29 29. Trevor & Catie Bird, Co-owners Durango Harley-Davidson, On the Ride of Their Lives!

[00:00:00] Kathy: hi, I’m Kathy Rushing, host of the podcast committed :the entrepreneurial marriage. If your middle name is restless and you identify with words like innovator, dreamer, changemaker, creative, independent, or you are married to an entrepreneur or heaven help you, you’re both entrepreneurs. This podcast is for you.

The entrepreneurial journey can be a little wild at times, like uncharted territory. Join me as I talk with others who are at various stages of the entrepreneurial process, we’ll explore the wisdom and insights they have gained while navigating the ups and downs of the entrepreneur journey. You’ll discover that there are many couples who have found ways to thrive in both their marriage and business.

[00:01:00] 15 years into starting and scaling AlzCare, the assisted living company that Mark started in 1997. He was burned out. It began to take a toll on our marriage as neither of us had much left in the tank. A friend told Mark about C 12, it’s a Christian peer board that meets once a month. And this group of men, there are women on many of the boards, but this happened to be all Men, became the antidote for the loneliness and burnout he was feeling. After the very first meeting that Mark attended, I felt like I had gotten my husband back for the first time in a very long time, several interviews in the queue, are people we met through that board. And to each of you, I want you to know how gratefull I am for the [00:02:00] life-giving friendship you provided, Just in time. And now you get to meet some of them. Brad and Gian volar were interviewed in episode three way, way back. They were brave enough to be one of my first guests. Today, I’m talking with Trevor and Katie bird. In 2016, they moved from Texas to Durango, Colorado, a place they honestly had never heard of.

And they became co-owners of the Harley Davidson dealership. Listen for the way they made this decision as a couple, how they are teaching their young children about business. What teamwork looks like currently, and how they keep their marriage growing.

So I’m joined today by Trevor and Katie bird. Welcome you guys.

Catie: Hi, Kathy, how are you doing great. Good.

Trevor: Thanks for asking.

Kathy: Good, [00:03:00] good. Well, give us a, we’re going to get a little bit of, get to know you time. So tell us where you guys live currently.

Catie: We currently live in Durango, Colorado.

Kathy: We’re in the same state and we both came from new Braunfels. So there you go. How long have you guys been married?

Catie: We’ve been married for 12 blissful years.

Trevor: Every second. Perfect.

We got to celebrate our 12 year wedding anniversary and it was a very, very neat, very magical anniversary that we got to celebrate, so yeah 12 years.

Kathy: Cool. What did y’all do to celebrate?

Catie: We went, we were able to have Trevor’s dad came up to help us with the kids and Trevor and I went to the Broadmore hotel resort up in Colorado Springs, and it was just so beautiful. And just so romantic. And it was a great weekend getaway,

Trevor: Horseback [00:04:00] riding, hiking, all sorts of great activities, awesome food, and just a really neat place without a doubt.

Kathy: Yeah. We went there for an anniversary a couple years ago in January. So it was off season. The rates were much lower, but half the hotel was also closed. They were doing some renovation, but it is the most amazing historical, you know, and the art that’s there. Oh my goodnes it’s just amazing.

Catie: The building and the history and all the things that. That make up the Broadmore is just all so interesting and beautiful and yes, we had a really great time. It was really nice.

Kathy: Yeah. Did y’all go to the zoo?

Catie: We did not go to the zoo. No, it was, it was pretty cold and I don’t even know if they were open. They still had some things closed because of the pandemic.

Trevor: So not everything was fully open, but I was telling Katie it’d be awesome to take all of our team to the Broadmore, [00:05:00] just that level of personalized customer service, where they just make you feel like the most important person on that entire piece of property.

And you know, that whole experience, it was, it was great. Definitely something we would love to share with our whole team and like take everybody up there and let them experience that for a couple of days. Kind of see what best in class really was.

Kathy: Yeah. They really are. They are one of the top. I have a brother-in-law that’s in the hotel industry for his whole career. And that is, that is their benchmark, you know, how fun.

Catie: It was. Great.

Kathy: And you guys, you guys have a couple of kids, but I’ve lost track of how old they are.

