By Malak Abu-Hajar
Staff Writer
Eyes heavy with fatigue, senior Jordan Lause tapes his last set of packages shut to ship out the following morning. Gazing at the mountain of orders, he mentally checks a task off his winding to-do list. Despite Lause’s academics and volleyball consuming most of his weekdays, he diligently manages his small business, SlunksPlace, where he designs athletic apparel inspired by his volleyball experience.
“Club volleyball, where everyone has different uniforms, led me to learn how to [design] myself,” Lause said. “I wanted to provide something that could connect with my community.”
Lause began promoting his custom shorts through trading slunks in his volleyball club, a common practice of exchanging uniforms between players. Lause then founded the business in his sophomore year.
To pay for initial supplies and secure future funding for his business, Lause began trading and reselling Pokémon cards through third-party companies, such as eBay. Growing his business through in-person conventions, digital storefronts and advertisement on social media, Lause has now been running SlunksPlace for almost two years. The business structure, upkeep and marketing are completely self-taught, while manufacturing is outsourced. Lause makes around 100k in sales annually.
“I would say you just have to start a bunch of different things,” Lause said. “It’s more about just starting and going through that process of development. Like, you’re gonna fail a bunch of times, but you gotta just try a bunch of different things because you don’t know what’s gonna work.”
Through his business, Lause also gives back to his community. After the fires in the Pacific Palisades during Jan. 2025, he started an online fundraiser with a limited-edition slunks design inspired by the resilience of the affected communities. All the net proceeds went towards rebuilding efforts and relief support for the region. Lause reached around $6,000 in four days.
“I think [the fundraising] really motivated me, because some of my teammates lost their homes due to the fires,” Lause said. “Just being able to give back in a little way made me see how much of a community impact my business could have if I wanted it to.”
As his business continues to grow, Lause hopes to expand and achieve $500,000 in sales annually in the next five years. In preparation for college, he ensured that SlunksPlace was fully independent and ready to go on the road with him. Lause targets certain months estimated to have the most sales, planning possible shipping schedules and marketing tactics.
“I bought a pair of shorts from Jordan which were great and definitely worth the price.” junior varsity volleyball player August Choung said. “If you are looking for shorts and like some of his designs, I highly recommend buying from him.”
PHOTO/ Mars Wang