Let's Ride w/ Paul Estrada
Who else is trying to figure $hit out?
Welcome to Lets Ride w/ Paul Estrada – the podcast where a dad tackles the big questions of life, career, and everything in between, by talking to interesting people that have the answers!
When I turned 18, I lost sleep at night with questions that Google was not yet sophisticated enough to answer: What career should I pursue? How can I be more than just average? And how do successful people get to where they are (was there a secret handbook I didn't know about)? After 22 years of pondering these existential dilemmas, I’ve finally pieced together some answers – An answer that is sufficient for now, but one always in need of refinement.
Join me each week as my 6 ½ year old son, Adrian, throws out a thought-provoking question or idea, and I invite a guest to help me sufficiently respond to him. From learning about money and investing, to finding a passion in life, and exploring careers that can be meaningful for you, we cover it all with a dose of humor and some soundbites of wisdom.
So, if you’re a parent or a young adult navigating these tricky waters, or if you want confirmation that other people are sometimes just as lost as you, you’ve come to the right place.
Let's Ride w/ Paul Estrada
Sales Entrepreneur: Building, Losing, And Choosing Contentment
What does it really take to walk away from a cushy six-figure job, sell your house, and bet on yourself? Marty joins me to share the unfiltered story of building a product company from scratch, finding his edge in trust-based sales, and staying centered when COVID and tariffs punched a hole in the balance sheet. He’s equal parts sharp operator and laid-back realist—someone who can talk Walmart buyers one day and laugh off stress the next.
We start with responsibility learned at home and follow the thread into a career wake-up at thirty, when drifting turned into discovery. Marty realized sales was his natural lane—not by chasing commissions, but by building rapport, reading the room, and listening before pitching. He breaks down exactly how to earn trust, design win–win terms, and avoid the rookie mistake of giving away the house. Then we dive into product: how reviews, store visits, and packaging tweaks transform shelf conversion, why “great” beats “different,” and how to iterate faster than copycats. A single packaging change—making the product visible—flipped a laggard into a leader.
Marty explains the mechanics of tariffs in plain English: a 30 percent hit due immediately at the port, while receivables lag for months. That mismatch crushes cash flow and forces hard choices on pricing. He survived by saving during strong years and choosing clarity over wishful thinking. There’s also a moment of grace: head down, doubting the plan, a $190,000 purchase order lands by fax and resets the trajectory. Through it all, he keeps returning to the point—money buys comfort, not contentment; the prize is freedom, not flash.
If you’re an entrepreneur, seller, or builder chasing product-market fit, this is a masterclass in resilience, customer insight, and cash discipline. Hit play, subscribe, and share this with a friend who needs a nudge. And if the story resonated, leave a quick review—your words help more people find the show.
You have to have a lot of responsibility when you're the oldest kid in the family.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Why do you think so?
SPEAKER_00:Because I have a little sister and brother and I have to help them both. And one time I was in the car with my brother. I was sitting in the middle and Camila's crying and I had to help Damon with something. So I held Camila's bottle and I was helping my brother at the same time.
SPEAKER_02:Is that crazy or what? That's called multitasking. Have you ever heard that word before?
SPEAKER_00:No. But I I I know how to do that because I've had a brother for five years and and like I know what he likes and not likes.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. But so now that you have a brother and a sister, sometimes we ask you to help feed your sister and you do that, and then sometimes you say, like you ask us to get you water, and we're like, hey, get your own water. You're like, okay. So you're kind of learning how to, I don't know, be a bigger kid, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:I think you are.
SPEAKER_00:It's like when Damon has questions, I usually know the answer.
SPEAKER_02:You do. And you've been very helpful. When I went upstairs today to check on you guys because it was a little quiet, I went upstairs and you were literally helping your brother learn how to read.
SPEAKER_00:I know.
SPEAKER_02:That was amazing. What made you want to help him do that? Did he ask you or did you just say you would help him?
SPEAKER_00:No, so I was like, so we were basically playing, and then we went, and then I asked him, which ball books have you not read yet? And he tossed me all them he hasn't read, and we're like, and I'm like, okay, we'll try to read these. And he actually did really well.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. Were you getting frustrated because he was like taking a long time to to read the words, or like, are you could you be patient with them or what?
SPEAKER_00:I was a little frustrated, like just a tiny bit, like mentally, but like the rest, like outside and inside, I was patient.
SPEAKER_02:I think he did a great job. And you guys read like three books together or even more.
SPEAKER_00:We read like two or three.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, you guys did really great. Hi, let's ride listeners. It's your friend Paul Estrada. If you've gotten any value out of any of the episodes, I'm here to ask you to pause this episode and take a moment to subscribe to the show wherever you're listening to this podcast. If you're a real go-getter, please take a moment to leave a review of the podcast. I'd be indebted to you forever. Thank you for supporting and listening to the show and for going on this journey with us. Pause, subscribe, and let's ride. Our guest today is one of those few times that you meet someone who seems to have life completely figured out. Someone who's built a successful business, faced down the toughest setbacks, and somehow still manages to laugh through it all. Our guest has lived the highs and lows of entrepreneurship from selling his house to starting a business, struggling to gain a foothold to thriving, to near collapse, and back again. But when most would have folded, our guest doubled down. His faith, grit, and sense of humor pulled him through. He's the kind of guy who can question if he made the right choice leaving his six-figure job in the morning to closing a$190,000 deal in the afternoon. He believes in creating things that last products, relationships, memories, and he's proof that success isn't about money or titles, it's about freedom. We talk about everything from discovering your natural talents, building trust and sales, the emotional toll of risk taking, and what it really means to live with contentment. Our guest today is Marty Estrada. Here comes it's just, but no, I think well, actually, this conversation is perfect, right? Which is you're a very successful business person, but you're also somebody that can balance just having a good time and relaxing, not letting the the stresses of owning a business or just life in general get to you. That's probably like the one thing I've noticed most. And like right now, you're already cracking up about something, right? So I think that's my point, right? But like I don't where do you think that that's something that I feel like I've struggled? I take things very seriously. My my grandma always used to say, like, Paul, like calm down, you're gonna have an aneurysm if you don't relax. Um you gotta be so I I feel like I'm very different than you in that way. And so I've always admired that quality about you. I'm just curious, where do you feel like that comes from? Is that like a really deliberate effort on your part in the way you try to live your life?
