Brodrick “Brok” Mungo started his first business from Afghanistan.
The former research and development chemist was a medic in the Army, stationed in Heidelberg, Germany, when his sergeant major noted that Mungo still seemed to lack direction.
“He directed me go read Steve Jobs’ commencement speech at Stanford in 2005,” Mungo said. “And by reading that came up with the idea of Fusic365.”
That was in 2011. Mungo has a wide variety of interests, complete with multivalent history in youth sports, enterprising (as his mother encouraged his participating in Junior Achievement when he was a child) and, eventually, military life.
Mungo’s love of fashion and music, however, was what struck him as the ideal avenue through which to pursue his deepest entrepreneurial aspirations. The namesake of his collaborative arts and promotional platform is a portmanteau of those two passions, and “365” represents how its efforts go “all year long.”
“It states that every day is ever-changing,” he said. “Because you’re not the same person musically, artistically, fashion wise. Every day you wake up you’re a different person.”
Mungo eventually met a government contractor, Peter Achira, who had his sights on going into the tech business. The two tried to grab the same copy of Enterprise Magazine, once, and the ensuing conversation led to mutual interest and a partnership.
“I told him my concept, and asked ‘what are you doing?’” said Mungo. “He said, ‘I’m building an app.’ So that created that synergy between us.”
Achira would become the company’s CFO, and its first investor, putting $25,000 towards developing Mungo’s idea.
By 2012, after his deployment to Afghanistan, Mungo had purchased a domain name and registered his company. After steady bouts of brainstorming, he created a logo and launched the brand by sponsoring professional drift racers in Europe.
After returning stateside, he maintained the brand with a clothing line, selling T-shirts, hats and other apparel with the company’s logo. He’s spent the ensuing years making connections to build a means for local artists—musicians, dancers, poets, designers and filmmakers—to promote one another through partnerships.
“What I’m building is a creative arts marketing platform,” he said, using a term used by business consultant Kevin Koym, to distinguish Mungo’s idea from that of another “social media” platform.
Fusic365’s burgeoning efforts to promote arts in Augusta in new ways include Act!vate, a music and arts festival that was inaugurated last weekend, alongside Arts in the Heart—at the 600 Building on Broad Street. Act!vate is part of a larger arts and music promotion initiative called Augusta Renaissance, spearheaded with Karen Gordon of Garden City Jazz.
Elevate (stylized “El3vate”) is an annual dance convention coordinated by Fusic365 that hosts classes and a competition, also inaugurated this year at the Miller Theater. Participants can receive instruction at the convention from nationally-recognized, Augusta-based talent such as “So You Think You Can Dance” contestant Kathryn McCormick, actor and dancer Stevo Jones and choreographer Christopher Wilson.
“That’s what Fusic365 is,” Mungo said. “We give exposure to those who won’t get it anywhere else.”
For more information on Fusic365 and its various projects, visit www.fusic365.com.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
