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Rylan Montoya graduated from high school just as COVID-19 swept the world. For most high school seniors, the transition to college is challenging enough without a global pandemic, but Montoya also had the added stress of launching a startup.

Montoya created his company, Dumbclub, on a whim. He had always been passionate about clothing, so he decided to build a brand that would embody his belief that success comes from stepping outside of your comfort zone. The company mission notes: “We champion the idea that taking risks—even if it means looking dumb—is the key to achieving more.”

“Taking risks—even if it means looking dumb—is the key to achieving more.”

Rylan Montoya (Bus’25)

That idea clearly resonated with his key audience of Gen Z college students. On his , Montoya reported: “Under my leadership, the company achieved over $1.3 million in revenue and built a robust social media presence with over 2 million followers across our various platforms.”

Early struggles

Although Montoya began the company with friends, in college he found himself running Dumbclub on his own—not an easy task when also juggling a full-time college workload, majoring in business analytics and information management.

“Running it with a small team posed some challenges. Things were growing more than I could handle, and I was really having to learn how to delegate all the operations of the business.”

Despite the stress and hardship, Montoya persevered.

“You gotta get your foot in the door and start learning and iterating on your failures early on,” he said. He felt that college would provide a fertile training ground for exploration, helping him form a clear idea of how he wanted to move forward in the future.

“You gotta get your foot in the door and start learning and iterating on your failures early on.”

Rylan Montoya (Bus’25)

Reimagining the brand

Recognizing the brand’s potential, Montoya brought on new collaborators to help reimagine and scale Dumbclub.

The adage “You go faster alone, but go you can go further as a team,” rang true for him.

Opportunity struck when Montoya met��, a fellow entrepreneur. Now serving as a co-founder, Savitsky brought in new ideas for reinventing Dumbclub.

To Montoya’s and Savitsky’s surprise, their initiatives to promote Dumbclub on social media blew up, sparking the idea that they could take their exposure and use it to promote products beyond Dumbclub.

“We started clothing really just as a passion project, something to do for fun. When our marketing efforts for our clothing brand took off more than we thought, the media piece became a much��better opportunity for us than the actual clothing.”

The birth of Street Smartz

With the company’s revenue coming primarily through its media operations, Montoya and Savitsky pivoted to , which is under the Dumbclub umbrella company. They use Street Smartz to drive engagement for leading brands such as Dutch Bros and Insomnia Cookies. Billed as a viral man-on-the-street trivia show, they use the platform to challenge Gen Z participants to prove they’re smart enough to win prizes, ranging from hoodies to cash, driving marketing prospects for brands looking to tap younger audiences.

“A lot of big companies are trying to get in front of Gen Z audiences. For example, a lot of financial companies want to get in front of the younger generation before they start to make major financial decisions out of college. And so, there’s no better place to go to than a show that’s directly marketing to college students,” said Montoya.

For Montoya and Savitsky, Street Smartz and Dumbclub are just the start. While Montoya is still exploring opportunities post-graduation, he has committed himself to his company for the near future.

“We’re expanding into multiple shows across campuses and demographics, building a portfolio we can bring to brands with clear value and measurable outcomes. The goal is to form long-term, strategic partnerships.”

The Leeds impact

Montoya believes a big reason for his success is a lesson he has taken to heart while at Leeds.

“Leeds has shaped me into the business leader I am today. But moving forward, it’s on you to seek out opportunities. That mindset—taking initiative and staying proactive—has been ingrained in me throughout my four years here. Leeds will open doors, but it’s up to you to walk through them.”

Montoya has taken advantage of resources like the Deming Center, the Leeds Association for Information Systems (LAIS), and hands-on, applied coursework that helped build his experience.

In particular, he credits Matthew Brady, assistant teaching professor of Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics, for making his college career successful.

“What I've learned in his classes, such as Low-Code for Citizen Developers and Salesforce, has probably been the most applicable thing I've ever learned. He has a unique way of introducing us to industry-leading platforms—like Salesforce, Nintex and modern database tools—and showing exactly how they’re applied in real-world business environments.”

“There’s still a million things I’ll need to do that I have no idea how to do yet. But that’s just part of the journey—learning as I go, growing through every challenge, and always staying curious.”

Rylan Montoya (Bus’25)

For Montoya, giving up has never been an option, and fear of the unknown isn’t an obstacle as he looks forward to graduating and pursuing his passions.

"There’s still a million things I’ll need to do that I have no idea how to do yet. But that’s just part of the journey—learning as I go, growing through every challenge, and always staying curious."