Catie: Yes. We have two children. Our oldest is Millie, Millie Grace. She is 10 and our son Reese is eight.

Kathy: Okay. Very good. Okay. And so what are your current job descriptions?

Trevor: Well, so about three and a half years ago, we purchased the [00:06:00] Durango Harley Davidson dealership here in Durango, Colorado, and our current job descriptions. Katie is our, over sees our marketing and our, our retail side of all the different merchandise and stuff that we sell on the retail side of the shop.

And then I’m the acting general manager for the dealership. So the motorcycle sales, FMI accounting,, service and parts kind of falls under, under my umbrella and then marketing, PR, and merchandise and all that. Katie helps lead and oversee.

Kathy: Okay, great. We’re going to get into more of, much more of this story in a minute, but awesome. Thank you. I want to do a couple of fun, get to know you exercises.

Catie: Okay.

Kathy: If your marriage was a team sport, what would it be?

Catie: Hmm. Well, I would think maybe I’d have to say baseball.

Trevor: Sure.

Catie: Maybe just because I [00:07:00] think in the game of baseball

Kathy: and you don’t have to have the same.

Catie: Well, I think, I think if the game of baseball, you know, like, You know, we’ve been, we’ve been thrown a few curve balls in life.

Trevor: No doubt.

Catie: And you know, we’ve made it through those. We’ve, we’ve hit some things way out in the left field, you know, you just don’t know. But through all of that, you know, we still finished the game and still, still work together as a team. So. I’d say,I’d say baseball, which is my favorite sport anyway, so it works

Kathy: Ok, very good. What is the others super power?

Catie: What do you think Trevor?

Trevor: Katie’s love for Christ is, is really her superpower, her desire to always be growing in her faith to be sharing her faith with other people. You know, when, when her and I met, that was a big part of my life, [00:08:00] that it wasn’t there, it didn’t really exist and, you know, through our journey. And I know we’ll get into this later, but, you know, Katie was a big part of, as an adult bringing Christ back into our life. And then together we’ve made sure that he saved the center of our, our family and our marriage, but you know, her, her love, maybe it would be more broad, like just general.

Katie is she’s got an incredible way of loving people and and her love for Christ is really the super power that stands out to me.

Catie: That’s really sweet. Let’s see. Trevor’s super power. To me, I really think it’s his ability to connect with people. He- being in business with him, and even before we worked together, I’ve, always admired how he can, you know, just walk up to a stranger and strike up a conversation and connect to anyone just by means of small talk and just, you know, starting conversations.

And I think that’s why he’s done so well in business is because he’s, [00:09:00] he’s got a great ability to, to listen and also be heard, but really connect with others. And I’ve learned so much from him because that’s not an easy thing for me to do at all. And so , I think for him and his, not only career, you know, but just in his everyday life, you know, he’s able to, to really connect with people and just find a way to see what the other needs, wants, and kind of connect and go from there.

And so. I admire that about him a lot.

Kathy: So would you say y’all are more similar or opposites?

Catie: I think we’re total opposites. I think we’re total opposite well, wouldn’t you agree?

Trevor: Yeah, we’re definitely different.

Kathy: That’ll be fun to unpack because that’s that keeps it exciting. Right? And always something to learn. Okay. I have a series of rapid fire questions [00:10:00] and Catie, I actually pulled this from your Facebook posts. Something you had re posted. Yeah. Okay. So this has to do with your relationship: who was interested first?

Catie: I think maybe me. Would you say me?

Trevor: She, she took the initiative to kind of like really spark up the conversation. But I still, remember the very first time I ever saw her get out of that red Mustang and the parking lot at Alamo city, Harley Davidson. And you know, and I was, I was in a season of life where I really had gotten out of a really bad engagement and was not looking for, for anything. But, you know, Katie definitely caught my eye and I said, wow, there’s something, something special about that girl. But, yeah.

Catie: I think the attraction was there for both of us, but I think I initiated, I initiated it.

Trevor: Yup.

Kathy: Go girl. Who’s the most sensitive?

Catie: Trevor.

