packaging and shipment of the product as well - so an early 'thank you' shoutout to you guys too!

Last but not least, a HUGE thanks to Nery and Bryan for seeing this project through to the end while I was out on vacation. I was really bummed when we had to move the release date up a week at the last minute and I missed the launch day, but they really did an awesome job making sure all the last minute stuff happened as needed. Nery was there helping with the project from its inception and was crucial through all the calls, the trips to Benjamins studio, the decision making, etc. Bryan jumped into a new role at the most hectic time of the year and as this project was coming down to the finish line, and he took everything in stride, handling it all like a champ. 

This is definitely the coolest project I've ever been part of and I'm super grateful to have gotten the opportunity to do it here. Thanks again to everyone involved for helping make this one real! Here's to more successful collaborations in the future! 

(P.S. Here's the video if you haven't seen it yet: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nX_ILsXcjhw)