Campbell coins Flinkin' brand to capture lifestyle

You won't find it in the dictionary, but if Cape Girardeau entrepreneur Glenn Campbell has any say about it, "flinkin'" will soon be part of your vocabulary.

Campbell, who co-founded a hugely successful headwear company called LIDS in the 1990s, began thinking of the flinkin' concept a few years ago while floating and enjoying beverages with friends on Kentucky Lake.

The experience reminded him of his college days at Southeast Missouri State University when he and friends would "grab a few beverages" and enjoy an afternoon of relaxing on "anything that would float" along the Current River or one of a number of nearby watering holes.

He didn't know it back then, but he and his college buddies were flinkin' (a blend of "floating" and "drinking," only without the "g" at the end of each word).

Fast forward several decades. Campbell would eventually leave the LIDS empire and would start spending more of his leisure time with friends and family members relaxing at Kentucky Lake. One day, while enjoying a lazy day on the water with a cold beverage, he realized flinkin' wasn't just a word he and his friends made up; it was more of an attitude, a lifestyle, and a state of mind.

"We were sitting there at the lake, started talking about flinkin' and I thought, 'You know what? I'm not looking for another job, but I built a brand once before,' and if I had a dollar for everybody who told me how stupid baseball caps were and I could never make a living selling them, I'd have a lot more money," he laughed.

And that, more or less, is how Flinkin' was born.

Campbell wasn't exactly sure where Flinkin' was heading, but he wanted to be ready for anything, so he trademarked the word and bought several URL addresses built around flinkin'.

"I've got flinkinlife.com, flinkin.com and others, plus Facebook and Instagram pages," he said.

Campbell often used his friends as "focus groups" to test his flinkin' ideas. Would the brand work on T-shirts? Sure! Hats? Of course! Drinking glasses? Why not?

Flinkin' fonts and logos were created and Campbell gradually began building a line of Flinkin' products — including shirts, caps, stickers, drinking glasses. He used some of the contacts he cultivated through LIDS for design, production and distribution services. Campbell has also contracted with a company in Texas to produce a line of saddle-like flotation devices he calls "Flinkers."

All of the products, as well as Campbell's flinkin' story, are available on the Flinkin' website, www.flinkin.com, which went live a few weeks ago.

"We wanted to work through the glitches before we started pushing the site, but I'm not in any hurry" he said. "This isn't one of those things where I'm trying to get rich; it's more about having fun."

And although the brand is built around the terms "floatin'" and "drinkin'," Campbell says it's not about getting drunk.

"When you say flinkin', some people automatically assume you're talking about alcohol, but a lot of flinkers drink soda or iced tea," he explained. "It's basically about hanging out at the lake, or anywhere there's water, and just enjoying life."

For now, Flinkin' products are only available through the Flinkin' website, with the exception of an occasional Flinkin' hat or Flinker float sold out of Campbell's garage. However, he doesn't rule out the possibility of traditional retail distribution sometime down the road.

"Could it be big? It could. I've got a lot of connections in the retail world," he said. "I worked for Footlocker for eight years. I know the guys that own Dick's Sporting Goods. I know the folks at Academy and the people at Hibbett Sports. Could I take this to Walmart or Target? I could. But for me, it's more fun to go to Fast Eddie's, a gas station at the lake in Benton, Kentucky, where everybody pulls in with their boats, go to the owner and say, 'Hey, I'm gonna drop ship a couple dozen Flinkers here along with some hats and T-shirts and see how they do.'"

But getting rich isn't why Campbell started Flinkin'.

"I never got into anything in my life to make a lot of money," he said. "To make money, yes, but I didn't get into anything, and will never get into anything, to get rich. I'm just not wired that way."

Flinkin', according to the "Flinkin' Story" on www.flinkin.com, "isn't about saving the world or being politically correct. It's about having fun. We hope everyone enjoys our products and enjoys life as much as we do (and) remember to always flink responsibly!"

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