Kathy: Trevor? Ok [00:11:00] who has the worst temper?

Catie: Maybe me. We both kind of have a temper.

Trevor: My red line is way out there. Like , I’ve got a lot more-

Catie: his fuse is longer than mine, so I snap before he does

Trevor: Once it cracks, the temper, you know, it’s bad, but Katie, maybe on a shorter time level.

Catie: Yes. I’m less patient.

Kathy: Who’s the loudest?

Catie: Hmm.Me, probably

Kathy: She says in a very soft voice. Who’s the funniest?

Trevor: Catie.

Catie: I don’t know, our son. Trevor and I really aren’t that funny, but our kids are really funny.

Kathy: Good to have funny kids. They definitely, you know, you got to laugh in life, right? Who is the more sociable?

[00:12:00] Catie: Me. Yeah. I’m definitely more social.

Trevor: Yeah. And it’s, you know, it’s weird because like at work, I’m probably very much more social whether it’s with team members, clients, stakeholders. But when I get done working 12, 14 hour day, I’m done, But Katie definitely has a, a much bigger desire to be out there in the community and making friends. And she’s definitely more social.

Catie: That’s true.

Kathy: Okay. Who’s the most stubborn?

Catie: Trevor, you know, it’s true.

Trevor: Ok, I’ll take that too

Kathy: Okay. Who wakes up first?

Trevor: I do.

Kathy: Who stays up late?

Trevor: Katie

Kathy: who’s the better driver?

Trevor: Catie- except on the motorcycle. I can operate a motorcycle better than her, but when it comes to the car, Katie’s definitely a better driver

Catie: I’ll give you that. But yeah, no, he is terrible driver, terrible driver.

Kathy: That’s not the answer I [00:13:00] was looking for on a motorcycle!

And who is the better cook?

Catie: Me. I’m the only one that cooks.

Trevor: That’s not true.

Catie: He does the grill and he works the grill. So when we grill stuff, he’s in charge.

Okay.

Kathy: For years, I thought Mark wanted to grill, but it was never really a passion of his, and then we got a big green egg and because it involved fire suddenly he loved grilling. And so he became the grill master. Yeah. Very good. All right. Well, great. We’ll transition now into your story and I want to hear a little bit more about how you met, so cute little blonde getting out of a red car. Is that how you met?

Trevor: That is how we met back, when was it like?

Catie: 2004

Trevor: Oh four, 2004. I was running a handful of Harley Davidson dealerships in the San Antonio market. [00:14:00] And we also were licensed boxing promoters with the state of Texas. And we were throwing these pretty significant mass gathering concerts, big concerts and festivals, outdoor events.

And we would hire marketing teams.

Kathy: I’m sorry. You said licensed what?

Trevor: A boxing promoter. So we were throwing sanctioned boxing and mixed martial arts events with the Texas boxing commission. And, but we would have marketing teams that would go out and help promote our events in the communities. And and that’s how we met. Katie, through one of her friends, they got hired to be one of our marketing teams and go out there and promote one of our events, and so we met initially in the parking lot of Alamo city, Harley Davidson, and, it was just love at first sight.

Kathy: Sounds like it. So how long, before you got married and how did you guys know that this was your forever person?

Catie: We dated for about five [00:15:00] years before we got married five to six years. I would have married him way sooner, but ,Trevor and I’m thankful for this, like there’s an age difference between us there’s seven years. So when we met, I was still in, I was still in college. And Trevor was already, you know, had graduated, was working for Harley and whatnot.

And I, I fell for him super, super fast and I would’ve married him, you know, a year after we had met started dating, but he was really Concerned about, about me. He wanted me to make sure that I finished and got my degree and got my career started and did those important things, you know, just to kind of , figure out who I am as an individual before he wanted us, before we got married. And I’m so thankful for that now, you know that we waited, but yeah, I guess it was about five years before we got married. And I knew, I knew Trevor was the one, because honestly from that first night we met because we had, we ended up sitting down, out on the patio and it was late at [00:16:00] night, but we were just, we just started talking, but I couldn’t even tell you remember what, what all we talked about, but what I remember was just having this instant connection with him. Just feeling totally at ease and that I could be myself. And I felt that he was really open and, and shared things with me. And he was just a really deep soul. And I hadn’t met a man like that, you know, in my whole life. And, you know, I was used to fraternity boys.

