Change is Rewarding

In 2016 Frau Fowler got it’s start in a sleepy town of Woodland Park, Colorado. Working was hard at 8,500 feet and the top of Pikes Peak summit (14,000+ feet) was right outside our door.  Our neighbors were the automotive racing legends, the Vahsholtzs.  Codie Vahsholtz (you can see him race at Pike’s Peak Hill Climb here) used to help us unload equipment with his forklift.  We loved the mountains, but we outgrew our location and had to leave.

In 2018 we moved into Colorado Springs, into a space 6 times larger.  Our landlords are wonderful, down to earth people and have been supportive of our “wild” company. We thought we’d be here for a long time. But in 2020, something was just not right.  We made the decision to move again.  Some of the reasons were personal and some were purely knowing that we’ve maxed out what we can do here!  We can’t grow properly and we want this company to stay independent.  While many don’t give much credence to being independent, I think as BIG companies merge more often (and own it all), I think people will finally understand why this is so important.

So this year we will move again.  This time, it’s 1650 miles away to North Carolina and into 11,000 sq. feet, that we will own.  And because we didn’t have X,000,000 to buy a commercial building, we are building our own facility, so we can control our destiny a bit more.

Right now, there is a fairly large and growing supply crisis (for all things, including material we make product with).  While we are working constantly to make Frau Fowler always in stock, builders are doing the same thing…which has pushed our build back.  Right now,  it’s 14+ weeks for GARAGE DOORS.  

Oh yeah, we’re in limbo, like everyone is!

So here’s our reminder to ourselves during times like these.

Here are the many truths we’ve had from the Frau Fowler experience:

1) Do it while you’re young. You can only hustle really hard for so long.  When we get to NC, we are giving opportunities to others who want to GO FOR IT and to pass the puck (and for us, to do the family-thing more).

2) Control your destiny and have faith where it leads you. We’ve made all kinds of hard decisions to get here and it never ends.  If we needed to MOVE, we did it.  We know if we have the right intentions, we’ll never be disappointed with the outcome.

3) LIFE is going to throw you wrenches whether you stay PUT or LEAVE.  We can grow on our own terms OR we can just let LIFE dictate those terms, which can create despair from feeling victimized (not in control).  Moving and making these big decisions has helped us grow and helped us worry less!

4) You have to start somewhere.  The curated “insights” on social media and TV of people “living large” -is the world’s biggest lie.  This makes most feel not good enough when starting at the bottom, or even interested in starting there!   ou cannot skip START.  We started at the bottom and had the humility to do so.

5) You build skills over time!  Enjoy the process.  Skill is not a taught thing, it’s an experience thing (in most cases).  We can all be sad about not getting into HARVARD or we can be thankful we didn’t.

6) Keep planting the right kind of seeds.  It all compounds faster than you think.  One day it can be enjoyed by others.