SPEAKER_04:No, I mean, well, if I'm be honest, it's faith. I mean, you know, knowing that you're not in control of everything, you're not, you know. I mean, and experience. I mean, that I've gone through, you know, the business has really put me through a lot. It really hasn't. But uh, if it was for my faith, I mean I I would have lost it. I really would have. I mean, it's been that tough. You know, I don't cry too much about it, I don't like to complain. But um and experiences, you know, you go through experience and it does, it toughens you up just to take things, you know. I'm at a point in my life where I just don't take anything for granted anymore. I just don't, you know, I'm just hey, I'm I got air in my lungs, I'm happy about that, you know. I don't take, I mean, I'm a very blessed person. When COVID happened, that was a big, oh my god, wake-up call. I mean, we I was at the top. We were probably doing, and it's you know, we're a small business, we're not a big company. Uh, but at the time, you were doing about six million in sales, which is in my industry, that's really good. You're you're a player in that industry. And I was at a point in my life where I was like, oh man, I got a made, I could just coast and I got it made, man. You know, whenever I want to tap out and sell, I could oh, and then COVID came. Talking about your life getting turned around, thinking you got it made, to oh my god, are we gonna make it through this? Are we gonna survive? I mean, that was just uh and that was probably the biggest challenge of going through. I mean, there are other ones, you know, lawsuits, but compared to that, that was really and that just really nailed into my mind. All this stuff is temporary, man. It could be gone like that. So don't take it to heart, don't let it consume you, you know, just enjoy every day. And your auntie Liz, she is the best, so she teaches me a lot.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, you know, she's kind of always she's always had that personality. Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_04:Don't worry about the future. She really lives that real I wish I could.
SPEAKER_02:And have you did you uh I mean you guys have been married for how like 30 for how long?
SPEAKER_04:36 years.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, so you've been married for so did you adopt her way of living, like off the bat?
SPEAKER_04:Has it taken you time to um adopt that or situated like you know, because well it is different, too. You know, you're the financial provider for your family, so you got a lot of responsibility, so it is different, you know. I mean, she's not gonna and she'll say to me, Well, I just don't get you know, I really don't get what you go through. I go, No, you do she goes, Well, you don't say much. No, it's not your problem, it's my problem. You know, I'm glad that you're here to hear, but I don't want, you know, put that on you all the time. And but she can see it in me sometimes, you know. You can't hide it. But uh the bottom of the line is my faith. You know, I know that God's in control. And it, you know, people it's just a thing, you know it's real to me. It's real. I mean, I've counted things that would blow your mind where I knew he interceded. But um, you know, life experiences that that's always that always gives you perspective when you go through hard financial uh when you go through a hard um yeah, financial times too, um, and you go through trials. That's that's what builds your character.
SPEAKER_02:And how old were you re when you started to come to these realizations and start shifting the way that you live?
SPEAKER_04:When well, to come to that realization uh was when COVID happened. What was that? Six years ago. Okay, you know, where it really So this is kind of fairly recent then way of thinking. Yeah, no, you keep learning, man. I mean, people think you're you get all wise. No, I'm I'm still dumb in a lot of areas.
SPEAKER_02:But uh, you know, well, and so just for perspective, what was life like before you came to those realizations?
SPEAKER_04:So when you like and let's do it in the perspective of I mean, you know, I mean I had uh I went through a hard time, but we had some lawsuits that were ridiculous, but um that was nothing compared to I was able to handle that easy.
SPEAKER_02:I mean it was trustful too, but um so I mean let's try to get it in the prospect of just your business career. So I'll just take a step back here for a minute and just think about what I know about you, right? Like, and and this is just from your mouth, right? So I'm gonna try to remember, but like you've always just said, like, hey, I was I was never really a good student. I know you really pride yourself on your jump shot. Four years at ELAP.
SPEAKER_06:Go on ELAP.
SPEAKER_02:And your uh uh just your athletic abilities, you know, you you always like to comment on on that. Uh you're just your athleticism. So like I just know you to be somebody that growing up and through high school and and even into college was just somebody that was athletic, maybe not too concerned academically with school and things like that. Nope. Um and so when did you kind of realize like, okay, like this is fun and all, and I'm having a great time, but I gotta start figuring out what I'm gonna do for work and when you hit your 30s, right? 30s, oh man. I was just so okay. So you were just cruising through the 20s, too.
SPEAKER_04:Oh, let me I'm so glad you asked. Yes, uh uh my 20s were just fun. I mean, I was having a blast, you know, just enjoying life. I didn't care about being broke, I wasn't going anywhere, didn't have any. But then I got married, uh, and when you hit when I hit 30, that I actually wasn't depressed, got depressed in my 30 when I turned 30. This took me a party. I was like, I don't want to party, I'm depressed, you know, because I wasn't going anywhere, had no vision, nothing. And I knew I go, I'm married. You know, if I want uh children in the future, I I gotta start doing something. And it just hit me. And that's when I started, uh, you know, usually people they start a lot younger. Um, but that's when I started kind of say searching, you know. I'm saying what am I doing?
SPEAKER_02:Was the literally that your 30th birthday was like the the catalyst for that, or was it a buildup to that?
SPEAKER_04:30 was a no, it was the big I mean I was wondering, you know, what do I want to do? Because I was just I was bouncing from job to dude. You could ask answer this how many jobs. But um, yeah, that was it. 30. When I said, okay, I gotta get it good together, I can't keep goofing around anymore. And that's when my search started.