Who just wanted to go out and get drunk all the time, you know? So it was really nice change of pace to actually have an adult conversation with this man, you know, it was just so smart and intelligent. And so from the day I met him, I knew that there was something different about him. So it wasn’t long after that, that I realized I wanted to marry him.

So that’s how I knew.

Kathy: So you knew pretty early on how about you Trevor?

Trevor: So I had come out of a season of [00:17:00] life where I had been in some pretty, pretty tough relationships and dealing with a lot of betrayal and just, just hard stuff. And I was really not looking to fall in love, but there was something about Catie that was different.

The age thing was definitely like, you know, I I’m like you’re young, you dont have everything figured out. . And she never gave up on me. And she loved me even when we were dating in a way that I had never experienced, it was just such a pure, you know, as I said earlier, her super power, is really the way that she loves.

And so getting to experience that firsthand. And I remember when I started falling in love with her, I got scared to death and even called, I said, we’re, we can’t do this anymore. Cause I was really starting to fall for her . And so I called things off and, and she, she was like, you know what, I’m not going to keep going back and forth, back and forth.

If you’re not interested, I’m going to move on with my life. Well, what does that do to the guy right? Now, all of a sudden it’s like and, and she did, she, she [00:18:00] moved on and I realized, I mean, like within 24 hours I was sitting there going, what are you doing? Like really? What are you doing? Am I going to go back out to the, you know, bar scene in San Antonio and find a woman as pure and as loving, and just, that makes me feel so much joy that I felt with Catie. I had promised her for her 21st birthday to take her to Las Vegas. She had never been before. And so I called grovelling Hey, we’ll get, you know, obviously two separate rooms, blah, blah, blah.

But please let me still take you to Vegas for your 21st birthday. And she set some really clear expectations.

Catie: And in my mind, I was also thinking, man, a free trip to Vegas? Yeah I’ll go!?

Trevor: But it was really when we were in Vegas. I, like, just the fact that she agreed to, to come up, there was a big deal and I just, I could not take my eyes off of her. And there’s a lot of shiny [00:19:00] distractions in Vegas. And I just knew, I was like, man, I’m like, you don’t like, don’t screw this up. This girl loves you.

She’s so incredible. And you know, that trip in Vegas, like that was where I made up my mind that, I’m going to marry her one day. So, yeah.

Kathy: Awesome. Thank you for sharing that. So in the beginning, Trevor, you said you were already working with Harley Davidson in San Antonio. Is that where your career started?

Trevor: You know, no back in, when I was in college, the family that owned the Harley-Davidson franchise in San Antonio the son, we were best friends and his father had opened a bar on the Riverwalk called Houston street Ale house. And the summer between my freshman and sophomore year at TCU, I came back home to do summer school.

And my buddies like, Hey, we need some help, like bar backs and stuff like that. If you want a summer job. So I was literally. 18,19 years old, mopping the floors, [00:20:00] cleaning the restrooms, washing glasses and dishes. And that was when I first started working for that family. While we were in college, the son, and I started a couple motor sports marketing companies together.

We formed the first LLC I’d ever formed was with him and got out of college and thought I’d do the real world thing and did software development consulting for a couple of years and had a wildly successful career, right out of college with that. But in 2002, when the.com bubble burst, I decided to take a chance.

And I moved from Dallas, Texas, where I was living, back to San Antonio. And it was really just supposed to be a temporary thing, while I was looking again for another real job. I was helping that family out again, but in 2002, Harley Davidson was just booming 2003 was a hundredth anniversary of the brand. They could do no wrong.

I mean, the demand was way out pacing was supply. And so it was really neat. I got to grow with that company when I started in November of [00:21:00] actually November of 2001 is when I started with that family. And, we we grew from a $12 million company to over a $60 million company from 2001 to 2007. So, you know, being in my twenties and being kind of, helping lead this incredible growth and from one location to four locations and from 20 something employees to over a hundred employees, it was just an incredible experience.

