What's Your Story?

I've spent the last eleven years in sales and marketing for a plastics company in Harrison, Ohio. Although relatively small as a manufacturer, this particular company has an international reputation as a maker of high-end plastic for the board sports industry. Every four years, when the Winter Olympics rolls around, at least one snow sports competitor gets a medal riding plastic that originated in Harrison, and every four years the company gets a write up in the paper.

I find it interesting that nowboard and ski builders from all over the world get their high-performance material from a small business tucked away in a small town in the southwest corner of Ohio. It's a good story and one worth telling.

A big part of working in sales involves answering the phone. The caller always has questions. It's the sales person's job to answer those questions, maybe ask a few of their own, and then, hopefully, recommend a product that fits the needs of that customer.

I've answered a lot of calls and questions from snowboard and ski builders over the last decade. I've probably asked just as many questions in return. Asking those questions has been a privilege and the stories I've heard in return a blessing. And the stories have come from small (and not-so-small) business owners of all ages! Not long ago I talked to a 14-year old boy who was experimenting with various materials and designing his own snowboard. This week I spoke with a young man who has been buying our material since he was in high school. He's now 28 and part of his family's start-up ski business. He and I have been talking since he was seventeen.

There's always a story when it comes to why some build their own business from scratch; always more to tell. You just have to ask and listen.

What's YOUR story?