SPEAKER_02:I feel like a lot of people like so you're not alone in that, right? A lot of people uh make it to 30 and just are maybe feeling a little bit lost. And almost I notice in some people that it just becomes overwhelming. Like the thought of just like I'm falling behind in life, my peers are doing this, they're starting families, they're blah, blah, blah. That they could almost like the weight and the pressure of that is so much so that it almost leads to no action at all. Like, I just I feel so overwhelmed by this that I can't even move forward. So really, how do you even get started? So okay, so you come to this realization, you're like, okay, I gotta start doing something here. But what's step one? Like, how do you like, okay, how am I even gonna get started in this?
SPEAKER_04:Well, I just started, I didn't know my abilities. I real, I mean, I didn't really have a good grapes as far as you know, work. I knew I was a good athlete and all that, but I blew that too. I totally wasted that opportunity. But um, as far as work, I didn't I I try to be a draftsman and aren't. But you know, when you get fired three times, you know, life, okay, maybe I'm not a good draftsman. I was like, okay, I need to do something else. I go there's something else. And so I try to find out. Now, as you know, your grandpa was a salesman, okay? And a really good one. I've heard him sell, you know, but you know, there are other things that it takes to be successful. And so I remember getting a job, part-time job in mortgage industry. And man, I took off. I go, oh, you know what? I'm a salesman. That's when I found out where my where I was gonna excel. What what made you realize that though? Because I was selling left and right. I could talk to people, you know, I had the personality, I I could talk over the phone and you know, I could build people's trust so because I have that ability to do it. And I was like, oh, okay, well, here's where I go. Sales. I need to be in sales. And I I once I figured that out, then I started growing really growing, you know, into uh personal leading.
SPEAKER_02:What made you realize that? Like you talked about building trust, about building relationships, but like what's the first time?
SPEAKER_04:I had I would close deals and uh you know, I'd get deals left and right.
SPEAKER_02:And okay, so it was more financial. You just you were starting to make money. Yeah, and I enjoyed it.
SPEAKER_04:Okay, I really I felt that was my natural, you know, my natural talent, my natural God-given ability was I excelled in sales and talking to people and you know, being persistent persistent and all that stuff, you know, all the qualities that make a good salesman.
SPEAKER_02:Okay. So that's an important thing, right? It's just like your perception, you're you're being self-aware, and you're saying you've you came to this realization like, okay, I f I found a skill. Now I need to double down or triple down or quadruple down on this. So now that you've got this skill in hand, and you're like, okay, I could do something with this, then how do you start kind of navigating where you go next?
SPEAKER_04:Uh what I started was uh I started getting sales jobs, and uh um, and it was it was a kind of rough ride because finding the right niche for me. Like I tried, I was selling uh um, I was in the it's funny talking about how you trade in the market, I was doing currencies, foreign currencies. You know, talk about it was great training, though, man. I'm telling you, because you had to close due to you've never met in your life and open up for$7,000. They don't even know you. And I did it. I I would get, you know, I'd get guys, I'd close them for$7,000, but I knew it wasn't for me because the guy, the owner, if he goes, Oh yeah, they're gonna make a lot of money. So I I believe them. Okay, now my my clients are gonna make money and I'm gonna be able to build it off. So I gotta do is build a client book. No, they kept losing. They kept losing up like, I don't want to do that. I don't want to get people in, I don't care how much money they have, I don't want to be a vessel where they lose money. Forget it, you know. So I'd I gotta get out of there. It wasn't for me, you know.
SPEAKER_02:And uh I I think for a lot of people, the idea of selling scares us. And and actually, um, Christina told me recently, I was like, I think you could be a salesman. Like, I don't know, I don't know if I could do that. But yeah, I know you to be a really good salesman. And so what like what do you think? Just like specific details, like what goes into building trust with somebody and eventually landing a sale? Like, what are they?
SPEAKER_04:Well, well, first of all, I think a lot of it is it's gotta be natural. I I really believe it's something that not everybody's built to be a fact, very few are, okay? You just gotta have a build. I I think you might have it, you know. But uh yeah, but um you're doing this show, okay? What does that tell you? You got you you've got a great personality and you're a fun guy. And trust me, people think it's about pounding and no man, that's not what sale is about. It's about let me tell you when I go into a meeting, you think I pull up the products right away? Heck no, I don't do that. I just try to talk and get to know the person. And like me, like crack me. I'm a funny guy, I like to joke around a lot, you know, and it usually goes pretty well. I've had cases where they did it. But building rapport and talking about things and then kind of like the product, it's kind of like the afterthought, you know what I'm saying? But yeah, there's other qualities too, you know. You gotta be highly motivated.
SPEAKER_02:I mean, sales, but before we move on, let's because that I want to really hammer on this because this is really fascinating to me. So, what's interesting about what I do, I'm on the other side, so I'm the the guy on the other side of the table that so you're the sales guy, I'm the procurement guy, I'm the one buying things, right? That's been my experience, my professional experience. And it has like a different level of I feel like there's there's less stress around it, right? I'm the decision maker. What I say goes, yeah. So when I want to spend my you're right, so it's just there's no I could see though, having sat in front of literally hundreds of sales pitches, uh-huh. Sometimes you could see the nervousness, the sweat on people. Like I've just come to really appreciate what they go through, but also get to see the intricacies of what works and what doesn't. And so you hit something on your very first point that I think is really important, and that is like this trust factor. And I'm gonna use the word authenticity. Uh-huh. I think there's people that can come into a room, they can be a good talker. But one of the things as a buyer that I've learned over these years is like I'm sensing, are you just somebody that is trying to um nail a bullet point and you're trying to sell something? Are what you're selling, do you believe in it? Whether it's a service or a product, like do you actually believe in it? Or are you trying to make a commander? You trying to make a commission sale. Yeah, right. Like, I feel like I can kind of come to that realization. So yeah, if you could just speak a little bit more to just the rapport building, like how do you come across as authentic is that a well trait?
