Spotlight: Res Ipsa Sells Products Inspired by a Love of Travel

Travel is a hobby that provides happiness for a lot of people. And travel inspired goods can give a little bit of happiness to those people even when they’re not far from home. Res Ipsa is a company that was started by two entrepreneurs who wanted to add a little happiness into the world through those travel inspired goods.

You can read about the company and the people behind it in this week’s Small Business Spotlight.

What the Business Does

Sells unique, handmade accessories.

Co-founder Joshua Moore told Small Business Trends, “At Res Ipsa, we sell premium, hand-made travel leisure goods, primarily footwear and accessories such as weekenders, wallets, belts, and others.”

Business Niche

Selling travel-inspired goods.

Moore says, “We’re known for our kilim goods because our brand is travel. Inspired by our travels to the great cities of the world, Res Ipsa is the destination for premium handmade travel leisure goods. We pride ourselves on sourcing the most interesting materials for products that are durable, comfortable and self-evidently stylish.”

How the Business Got Started

When two lawyers were looking for a career change.

Moore explains, “Res Ipsa was founded in 2013 by two lawyers who concluded that the world needs fewer lawyers but more happiness. We started off making neckwear but pivoted into footwear very early on.”

Biggest Win

Constantly improving.

Moore says, “We try to keep in perspective that we are building something from nothing, so whenever something good happens we celebrate each win. We fist bump when we sell something online. We celebrate when we reach follower milestones on Instagram. Then we set the bar a little higher for next time. We’re a travel brand, so we like travel metaphors: the journey is the destination.”

Biggest Risk

Quitting their jobs as lawyers.

Moore says, “We started the company in January 2014. After about 18 months we had more than we could handle in the morning, evenings, and weekends. We decided that if we were going to be successful we’d have to take the plunge to do it full time. Financial ruin was on our minds, but we felt strongly it was the right thing to do. Looking back, we have no regrets. Our business has grown, and taking the risk taught us to stay open to what life presents.”

How They’d Spend an Extra $100,000

Creating retail experiences.

Moore explains, “With an extra $100K we would plan multi-brand, short-term retail pop-ups. Experiential retail is the way that traditional brick-and-mortar is going to compete with online. We want to create spaces that feature music, art, plus cool brands with stories that we connect with.”

How the Business Got Its Name

From a famous court case.

Moore says, “The Res Ipsa name comes from the Latin phrase res ipsa loquitur, ‘the thing speaks for itself.’ The res ipsa doctrine is a legal doctrine first used in the English court case Byrne v Boadle (1863), and applies to self-evident facts. In that case, a barrel fell from a window injuring a pedestrian. The barrel in our logo is a subtle nod to that old English case, and our legal careers.”