Rad Livin’: Meet Brooks Dame

You know that feeling you get when you’re with your friends on a road trip, your favourite song comes on, and you look around feeling completely grateful for being exactly where you are? That’s how I felt the first time I watched one of Proof’s video blogs.

They were open, honest and real.

They were passionate, adventurous and collaborative.

They spoke as if anyone who watched their videos were an old friend.

Proof is a an eyewear company whose products are made from sustainable wood. They’re passionate about doing good to mother nature, giving back to those around them (a portion of every purchase goes to a good cause) and living a positive lifestyle. Aside from their awesome eyewear and charitable efforts, what instantly draws you into Proof Eyewear is the genuineness of the men behind the brand, the Dame brothers.

Meet Brooks Dame, Founder of Proof Eyewear…

Throughout your website and social media, you write about Proof in a genuine way. You write as if you were talking to a friend, and have even thrown a “Plant trees like a boss” in there. Is it important for your brand to remain consistent and true to who you are as a person? 

Hahaha, don’t you think people should plant trees like a boss?! We are who we are. We aren’t a huge corporation who has forgotten who we are or where we came from. We try to stay very close to our customers. We treat them like family. We talk to them like we would a friend. So we aren’t always p.c. but it is true to who we are as people and who we are as a company. We are real, straightforward and natural, a lot like our products.

How did you select which organizations to give back to?

They are all things that we believe in or have been directly involved in. With India, we went there for a wedding a few years back and saw a strong need for good charities that would support the less fortunate. It is a huge country and the people are really great there. We hooked up with an eye clinic there that provides sight-giving surgeries for people who can’t afford them. We are always looking for new charities to work with, and keep an ear to the ground for charities “doing good” out there in the world.

What do you look for in potential athletes to sponsor?

Our athletes are really eclectic. We have skiers, wake boarders, snowboarders, surfers, skaters, bmxers, and they are from all walks of life. We have seasoned veterans and some up and comers. One thing that all the athletes share is their love for their sport, and all of their sports for the most part are outside in mother nature. They all really care about the environment because their playground is the environment.

We look for people who have a passion for what they do. It is a really fun aspect of our company. We love hearing, seeing, and following our athletes as they are out there killing it. It is fun to see what they are doing to progress their sport. We feel like we are progressing our industry and we expect the same from our athletes.

Proof is such a positive and forward thinking brand. How do you personally lead a positive lifestyle?

There’s enough negativity out there. It is easy to focus on the negative and let it pull you down. You turn on the news and it seems like it is all negative. Why not positive things? Being positive is easy too. But it is a choice. We choose to be positive daily, and to make a positive impact on those around us by doing something positive in the world.  We are always looking for new and creative ways to add positivity in everything we do.

What piece of advice could you give to someone who has a unique idea that could help others and/or the environment?

Start small. Test your idea. If it gets some buzz do it a little bigger and keep it rolling. That way if it is a bust you can tweak it until it works. Figure out something that you are really passionate about. You want to find something that makes you want to get up every morning and go to work. Adding something that helps others or the environment is something that will only further fuel the fire. Also, believe in your concept no matter what anyone says. If it is truly a good idea and a passion you’ll figure out a way to make it work. When we told people we were going to do wood sunglasses they weren’t really on board. They thought it wouldn’t take off. But, we’ve proven them wrong and are doing good things for other people and the environment in the process. It’s been a great ride so far and we hope to continue the journey.

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