SPEAKER_04:Number one, that's like I just told you that my experience selling the fork, I didn't believe in the product and I couldn't sell it. So, number one, you gotta believe in it, okay? And number two, you know, you gotta have confidence. You know, if you're not confident, you're they're gonna people are gonna sense it. They're gonna sense it. Not stupid, you know. I'm sure you can sense it, and you gotta believe in the product. And uh, but like I said, always report building. Uh, you gotta be able to have the instincts. Well, what kind of person you're dealing with? Because sometimes, I mean, I've been to meeting, I went to I remember going to a Walmart meeting. Oh my god. Okay, let me tell you these some of these these buyers, they got egos the size of Oh, I I know. You know what I'm saying? I'm aware.
SPEAKER_03:We'll get your ego.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. But um, I remember going into uh, and this lady was a no nonsense, and she literally goes, We getting the meaning we sit down, she literally goes, Okay, don't give me anything. I don't want to see, here's what I want. If I don't want to hear, if you don't give this to me, meeting's over. I mean, like that, okay. Right. Well, she knows she's in charge of millions of dollars of purchasing power. And so obviously, that wasn't the person I was going, hey, how are you doing expecting jokes? No, yeah, you know, it's just common sense. You just gotta read the room, read the person, and you gotta read that's the first thing is you read the person and see what you what kind of personality you're dealing with, you know. And some guys will joke, and some guys that's all they want to do is joke and they don't want to get down to business, right? Well, they're kind of my favorite guys, but anyway, yeah, so it's just a matter of you know, knowing, uh having the confidence, and you gotta believe in your product. You know, I would never sell anything I don't believe. Forget it, I want to do it. Um, and then um having the confidence and building a rapport and reading your customer and also being a great listener. People got guys think, oh, just be pushy a sec, pound them into no, listen, ask questions. Okay, how can I help you? Because what you want to do is you don't want to put yourself in a position, you want to put yourself in a position where it's a win-win situation for both people, okay? And you need to make the buyer go, hey, you know what? Yeah, you know, you help us, but we're also gonna help you. How well we got better product and you're competitive. What they're not you need better terms, payment terms. Okay, I can help you on that. Now, yeah, what are we gonna get for that? You know, see too many, too many salesmen make a mistake giving away the house, you know. No, yeah, make it a win-win situation. Well, okay, we'll give me this. Here's what I need. You get it?
SPEAKER_02:Let's talk about the so you mentioned another important part, and that's I'm gonna say active listening. It's interesting that you say that because I feel like some people come in and they've got like a power, they got this very polished presentation, right? They got a PowerPoint, they put it up on the screen, and they kind of just start talking through their bullet points. And literally, I could go 10 or 15 minutes of them just talking. I'm like, dude, come up for air, take a breath or something, you know? Right. And um, and but I noticed that. And the thing is, they're not asking, like, what are your how do I mold this presentation? I know I have a standard format, but how do I mold this to fit this specific person that I'm sitting in front of so that I can demonstrate that I understand their pain points and how I can solve those specifically and not put you into this cookie cutter mold of this is what you know on my head, and and that's what comes out to asking questions and listening.
SPEAKER_04:That's that's probably more of creating the sale than it is pounding the guy and doing the whole present and listen to what they need because how you can adjust their needs, how you gonna sell them if you can't fit a need or make their life better or easier. You you've gotta have something, you know. So, um, but yeah, you hit the nail on the head. That's uh, you know, gotta yeah.
SPEAKER_02:As far as you know, just more on the career side of things, it's I think what I know about they're typically some of the highest paid, if not the highest paid people at organizations. I know you're you're an entrepreneur, but even if you're not, if you work for a corporation, they're the highest paid people for a reason. It's not an easy thing to do, right? And I and I totally understand that part. I will say though, like you're kind of at an advantage if you're a salesperson, because who knows I don't know what the percentages are as far as what percentage of people are actually could actually be good at sales. I think the numbers actually probably not that big. I'm gonna say if I had to guess, maybe 10%, maybe less of working people actually have the skills and personalities to do something like that. I don't know if that's correct or not, but that's what it feels like to me. Uh-huh. But you've always just kind of had this knack for for making money too. And I don't know if that's just because, hey, when you're in sales, it's almost like if you're really good at sales, it's almost like a foregone conclusion. You're gonna make a pretty good amount of money. Or no, now there's this other quality of mine where it's just like, hey, I've got a knack for knowing where the opportunity is and going and get it.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, well, sales, I like to tell people sales is the best paying, hardest working uh profession. There's it's the easiest, non-paying job you can have. It depends on your abilities, it depends how what you put in. That's what I love about sales. It depends, you know, uh, and I still that's one of the things I love to do, even though I own a business. I still love to get out there for. What I always liked about sales is you get out what you put into it. That's what I've always loved about, as opposed to just getting a salary job, you're sitting down and you know, and and collecting your hourly pay, and you know, just and that didn't really appeal to me. So I wanted something where I could build on and grow and you know, and uh see what that could lead to.
SPEAKER_02:And so you realize that you got this knack for sales, and then eventually you venture off into the world of entrepreneurship, which is a whole nother uh can of worms, right? So I know part of that I think relied on you maybe having a partner that kind of helped with some funding. So if we could just kind of stalk talk through like the infancy stages.
SPEAKER_04:Uh oh, okay, man. It was uh it was tough. Starting a business. I started without a part first. I started, I mean, I liquidated, I sold my house, liquidated my stocks. I mean, pretty crazy what I did when I go back and think about it.
SPEAKER_02:But okay, before you move on, hold on. You can't drop a bomb like that and then just keep pooping on. Yeah. Oh, you didn't know that? Like, no, no, no. So what comes in your head, like where you wake up one day and say, Okay, well, you're gonna sell my house, I'm gonna liquidate everything.
SPEAKER_04:It's too long, but I'll I'll give you the highlight points. But I was working for the biggest first aid manifest, well, one of the biggest in in a walnut. And I, you know, I've been successful. I was I was the main guy going to Walmart, Costco, so I'm presenting all those guys, and uh, you know, I was making a great living. And uh, but I knew I go, Man, I could do better because I was creating products for this guy, which is a billy I didn't know I had. I started creating products, well, you know, I had a good eye for it, you know, and I started building his business. That wasn't my job. My job was just to sell. What am I doing? And I started thinking, I can do this. Why am I looking for this guy? Give him my ideas, you know.