But yeah, this November will be 20 years that I’ve worked with the Harley Davidson brand and the Harley Davidson dealer network.

Kathy: Wow. I didn’t realize it had been that long. And so for you, Katie, you graduated college and where did your career begin?

Catie: So the day after I graduated college, I started working in the broadcasting department for the San Antonio spurs.

So I got a really awesome job. [00:22:00] Exactly. Yes. Go Spurs go. Feel really blessed for the opportunity to work with the spurs organization right out of college. So I worked in broadcasting. I was like a sales assistant basically. And I help- associate, I guess, is the word they used, but I got to help our sales managers and selling corporate sponsorships.

So like, anytime you go, like, To a basketball game and there’s all the in arena signage and all the TV and radio spots during the game. That’s what we sold and that’s what we did. And it was an amazing experience for me to work in that organization because well, one it was just cool. I mean, there’s a lot of perks that come with getting to work for the Spurs, but I’m more than that.

I had some amazing bosses some leaders that really, really cared about their people. And, you know, they, the, one of the things that my VP told me one time I went to interview for another position within the company, this is like a year or so later, and [00:23:00] I knew that I may be not, wasn’t quite ready for it, but I wanted to go forward anyway.

And he interviewed me and he went through the whole process with me. And at the end he said, you know, Katie said, I really value you. And I value your work here. And he said it, but I don’t want to set you up to see you fail. And so he was able to let me down in a way that lifted me up at the same time, which is something I’ve carried with me throughout the rest of my career.

And that’s just one small snippet of, of what it was like to work for that organization. They were really nurturing and, you know, really a lot of the leadership values that Trevor and I use today within our businesses have come from the model of, of my time at the spurs and how how they approached leadership.

So I, this working for the spurs was by far my biggest Learning experience in the workforce. And then I did a small stint working at this at the Scooter Store in New Braunfels. I don’t think it was even a full year. And then we got pregnant with our daughter and I I stayed [00:24:00] home from then on. So for about seven years I stayed home.

And then when we moved here, to Durango, Trevor and I partnered up and now I work for Harley Davidson.

Kathy: Okay. So trevor, you said you had started an- you and your friend started an LLC kind of an entrepreneurial thing. Did you consider yourself an entrepreneur at that point or did you even label it that?

Trevor: Well, I mean, I didn’t, I didn’t have a label for it back then, but you know, I mean, from being in sixth grade and middle school and getting busted for hustling cinnamon toothpicks that I would make at home and, you know, five cents for one toothpick or five for 25 cents. And you know, and one thing I’m really grateful for is my parents always made me work.

I mean, I remember in the summers when I was 15, 16, 17, 18 working at Rock’n R River Rides every summer and, you know, being resentful, like all my friends out there having fun. And I’m here at parking cars and [00:25:00] stacking inner tubes, but,

Kathy: and it’s just hot in Texas in the summer,

Trevor: you know, it helps, it helped me appreciate what it, what would it take to make a buck.

What good work ethic is. But I always, you know, I was always looking for that little side hustle and ways to, and it wasn’t really about the money, it was just, I always had fun putting deals together and, you know, doing entrepreneurial activities before I even knew what that really was. That’s what I was doing.

Kathy: And we had dinner, it has been several years ago, and so a lot of the story I’m forgetting, but I do remember Katie that you, at that time you had a business, was it men’s clothing?

Catie: Oh, yes. Yes. I after being a stay at home mom for a few years, I was starting to get the itch, to find some purpose outside of the home, you know, and I know a lot of moms out there feel that way and I’ve been through the same thing.

And my my best [00:26:00] friend Rachel had just joined this menswear company called J Hilburn based out of Dallas, right. Yes. And I’m that sells custom men’s clothing. And I saw, she came over to the house and measured Trevor for some custom clothes and I just thought it was the neatest thing to see.

And I love fashion. So I was like, man, you know what, Rachel, I can do this too. Let’s do it together. So I started my J Hilburn business. So yes, I am. Basically, I would go meet clients in their home or office and we would take their measurements and I have these big swatch books and, you know, gentlemen could pick out, you know, design their own wardrobe, basically tailored to fit them.

