What’s the Difference Between Luck and Fate?

We’re Stitchfox co-founders Greg and Bobby. This is our origin story.

Luck. Fate. Is everything predestined, or is it all down to us?

Here at Stitchfox, we believe in the power of luck. Actually, we think that “luck” is mostly about listening to your intuition, seizing new opportunities when they arise, and keeping your cool when shit hits the fan. 

But we’re 100% down with the idea of Fate. Why? We’re just two modern dads living parallel lives, but Fate has pulled some crazy strings for us. Through a few odd chances, we’ve been able to bring together a community of cool parents, epic brands, and passionate influencers, right here in New Zealand. Was it serendipity or providence?

We’ll let you judge.

It all began with an (un)lucky encounter.

The year was 1995, and we had no clue that our paths were about to cross. We were just a couple of ratbag fourteen year olds stuck in detention together, and neither of us were too pleased about it. Fortunately, we both liked grunge music and disliked pointless punishment. Those two things brought us together pretty quickly and we soon became mates, united by a shared spirit of rebellion.

As it turns out, you can make your own “luck”.

From there, it wasn’t long before we became a kickass, yin-yang duo. After highschool, we studied marketing together at Otago. Our dreams? To build cool stuff, and chase crazy ideas. We learned how to work hard, and soon enough, we started winning uni business competitions together. Ever heard the saying “luck happens when preparation meets opportunity”? Turns out it’s true.

Then bigger opportunities started cropping up. Bobby landed a sweet job in Auckland, and Greg took a marketing role in Aussie. On our own time, we both managed to marry smart, strong women, (both doctors!) travel the world, ride the roller-coaster of family life, and make some huge career changes. Though geography separated us, we kept dreaming and planning from afar.

Yep, Fate’s sneaky like that.

Fast forward a few years. We’d both become dads, alongside our awesome, career-driven wives. But neither of us had managed to achieve the kind of professional flexibility we wanted. So one fateful day, we met up over a sizzling plate of bacon to swap some schemes.

We caught up about parenting, work, and our long-term goals. Slowly, we realised that neither of us had let go of the dream of “doing our own thing”. Suddenly, Greg had an idea. “Imagine if a box could just turn up on your doorstep every season,” he said, “packed with epic outfits for your little ones, curated by the world's coolest mummy and fashion bloggers.”

Quietly, we lined up the dots… The idea was awesome, and the timing was perfect.

We decided to build the thing.

“Feeling lucky” is all about gratitude.

Looking back, we feel lucky that Fate stepped in for us so many times. We’re glad we seized an opportunity to build something we absolutely believed in, and we’re totally grateful that we’ve been able to bring together a community of peeps who’re passionate about premium kids fashion.

We also feel awesome that Stitchfox has been able to share joy with busy parents and their little ones - whether you’re big or small, clothes allow you to indulge in a special moment, and express yourself creatively.

We believe in the power of “gratitude in action”, and we’ve got big plans to let our gratitude guide us forward this year. So watch this space!

We’re stoked to have you along for the journey. x

• What are you grateful for? How will you live in gratitude this week? Hit us up in the comments!