SPEAKER_06:All right.
SPEAKER_04:And it there just became a light, and I just started feeling after a couple more years, where I started feeling like I go, I am I doing what I'm capable of doing by being, you know, thinking I was doing which I was doing great there, but is that the best I could do? I go, no, no. I had rather feel, I go, I could do better. I could do what this guy's doing, and you know, why am I building it for this guy? You know, and I pretty much took the lit one, and it's funny. It's uh I got to a big fight with the owner. All right, okay, do you remember what it was about? I quit that job just right there, making six back then, six figures was pretty good these days. Yeah, yeah. But I had a cushy job and I and I come home. And let me tell you something. All you entrepreneurs listening, your partner, who you marry, is gonna be stone point. Because most women, I came home, I told this, Angela's, honey, I quit my job. Most of them would freak out and say, No, you go back and you get your job, and you you're just not Liz.
SPEAKER_03:Angela, she says, Oh, honey, you've been wanting that because you can be a big hit, go for it now. You know, now you could do it. I'm like, okay.
SPEAKER_04:So I knew that's kind of what I happened. I ended up selling my house, and this is right before the market. I just bought this big home over on Corona and been in about a year and a half. And then this is about right before the market crashed in 2008. You know, I don't know if you remember that.
SPEAKER_02:Yep, I remember that.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, it was weird. I told Liz, man. Now our home was going up in value like insane. 10,000 a month. It was I go, this isn't something wrong. This isn't right. And I and I just started, I go, Liz, I go, honey, I go, we better sell this house. I'm sent in. I didn't know what Wall Street it was. I didn't know what was going on, what he was gonna buy. I'm listening. I go, I think we better sell this house and cash out. And because when I quit my job, I didn't have that much. I had like 45 grand, say, which in my interest, that's nothing, okay? Right. I go, we're gonna need some money to build this, you know, to keep this business going. So we did, we sold it. And uh, you know, and not a couple months later, the market started crashing. Yeah. Oh, and I sold whatever. I sold my 401k, liquidated everything. And so, I mean, thank God I did that. Because if I did it, oh my god, who knows?
SPEAKER_02:But um so you did that and now you're sitting on a pile of cash. Did you give yourself uh a runway of just, hey, I've got to make this work? Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_04:In three months, like what was that like? Let's use well. What are you gonna do? What's your plan B? Do you have plan B if this doesn't work? I said, No, I no plan B. This has to work. My mentality isn't to have a backup plan. My mentality is I'm gonna make this work, I'm gonna do whatever it takes to make this work. And you have to do that. I mean, when you're starting a little business, you know, you're you're you're wearing all the hats, you're doing everything, okay? Yeah, I didn't have any money to pay employees or nothing like that. You just can't have that mentality. And I tell people, you know, be careful what you wish for. You really want this. You better want it bad, you better be relentless, and you better be determined. And you number and you also take, don't be a wishful thinker. Do you have what it takes to do it? Not most people don't. You know, they make the mistake thinking they could, but they don't. And that was it. So that's how it all started.
SPEAKER_02:What were some moments where, or maybe a moment? I know you're a very confident person, like you go into it with a ton of confidence, but just describe maybe one or two moments where you maybe question that, where you're like, Oh boy.
SPEAKER_04:Here's a good story, okay? I was probably uh in the meantime, I had taken on a partner about a year after that. And about two years into it, it just wasn't going good. I'll never forget the day, and I hope I don't get choked up here where it wasn't going good. And I just started questioning myself. I said, You idiot, telling myself, who do you think you are? You had it made. Why did you think you could do this? Because things weren't going good. We weren't uh and I remember sitting in my office, I was down. I mean, I was pretty despondent at that point because things were happening. And I was like, literally had my head down on the desk like that. And I'm just like, I'm like, God, I'm like, you know, if I if I made the wrong move, should give me a sign. But if you want me to keep doing this, I need to see something. I'm not kidding you, Paul. This is a true story. Right when I said it, my fax goes off. Start stringing like, what is it? What kind of bad news is this gonna be now, right? I get a purchase order from a company called Minar. So I don't know if you heard of them. Oh, yeah. I get a hundred and ninety thousand dollar purchase order. And I'm telling you, yeah, oh God, talking about uh weight off my shoulders and all the doubt that I had, and I was starting thinking, where am I gonna get a job? I mean, really, it was that bad.
SPEAKER_06:Yeah.
SPEAKER_04:And that just boom, it just ignited me against what I needed at that moment.
SPEAKER_03:And I called my man, nigga, we got a hundred ninety thousand dollar purchase order from an art, you know.
SPEAKER_04:And so it was awesome, man. Talking about, yeah, I'll never forget that day. Because that was the turning point to go on.
SPEAKER_02:I'm sure doubt crept in again later, but was it ever to that degree again? Or was like, no, okay, I've got this. No, no, no, not at all.
SPEAKER_04:That was it. That's when after that I was on. I was okay, I'm in this dude. I'm I'm out I was ready, but man, it was tough at the time. And I needed that. No, after that, it was uh no doubt myself. I mean, there were outside influences doubting where we were doing business and things like that, you know. But right, no, that that was it. And then I knew I okay, this is it, I'm in this for forever.
SPEAKER_02:So you get this purchase order, things start going well. And now talk to me about like the very peak, uh, like where you just have you were mentioning a little bit, yeah.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, right right before COVID, man. We were sending about six million in sales and continually growing, and we had built racket care, you know, and the first state industry. It's a known name, it's a pretty known name. Ever ready, not so much, but um uh but yeah, we started building names, people started coming. We we had Costco on our, we had Home Depot, you know, people started listening and start nailing those kind of accounts. It was going great. It was going great. Then uh COVID came and man, just beat the you know, our factory, our main factory that we buy from was in Wuhan, where it all starved. Jeez. So you could have been in the workplace, and I would talk to my supplier, they locked them down in their apartments for like three months. Right. We couldn't get product for probably three months, and it just did damage, big damage to the business. And I thought we were gonna make it for a while. I'm like, oh well, you know, so uh, but yeah, that was that was it.
