When Danny Goldberg showed his trainer the first pair of boxing gloves he created, Val Stoyanov had just a few words for him: “These gloves are golden.”

Golden Gear was then born.

The senior information management major founded his company Golden Gear, an athletic equipment company with a focus on fighting gear, in 2009.

Goldberg began practicing Muay Thai, a martial art, at age 11. It was his involvement in fighting that inspired him to create Golden Gear.

After sustaining several injuries, some to his shins and hands, along with getting 14 stitches above his eye, Goldberg reasoned that his equipment was not doing its job to protect him. This insight motivated him to design better gear for fighters and to create a company to sell it.

“We always say that we want to help athletes overcome the obstacles of being human,” Goldberg said.

By being directly involved in combat fighting and using the equipment himself, Goldberg said he knew what separated a good product from a great product.

Goldberg said he also believes that Muay Thai helped him build the character necessary to succeed as an entrepreneur.

“Being involved in such a physical sport teaches you about life and business in general.
Combat sports and martial arts teach you to go after your goals,” Goldberg said. “If you want something, you need to work for it. Nothing comes easy.”

When Goldberg was named No. 6 in a list of “America’s Coolest College Startups 2014” by Inc. Magazine, he was contacted by Diamond MMA, a company that sells jockstraps. They then hired him to be a partner in their business. Goldberg will be working for Diamond MMA full-time starting in May.

In the meantime, the business model of Golden Gear will transition to selling more custom-made gear and luxury products.

He advises college students who are also aspiring entrepreneurs to start a business now because of the learning environment the university provides. He said college is a great time to make mistakes, because if your idea doesn’t work out, you can go back to being a student.

Goldberg said: “You don’t learn from succeeding really, you only learn from failures.”

Published on September 15, 2014 at 12:01 am

Contact Alex: aerdekia@syr.edu