Will Phillips: Sandtown Furniture Co.
“My background, I sort of learned everything that I know, through a career at Under Armor. So, I spent a long time working there. And I started Sand Town in 2010. I continued to work at Under Armor. It was my side hustle for eight years until I made that leap that you often talk about and talk to your clients about.
So anyway, I found a partner. I found a wood shop. We designed a collection. We started taking it to the farmer’s market, the big farmer’s market in Baltimore. And we left it really rustic. We wanted it to be this story of Baltimore, and we wanted you to be able to look at the piece and understand that this was salvage material.”
– Will Phillips
Welcome to a brand-new episode of the Woodpreneur Podcast. Today, your host Steve Larosiliere is joined by Will Phillips from Sandtown Furniture Company.
Will acquired all of his knowledge while working with Under Armour. He stayed there for a while until starting Sand Town in 2010. Before making the leap we frequently discuss with our clients, he worked at Under Armour for eight years as a side gig.
He discovered a wood shop and a partner. They designed a collection. They began bringing it to Baltimore’s large farmer’s market while yet keeping it in its natural state. They wanted it to tell the tale of Baltimore and to be apparent to the customers that it was salvaged material when they looked at it.
In this episode, Will discusses his customer demographic, how selling at Baltimore’s market became a thing and the huge AHA moment that led him to resign from Under Armour and concentrate on his company.
Listen now and get the whole story!
“You got to tap expertise outside of your own world, you can’t just let it rattle around your own brain.
And, so we actually bringing on an independent rep group who’s going to sell for us in our territory. And at first, I do sales, and I come at that with zero angst about, whether they will be as good. Like will they do it as I do it?”
– Will Phillips
How Can You Encourage Teamwork in The Workplace?
Working together as a diverse team almost always yields novel, original ideas. And in the cutthroat corporate landscape of today, such fresh ideas are priceless.
A team’s diversity in age, background, skill set, and experience means each member has a unique perspective just waiting to be heard. New ideas and viewpoints will flow when you establish a safe environment where people can collaborate as a team without worrying about criticism.
Steve believes we need a team to build anything; we can’t do it alone. According to him, it’s self-centered to operate a small business by yourself and is risky because you can’t take time off if you get hurt. If you don’t work, you don’t get paid.
“There’s another thing that I want to talk about is you can’t build anything alone; you need a team. And I’m just going to say it, I think I posted it on Instagram the other day.
It’s selfish to stay small. It’s selfish to create a small business where you’re the only person. It’s also dangerous too because if you get hurt, you can’t take a vacation. If you stop working, you don’t make any money.”
– Steve Larosiliere
Want to get in touch with Will Phillips?
Contact him through:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandtownfurnitureco/?hl=en
Website: https://www.sandtown.com/