SPEAKER_02:I there's one more thing I wanted to go back and touch on. You you were talking about, so we talked a lot about sales. What we what you were starting to mention, I want to just talk about a little bit more, that's product development. And I want to talk about in the sense that I think a lot of entrepreneurs today, when they think about things, I want to say most of them think about creating a service-based business. And service-based businesses are are great, they're typically constricted by time, right? Like it requires an amount of time and that your time is finite. Yes, you can hire people, but their time is finite. And one thing I've always been intrigued about um with a product-based business is you can scale much, much larger um when you get your manufacturing down and all that sort of thing. But it seems like that's an even harder business to create. And you and I have had this conversation before where you're like, hey, Paul, just go create you know some product. And I'm like, Well, look, I'm not a con I feel like I'm not a consumer. I've owned this t-shirt that I've been wearing for four years. I don't go through Costco, I don't go through Macy's, I'm not like in tune with what's going on in terms of products. And you make it sound so easy. You're just like, well, I just go on Amazon and I look at first aid kits and I read the comments. And so I don't know. If you could just talk a little bit to those that are contemplating doing something like this, I feel like a lot of people don't do product businesses for this reason.
SPEAKER_04:Well, yeah, but it it's funny because I get I've guys approach me for uh they want me to invest in their business. And I, you know, I always take a look at it because if I see something great, I'd say that's probably the most important thing when you start your product has to be good. I mean, not don't just think, well, it's a little no, make it good. If you can't do it, because if you have a great product, people are gonna want it. Okay, I'm because like on Amazon, you this the competition's intense. I mean, you you go on, you'll see. I don't know how many kits are on there, but it's intense. And you know, well, how do you how are you able to build a well you gotta have you do have to have a good eye for product? You have to have to good investing. I get involved in the graphics, I get involved in the design of the product. Um, not get involved, I create. I'm the guy who does it, and you know, um, and I love doing it. That's the thing is I love to create, but you also gotta you you gotta do your market research and you gotta know who your market is, you know. Okay, the thing about the business I'm in, there's a lot of other people doing stuff. And you know, you get copied. I've been copied probably on three products already. You know, they've been really good in people copying. So you always open now. If you got a patent, oh my god. You know, I'm working on two designs I'm gonna try to pen. And that's just gonna set, if I'm able to get it, it's gonna set it to another chat sphere. And that that's the biggest thing is you gotta come up with a good product.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. So let me ask you this. So for those that can't, like me, right? I feel like I've got writer's block. I just can't, right? What advice do you have for people that that like really want to do something like that, but uh are like me, right? They're just like, I can't, I don't know how to like where can people get inspiration for things? Like, how can they go about just maybe training their brain to be on the lookout like throughout their lives?
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, the first I would say, well, what do you personally what do you love to do? You know, what what things do you like that uh um appeal to you? I would start with that. And if take a look at what's out there now, if you can make it better, I always say, well, you know, if it's not packed, you can just see finding ways to package things different, make it better. The graphics, I mean, let me tell you, man. One thing I learned when I used to sell 99 before they went out of business in 99 only. I used to work with this buyer, uh, and she gave me, she was super sharp. The best buyer, sharp her name was Susan Ford, real nice lady. Well, she was tough too. So she would tell me, she goes, she would explain to me, look, well, this is how you know this can work better. If you make these changes on the packaging, it'll make a huge difference. And she was right, I would do certain things like and it's you know, I learned to experience too, not just I'm such a brilliant guy, that's not it, right? But listening to other people, giving me tips and listening to the recommendations. Yeah, I mean, definitely um and I I remember, man, the history is a great little example. I was selling uh um two bone two elastic bandages in a box, okay? Uh-huh. And she told me, Yeah, your competitors only selling the one, but they're still out selling it. I go, How can that be? I'm like, so I was like, I gotta find out why why that is. So I went into a store and I just sat there looking, and this guy comes up looking at, you know, again, this is no accident, man. This is from a and he bought my bandage, my was an excess other one that had one. And I asked him, I go, I went, sir, why did you choose that? Instead, this has two. Why did you choose that one? I need it, idiot or what? Yeah, he goes, Well, he goes, I just saw that the one I bought, it was just packaged with the bandage showing in uh um cellophane wrap where you could just see what it was what it was, and in my box, you couldn't really tell. And I was like, Oh, that's why, you know, yeah. So I changed the packaging to show where you could see the two bandages, and man, it took off. I killed everybody. I killed everybody. So that wasn't me, it's me going out and doing the work to you know where it bothers you are why why I'm not doing better. And I found out, you know, so they're there, you just gotta go search and look for the reasons.
SPEAKER_02:So there was um, I had a marketing professor that uh marketing class, and it's something that's always stuck with me, even uh all these years later, was that if you're gonna build a service or product, you either have to be the first one to do it, you have to be the best one to do it, or it has to be different enough for people to want it.
SPEAKER_04:Well, your professor is very right.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. So when you think about that, which one it sounds like you kind of maybe lean on best or different? What would you say?
SPEAKER_04:Both, both. I try to be better in packaging, I try to be better in product. Well, definitely number one is a product because you know, one thing I love about Amazon is that you get people's feedback, they'll tell you what they like about the product and and your sales, if it's a good product, they're gonna keep going up and up and up. And if they're bad, and if your reviews are bad, you know, but you get feedback on what people like and so on, and kind of helps you develop. You know, develop your it's always it's also a process to to keep making it better in a lot of cases, you know. Right. Um, so when I see when I see feedback, okay, I can do that. Let's make it better. You know, so it's not all I'm so brilliant. No, I I I do the re I do the work and I look and I you know I spend the time knowing my customer.
SPEAKER_02:That's it. That's the key. Do the work.
SPEAKER_04:Do the work. Uh you know, don't get lazy because when you start getting lazy, that's your that's your gallon.
