Man, 79, Goes Viral After Unexpected Meeting with Stranger Sparks Twist to His Fish Hat Business (Exclusive)

• Robert Kapas was sitting in a local mall in Atlanta wearing his homemade fish hat, when a man named Leo stopped to ask about it

• After hearing the story behind the hat, Leo asked Kapas if he could film a video of it for social media; the clip went viral, amassing more than 31 million views

• In the video, Kapas shares the story of how he and his twin brother Bill, who died in January, launched their company, FISHAT LLC

• With the help of Leo's viral video, Kapas is completely sold out of his first run of 2,500 hats on his website

It all began with a simple 10-second pitch.

Robert Kapas was sitting in a local mall in Atlanta wearing his homemade fish hat, when a man named Leo (leo.the.introvert on social media) stopped to ask about it. Kapas doesn’t actively try to sell the hats he makes. Instead, he simply walks around, hoping the hats will sell themselves — and, in this case, that's exactly what happened.

After hearing the story behind the hat, Leo asked Kapas if he could film a video of it for TikTok. The 79-year-old tells PEOPLE that, despite being "low-tech," he agreed. The next day, Leo called Kapas and said the video had been viewed by 2 million people.

"By the end of the next day, it had been seen by 28 million people. I thought, 'Oh my God, I have to set up a TikTok account,' " Kapas says. "So, with his help, I started my own TikTok account, 'Fish. Hat. Bob.' He posted one of my videos, and it got 3.5 million views."

"It's just unbelievable what I'm experiencing," he says. "My brother, who started this whole thing, would be so proud."

In the video that’s now taking the Internet by storm, Kapas shares the story of how he and his twin brother, Bill, launched their company, FISHAT LLC, last November, after spending 10 years designing and prototyping the fish hats together.

He tells PEOPLE that the idea for the company began more than 40 years ago when Bill received a similar hat from his then-4-year-old daughter for Father’s Day. From then on, his brother, who wore the hat every day, became known as "Fish Hat Bill."

"Last year, when we received the current hat, we knew the design was great and that it was a winner," Kapas says. "As twins, we were extremely close and fished together often. This project was a lot of fun for two old men."

"Every day, Fish Hat Bill and I would wear the hats and try to sell them," he continues. "I’d carry hats with me wherever I went — retail stores, restaurants, doctor’s offices, grocery stores. If someone commented on the hat, I’d say, 'Let me have 10 seconds of your time.' Then I’d explain the hat and how the company started. I’d show photos. The first photo is of my twin brother and me wearing the hat. I’d also tell them the importance of the company motto: 'Enjoy teaching a child the art of fishing.' "

In January, just two days after returning from a five-day fishing trip together in Florida, Bill died. Hoping to carry on his brother's legacy, Kapas, who retired from his career in marketing and communications at 76 years old, has taken on the title of Fish Hat Bob and is continuing to learn the ins and outs of the business to help build the company.

Now, with the help of Leo's viral video, Kapas is completely sold out of his first production of 2,500 hats on his website, with orders flooding in from both the U.S. and internationally. His email inbox is maxed out with requests, and he is currently accepting pre-orders, with more than 800 already placed.

He's also working on securing a patent for the hat and producing a new color, in addition to the beige and blue hats he currently sells.

"Everybody has people in their family who pass away," Kapas says. "But when you're a twin, your relationship with your twin is unbelievably close. And that's what my brother and I had. I said to my son yesterday, I think he's up there fishing in heaven now, yelling at me, telling me I'm not working fast enough. I need to ship out the hats quicker."

"Yes, there are people who think the hat is stupid or a gimmick. But that's fine," he adds. "If that's your opinion, that's okay. But I have so many more people who love what it represents."

Over the years, Kapas has collected photos of people wearing his hats, including one special one he captured in February at his second-ever expo in Cartersville, Ga. During the expo, Kapas says a child, whom he guesses was 8 years old, kept walking by and looking at his hat. After telling them the price, the child went to go get money from their mom.

The next day, Kapas noticed the child kept returning to the booth, always admiring the fish hats. On the third day, after learning that the child didn't have enough money to buy the hat, Kapas looked at the little one and, without hesitation, handed him a hat.

"I said, 'You have fun,' " Kapas recalls with a smile.

As Kapas packed up at the end of the expo, a woman approached him, filled with gratitude. She began to thank him for his kindness, but Kapas was trying to figure out who she was. It wasn’t until later that he learned she was the mother of the child he had given the hat to. The woman expressed how much it meant to her and her family, who owned a marina nearby.

"I said, 'Oh, okay.' So, I went to the marina," Kapas continues. "Anyway, I had given the child the hat, and then I took pictures."

Kapas cherishes these moments, in which a small act of kindness creates ripples in ways he never expected. It's part of why he’s so passionate about his Fish Hat project — not just as a business, but as a symbol of spreading joy and connecting with people in meaningful ways.

Just a few days ago, Kapas went to a gas station, and was filling up his car when he noticed another vehicle next to his. A man was at the pump, but it was the woman in the car who caught his attention. Suddenly, she jumped out, a look of excitement on her face.

"She says to her husband, 'There he is! It's Fish Hat Bob, oh my gosh!' "

Read the original article on People