Hi, everyone. Im j. J. Ramberg and welcome to your business, the show dedicated to helping your growing business. For us, a strong leadership may be the difference between the life and death of our companies. For those in the air force, it could be the difference between life and death. We recently visited the exclusive United States air force Weapons School in nevada where colonel mike draley is obsessed that he trains his students to become the best leaders out there. We wanted to learn what characteristics and values are at the core of their education and how those qualities can translate to the business sector. Known as the home of the fighter pilot, nevadas Nellis Air Force base is just a short ride away from all the glitz of the las vegas strip. Its also home to one of the most prestigious Training Programs in the military, the United States air force Weapons School. Twice a year, some of the most gifted warriors of the sky are chosen to attend the ph. D. Level program there to l
hopeful and excited to hear that the bags are conversation starters. and i think we just hope that they have the opportunity to share their experiences within their service with the entire civilian community as well as really anywhere that they are, because we know their experiences and their leadership and their technical skills is something that everyone can learn from. when we re coming up with ways to move our business forward, we shouldn t be constrained by looking only to our own industry for inspiration. for example, when the owners were creating their packaging, they looked at candle and shoe boxes to come up with their signature look. and when steve geissler wanted to grow his company, he took a page out of the book of the fishing industry.
back and the way they reach some of their customers hasn t changed. a lot of our industry isn t necessarily on the web yet. we re a little bit behind with the farmers and ranchers. some of them don t even have internet service. so we really wanted to have a nice catalog, we wanted to have our name out there and pull the brands together. but cowboy cordage has attracted new business by constantly updating and growing. first up, their marketing. the internet has opened them up to a whole new customer base, international ones. steve s daughter came on as general manager a few years ago. she says that rounding up what the next trend will be isn t an exact science. and some of it is going to be great and some of it is going to be terrible. we just have to market our way through it. marketing isn t the only department that has benefited from some thinking outside of the box. one of their most successful products was inspired by one of steve s side hobbies. my boys and i, we are com
and i m like you ask about an aha moment and this is it because we all wear shooting glasses similar to these. it enhances the colors. and i thought, man, if we could get a neon rope and do that, that would be amazing. and it just really changed a lot of things. when it first came out, it absolutely exploded. everyone had to have the bright, crazy colors. i would say most of the industry, no matter what you go to now, everyone has something similar. but the company s biggest influencers have been and always will be their cowboy boot wearing, rope throwing core customers. the ranching industry, just when it s just gotten a lot bigger in the past couple years. we ve really listened to a lot of our customers an just kind of take what they think would be best for them. everything from the rope s being really soft to the ropes being a certain length that they want. we try to just adapt to the latest trends and get a product out there that they can use. and steve says the best way
growing up in idaho, there s always been two constants in steve s life. horses and business. i always tell people it s a hobby gone bad. when he wasn t working at his father s farm supply and fertilizer business, chances are you could find him at a local rodeo. it was at one of those events that steve got his inspiration to start his own rope-making company, cowboy cordage. i was actually in a college rodeo and there was a horse for sale. so i went down and i was looking at the horse. he said, you know, i think i sell this kind of rope that you guys use. i said really? he said yeah. could you show it to me? even though it was typically used for japanese fishing nets, steve knew that the rope would be great for his rodeo needs, with a few adjustments. the problem is we could give them specifications how we wanted it made, but it would either come in maybe too soft or too stiff. you know, not really within our specifications to use. and i thought, man, there s got