SPEAKER_02:So you mentioned it earlier, and I want to now go touch on that. And that was you, you talked about the coronavirus, you talked about the factory where you were sourcing products being in Wuhan. So you, you know, you source your product from China, and obviously everybody knows what's been happening with regards to tariffs lately. I know you've had a lot, it's impacted your business in some big ways. And so we don't, you know, want to get like you know political, but I do want people to understand. I think we we all read the headlines, we kind of get a sense of what's happening, and different people spin it different ways. But as a business owner who's being really impacted by this, like how can you help just us that aren't that close to it understand what's really happening?
SPEAKER_04:I'm amazed at how people still don't realize how this works. I'll explain how to okay. Let's say what happens is you know, no matter what news made of China, China isn't paying for it. Okay, neither is all these companies. Tariffs, how it works, here's how exactly you're bringing a product. Let's say you bring a container for$100,000, okay? Well, now, right now the tariffs are 30%. So now that$100 uh thousand dollars is now cost you$130, uh,000. So you're paying another$30,000 on top of that. The product, okay. So it adds to the cost of the product now.
SPEAKER_02:Sorry, I want to move slowly because I want to make sure I understand this. So your supplier sends you an invoice for$100,000, which is what you had agreed upon, right? Right. Who then tax on this$30,000 additional Department of Homeland Security. The R2. So your paperwork for that purchase somehow funnels through the government. They go, oh, I got a hundred thousand dollar container here. They have some automated system that tax on 30 grand, right? And then that's what that's the paper you get.
SPEAKER_04:And you got to pay it right away. People don't understand the burden this puts on small or even big business. But uh, you know, I mean, for the first time in my business, I lost money last month, you know, because I paid a lot of money in tariffs. Now, what's gonna happen? I'm telling people, you know, a lot of companies, and I I was eating the tariffs for a while because we didn't know well, is it gonna be 30%? Is it gonna be fit? There's a lot of instability, which business hates instability. You want to know because you don't know how to price your customers. But now it's I'm gonna just right now, I'm just figuring it's gonna be 30%. Now I'm waiting for the Supreme Court decision to see what happens. But um, so now I'm starting to raise prices because I'm not gonna I I can't eat all that. It's just too much. And it's cash just out of your account, just like that, man. It's no grace period, no pay in 90 days, pay it right now. And so what's gonna happen? People haven't seen it yet, but companies are not gonna keep in it forever, they're gonna start increasing the prices. And I've I've been talking to uh other business friends of mine that's saying, Yeah, we're just kind of winning to see what happens, but yeah, we're gonna start raising the price. So it hasn't hit yet. It really hasn't. It's gonna take about probably I'm thinking about six months to really feel the effect when people when got when they're starting running out of their old inventory. And uh, and if you didn't have good margins and if you didn't have good cash flow, you're done. Seriously. I mean, if you if you're wearing out thankfully, you know, we did.
SPEAKER_02:So uh let's touch on the cash flow piece for those that aren't super involved. So you just said, right, the container comes in, you have to write that check literally right then and there in order for you to take receipt of that product. Meanwhile, you then have to take your product from the you know the ocean container, you've got to transport it into your warehousing, you've got to put it into inventory, you have to maybe rework it and package it, you have to ship it out to your customers, they have to put it on the shelf, it has to sit there before it gets purchased, and then you have payment terms with your customers, which could be 30, 60, 90, 120 days, whatever it may be. And so basically, what that means is you have to cut the chick today. You may not see that money come back around for three, four, five months.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, you nailed it on it right on the head, man.
SPEAKER_02:You don't sit so for those that aren't like you said, so when we talk about cash flow, that's what we're saying. And for those that aren't sitting on cash like that, right then and there, it's like, okay, well, I just cut this, and I and how am I gonna float$30,000 that I'm not gonna see, right? I can I go get a loan for this? Like, do I go into debt? Like, how do I how do I do this? And I think that's maybe right what a lot of businesses are facing.
SPEAKER_04:It it's a tough thing. I mean, for for small, I mean big businesses, they can they can absorb it more, you know. Obviously that you know, there's kind of more cash, but for smaller businesses, it's tough. I mean, you know, the news they're not reporting it. I mean, it's damaging a lot of small bid. I feel I've seen guys on video, man. I'm not gonna make it because I feel for them, because like, yeah, I mean, it sucks. But um, I understand why it's being done, but uh um uh it it's tough, you know. And thankfully I was uh I was you know I was smart enough to, you know, there's a book and there's a scripture in Proverbs that says, hey, you know, when the going's good, don't spend that money, put it aside for when it goes. Thank God I did that. Yeah, I put it aside, oh no, no, I'm gonna, and it's so funny. After because last year we had a great year. I mean, we were killing it, right? Yeah, and it was funny. I was like, okay, this is too good to be true. What's gonna happen next time? What happens? And so, you know, I think I was smart enough not to go spend it all on the line.
SPEAKER_02:But I just want to like I would again, I want to call this out because it's super important to me. Is if I were in your position, I'd have look, I I'm already getting grades, I'd have way more. You're talking about it and you're la you're laughing about it, right? And it's like, I know you it matters to you, but at the same time, you're just like, well, can I?
SPEAKER_04:Like I said, don't take anything. Hey, it can come again. It's not over. He might come and say, Oh, now we're gonna slap 50%. At that point, I'm probably just gonna say, no, I'm just gonna screw it, liquidate it, go move to a cheap place to live. No, but um, yeah, I just don't take it for granted. I'm just like, okay, what what next? It's like if you build your resistance to these things after you've gone through them a while, and I'm just at the point where, you know, I mean, I'm gonna do the best I can, of course. And I love what I do, that's the thing that kills me. I I still love what I do. I don't want to retire, you know, you know, because I I just love what I'm doing. So, but yeah, you know, I'm at the point where I just I don't take anything for granted. I really don't. I mean, and you can't. You're better off living your life if you if you have that kind of mentality. Obviously, you're gonna do the best that you can with whatever you got, but it's always best to have that mentality.
