During their junior year of college, Lost Boy Holdings LLC Co-Founders Christian Anderson and Bryce Vander Sanden were having company meetings in a study room on their university’s campus. While their companies’ monetary value might have been less than ten-thousand dollars at the time, the duo built the foundations of their now multi-million dollar holdings company during their time together at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse. “We weren’t living together at the time so we would just meet halfway between our places or Bryce would just come over or Vice versa. We used to meet on our campus in a study room or something usually,” recalls Anderson. The business partners were already well acquainted at the time, sharing a room their freshman and sophom*ore year of college.
Anderson ran the company solo at first. His background as an independent artist (Trust’N) helped him learn the art of marketing for his own personal brand at first, later turning his knowledge into a full scale digital marketing business. Anderson asked for Vander Sanden’s assistance once the workload became hard to manage alone. “It was getting really hard to focus on school and get good grades while running my business” explained Anderson. (Lost Boy Entertainment at the time). “I asked Bryce to help me write some articles for my clients and paid him $100 for his first one, I think. I think from there he was sold on the whole thing,” stated Anderson, laughing as he spoke. “I remember I told Bryce I had a meeting with the school’s small business center about getting an LLC. He slid to the meeting with me. I think that’s when he really chose to be a part of this,” said Anderson.
The duo survived their busy lifestyles balancing studies and school through the rest of the school year, deciding to focus only on their company during the summer. “Bryce and I both realized we didn’t have to look for summer jobs because we were making so much money from Lost Boy Entertainment. That was a pretty cool time of our lives,” explained Anderson.
Summer came and went, and both Anderson and Vander Sanden decided to return to school in the fall of their senior year. Vander Sanden was a fully enrolled student, whereas Anderson was taking classes part time with 6 credits. “I was only taking 6 credits so I could still focus on our business. I was making too much money to be a full time student. I didn’t want to go at all, but my parents convinced me to try and do 6 credits at a time,” said Anderson.
While Vander Sanden adjusted to his workload, Anderson found it impossible to balance both. “I was taking all the calls, closing all the deals, talking to all the customers 24/7. We have thousands, it’s a lot to handle. Being the president, majority owner, I had no time to study. I couldn’t even keep up with 6 credits,” said Anderson. Anderson wouldn’t stay enrolled much longer.
About halfway through his first semester of his senior year of college, Anderson decided to drop out. “I remember calling my mom and telling her “I just made 40K today I’m dropping out.” She actually encouraged me and told me I could do it if I thought it was best for me. She knew I tried,” recalled Anderson.
Vander Sanden decided it was best to stay in school and finish his education, a decision both founders agreed was best. “I remember telling Bryce he should stay and finish up his degree because he was already so deep. He’s one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever met so I knew he could juggle both commitments. Here we are, Bryce is done now, and I am very glad and proud of him,” explained Anderson.
Vander Sanden recently graduated from the University of La Crosse with a bachelor’s degree in both Finance & Accounting. Anderson has since moved out west to Los Angeles, where he has found more success and expanded the Lost Boy’s businesses even more. Lately, Anderson has been teasing unreleased music, being dormant for more than a year since his last single “Lucy” went viral on TikTok.
What started in a college dorm as Lost Boy Entertainment has flourished into one of the most interesting multi-million-dollar holdings companies on the planet. The company has expanded at an impressive rate, now also being involved in Real Estate, E-commerce, Fashion, and even the Sneaker/Hype culture. The company also previewed Lost Boy Pictures LLC, it’s movie production branch that will be launched at a future date focusing on independent films and short animated series. Anderson and Vander Sanden have built a one of a kind culture around their own Lost Boy brand.
Not only is Lost Boy a brand to be worn, and a company to work with, it’s also an idea to believe in. Anderson said he came up with the concept based off his childhood hero, Disney’s famous character Peter Pan. The film was Anderson’s favorite when he was young and is still something he carries with him to this day. “It just made sense to me. I loved the idea in my head, but it also meant a lot to me. A lot of people called me “lost” when I first started making music. People started looking at me differently. That’s not really something that’s changed to this day since I decided to pursue my dreams. And that’s really what that means. It’s being okay with not fitting in, taking pride in that. That’s what being a Lost Boy means,” explained Anderson.
The concept has stuck for many, including Anderson’s closest friends and business partners. “It’s something the whole squad believes in. You can ask each and every one of them. They represent the very purpose of the brand. We’re all Lost Boys to be honest,” said Anderson. The Lost Boy team consists of about 10 people day to day but can look bigger or smaller depending on what’s going on in the company. “We have a lot of different partners and people that work with us,” explained Anderson. Known on social media under his one-line alias “Trust”, Anderson has become known as a important influencer and entrepreneur in his own space. The Lost Boys impressive list of clients includes names like Google, Target, Procter & Gamble, Mayweather Boxing & Fitness, Snoop Dogg, Empire Records, and more.
While Anderson began selling his iconic “Lost Boy” hats during his senior years of high school, the company technically didn’t start on paper until 2020. Less than 2 years since it’s conception, Lost Boy Entertainment LLC has put up impressive numbers on its own. The company has reported over 1.5 million dollars in revenue since it began less than 2 years ago. The public relations and digital marketing agency is projected to make over a million in revenue this fiscal year alone.
The story behind Lost Boy Holdings LLC is fascinating once you take a closer look at how the company was built from the ground up. The holdings company is already well positioned and deeply rooted in smart financial decisions less than 2 years since it began. The company’s outlook seems even more promising with Vander Sanden being done with school. The holdings just announced its new plans to dive deeper into fashion and the sneaker hype culture while also spilling news about their new record label and movie production company. With new ventures on the way and a promising financial outlook, it seems as though both Anderson and Vander Sanden’s hard work is paying off.
You can find out more about Lost Boy Holdings LLC here:
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Guardian Nigeria
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