Small Business Spotlight: Sand Cloud

The idea for Sand Cloud came about during a day at the beach. 

Former college roommates Steven Ford and Brandon Leibel were living in San Diego, working for an insurance company. The two had always dreamed of starting a business together, and while relaxing on the beach one day after work, discussed how great it would be if beach towels had pillows attached to them. 

Coworker Bruno Aschidamini expressed interest in their idea, and despite having no experience with entrepreneurship or starting a company, the three decided to go all in: they left their jobs at the insurance company and went to work developing their business plan.

After studying industry trends and researching materials, the original concept of a pillow towel had evolved to what’s now their signature product: a fast-drying towel, made from 100% Turkish Organic cotton, that repels sand.

“Because the material is flat-woven, sand doesn’t get stuck in the towel’s fibers, so you can just give it a shake and the sand falls right out,” said Ford.

The trio appeared on Shark Tank in 2017, receiving $200,000 from investor Robert Herjavec, and Sand Cloud has been growing ever since: in 2024, the company made over $45M in sales alone. While the towels remain their best-selling products, Sand Cloud has expanded their product line to include additional items, including a recently-launched line of resort wear. 

As small business owners, Ford, Leibel, and Aschidamini knew that the company’s continued success depended on finding ways to innovate and adapt to industry changes. Using the Capital One Spark Plus Cash card, they’ve been able to leverage unlimited 2% cash back rewards for research and development needs and team building activities. 

A current priority is expanding Sand Cloud’s physical presence outside of California by adding more brick and mortar retail stores. 

“It’s important that our customers have the opportunity to interact with us in person,” said Leibel.  

The rewards from their Spark Cash Plus card have enabled the owners to offset the costs of opening additional stores.

“We really like the fact that our rewards are in the form of cash back, which gives us the flexibility to grow Sand Cloud the way we want to grow it,” said Aschidamini, noting that many other business credit cards only provide rewards in the form of gift cards. “Having a card that grows with us lets us stretch our money a little further so we can continue to do what we do best.”

The team also uses their cash back rewards to host an annual retreat in San Diego, bringing together Sand Cloud’s more than 30 remote employees for a few days of team building activities, beach cleanup, and social events. 

Because of Ford, Leibel, and Aschidamini’s shared passion for sustainability and conservation, Sand Cloud donates 10% of all profits to marine conservation efforts. 

“We came up with the idea of the brand while hanging out on the beach, and the beach is such a special place for us, living in San Diego,” said Aschidamini.

Learn more about Capital One’s suite of small business products and services here. 

About Capital One Business

Capital One offers a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses, and commercial clients. Capital One Business offers a diverse suite of financial products, tools and services designed specifically for small businesses, including credit cards with unlimited rewards and banking products and services. Capital One Business is committed to fueling the courageous entrepreneurial spirit that's at the heart of American small businesses. We are focused on listening to and learning from the millions of businesses we serve every day to make sure our products, services and experiences work as hard as they do.