SPEAKER_02:Well, I think you know, you've built um, and it's interesting, right? A lot of people are counting down the days to retirement, and you're just like, hey, I don't want to retire, I'm having a good time. And I think that that's something that's admirable for people that maybe don't understand, like, there is a world, and by the way, it could happen at a company. You don't entrepreneurship is is great, but you could also find a company that you really enjoy working for where it's just like, yeah, I I really enjoy doing this.
SPEAKER_03:No, sorry.
SPEAKER_02:Uh what's you on your own, man?
SPEAKER_04:Because okay, well, so that's what I love. Yeah, yeah. Go ahead. Yeah, yeah, go ahead. It's not that you love money. I don't. I don't I you know I hang on to it very loosely. But what it does give you, and what only it gives you freedom. And that's what I love the freedom, okay? I like if I don't feel like working, I'm going home. Henry, run the place while I'm gone, you know. That's what I love is the freedom you get, you know, not to have man working for the man, and nothing wrong with that. I mean, you know, if yeah, I probably could have still been working for that owner if he just wasn't so controlling, let me do what I was capable of doing, and not putting a magnifying glass. Dude, I'm like, so now that's what do we next.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, you know. So but uh yeah, so just dick, give people perspective.
SPEAKER_04:You got if you got a good job like you do, I kind of did it crazy way, quitting a job just like that. So I mean, don't do that. You know, your job and then get it going on your side, you know, that kind of thing.
SPEAKER_02:But uh yeah, but no, but you're you're right, something, right? Of just like I said, I just one thing I I can let loose to a degree, but not to the degree you can. You and Auntie Liz, right? Which is like you got your four-wheelers, you got all your toy desert toys, you got guns, you go out and shoot. Like, you're just a big kid. That's what I that's how I mean. Yeah, I love it, man. It's something that I admire, right? But you've been able to base, like you said, you've been able to build a life that allows you to live your life that way.
SPEAKER_04:And that's yeah, and you know, you do it for your, you know, as you know, you're doing raising your family, and you're taking the lead of providing because you want to not that you want to, you know, take care of them, but you want to set them up where you want to set them up to be successful. The rest is up to them. That's kind of like uh, and you want to take care of your family. I don't want my wife stressing about money or nothing like that, you know. And you just it it comes about you want to make build a better life for your children, your wife and your your children, and you want to set them as best as you can in your power that you know, and so that's always the big motivator. That's the number one motivator. Uh, you know, the freedom, you know, it's it's uh another bonus, too. So um, yeah. I'm very content. I'm very balanced where I'm at right now.
SPEAKER_02:I think that's an important that word content. You talked about hey, money's not really the driver. It's uh I that's but that is what you see uh you know online on social media and things like that. It's like that seems like that's kind of the appeal, is the anti-cars, the money likes it.
SPEAKER_04:You know what? Let me tell you one thing about money. I go, now I'm not gonna lie to say it doesn't give you certain comfort. Of course it does. Anyone that says money doesn't buy happiness is a line, okay? Because I know when I go to a a Carnival's game and I got great seeds, I'm happy. Now, what it doesn't bring is contentment and satisfaction. That's the big difference. And and I tell people, don't chase, don't chase it, you know, do what you love and let the results come. But um, I hang on to it loosely because it can be gone and you don't know. It's not it's not an eternal thing. And I tell people, hey, you ever see a hearse behind uh uh you ever see a you all behind a hearse? No, you don't take it with you, so don't make that your your being, you know. It's silly, it's really stupid.
SPEAKER_02:So I thought you were my fun uncle. I didn't realize you were my wise uncle too.
SPEAKER_03:Oh no, I can be an idiot. No, I would have let you down. You know my moments.
SPEAKER_04:No, you you do have to have certain wisdom to run a business and to lead us. It does take wisdom and you know, a little smart. Not that it all comes from me, it all comes from there. Yeah, I mean, just the wiser you are, the better your life's gonna be. I mean, you know, how many people make stupid decisions that just affect their lives?
SPEAKER_02:Oh, all the time.
SPEAKER_04:I know, and believe me, I've done stupid things in my youth, trust me.
SPEAKER_02:No, no way.
SPEAKER_04:Oh, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Me and your brother knows. You know, your dad, I mean, but um, you know, but that's youth. You do stupid things when you're young, you get wiser as you get older. Don't do that again, you know. But uh um, unfortunately, I I haven't uh suffered any major consequences.
SPEAKER_02:But um well, it's been a really uh inspirational journey. Um, just always been very impressed. Just I know we don't I don't tell you this uh often, but just you know, we entrepreneurship has always been an interest. Uh, you know, I've I've taken a different career path. It's worked out really well for me. No, you're doing fantastic. But um always just uh respected and appreciated the way that you've approached things and um you know just trying to learn how to let loose a little bit. I'll tell you that. You know, I just turned 40 and I need to learn, you know, I got three kids now, and so I need to de-stress my life, not add stress to it. Okay, you know. So I'm gonna learn a few things. I will show you how to de-stress. I know, I know you will. I know you.
SPEAKER_03:I remember when I you came up and we had the and I brought my gun, you're all freaking out. This is Arizona, people got guns everywhere.
SPEAKER_02:I'm gonna come to your relaxation boot camp. That's what you should start next.
SPEAKER_04:If the uh I should, I'd be great at that. Yeah, just don't take life so serious. I mean, you know, work hard, make the best of your abilities. You're you're very you're successful already, so yeah, it's only going up for you. Don't stress about the little things, man. It's not worth it. Because you know, most things you stress about never happen. That's true. Yeah, it's like these ideas you create file.
SPEAKER_02:That is true.
SPEAKER_04:And hang around with Auntie Lizzie, she's really she's a better influence in that area than I am. Yeah, we're gonna go over this.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. So, anyways, thank you for sharing your story. Uh, it was really inspirational. And um, yeah, I'll talk to you soon.
SPEAKER_04:Oh, thank you for having me, man. I hope uh I hope I helped somebody out who listens, you know.
SPEAKER_02:You 100% did. Of course.
SPEAKER_04:All right.
SPEAKER_02:All right, see ya.