And it was really, it was a really fun chapter

Trevor: It was great watching Katie in that season of life. And I would go back to the Harley dealership and tell my sales guys- if y’all hustled as hard as my wife does, you would be selling more motorcycles than you are right now because she went through my entire contact list and, you know, Hey, I want to know every CPA attorney, [00:27:00] this, that everyone that you’ve ever worked with.

And like, and not just me, like she did that with every one of her contacts and, and, you know, created this, in a very short period of time, this incredible kind of referral network and. It was, it was just so fun to see her cause she was in a zone. She was, she loves fashion and she loves making people happy and feel confident and, and she loves feeling independent.

And that job kind of took all of those elements and put them on under one umbrella and she just did so, so great with it. It was really, really fun to be, be able to sit on the sidelines and kind of watch her run with that.

Kathy: Yeah. And at that point, Trevor, were you the GM in new Braunfels?

What was your role?

Trevor: Yeah, I was a general manager and VP for the Guy Sachar family. And in 2008 we sold one of the, or two of the four locations that Alamo city Harley-Davidson main store and t-shirt store down on the San Antonio Riverwalk. [00:28:00] And when ’08 happened. I had never sold a motorcycle. Like when I got involved with those guys in November of 2001, it was really a business development, which, which I love putting together business plans, the casting the vision, getting people’s buy-in, creating org charts like that.

I thrive in that visionary role, but I’m, and I, I still tell my staff this I’m not a good general manager, but in ’08 when the collapse happened, I remember, you know, the family came to me and said, You need to go fire the GM in Gruene and Gruene Harley Davidson, in new Braunfels, Texas. And if you still want to have a job, you can be the new GM, but that’s the only way we can still have a job for you.

And I was like, man, I’ve, I’ve never even sold a motorcycle. Like, what am I going to do? And so it was a really intimidating transition for me. But it’s one that I’m so grateful for it because in ’08, when I moved into that GM role, and then within about a year or two, I was overseeing both the New [00:29:00] Braunfels and the Boerne dealership, which still, even at that time by, you know, 2009, 2010 was 40 plus million dollars in top line revenue.

And, you know, we had close to a hundred employees, 40 to 50 per store. And so it was a big job and one store is a big job, having two stores an hour apart it was challenging to say the least. Yeah.

Kathy: Yeah. And were you part of C 12 at that? Or let me ask it a different way. At what point did you join C 12?

You and Mark met through C12 quite a few years ago.

Trevor: So I think it was around 2012 or 13, and I was going through a pretty radical transformation in my life. And we could go down an entire rabbit hole about that. But I had a, I had decided our daughter was two years old and our son was newborn and I had decided, you know, that I was powerless over alcohol.

You know, I [00:30:00] was, there’s such a miracle that I’d never gotten in trouble. No DWI, never got in trouble with the law, but my, my health and my relationships were both collapsing. And I just had really struggled with alcohol and, and tried quitting on my own and never just, you know, get two, three months under my belt and then something would happen.

And, so anyway, it was this really incredible crossroads where I had fallen on my knees in the shower on a Monday morning and just started crying and just said, God, I, I can’t do this anymore. I don’t know how to fix this. I’m so tired of fighting this. Will you please take this from me? And And a few hours later I attended, and it was one of the most humbling, and at the time it felt pretty humiliating experiences, but I went into my first AA meeting and being in small-town New Braunfels, like, you know, of course, you know, half the room in there. And but it was during that time where I just said, God, I need your help. [00:31:00] Like take this from me that At our church, I attended my first Acts retreat with saints, Peter and Paul.

I met Mike shero who was leading the C 12 group back then, joined the c12 group, and then was immediately surrounded by this, this bond of brothers, of, of Christian owners. And my first C 12 meeting this guy Barney Randalls said, you need to quit your job. I’m like, what did you say seriously? You need to quit.

You need to go and tell them you’re quitting today. And I just said, who are these people? Like, what does he think? Why does he think he has the right to tell me I should quit my job? And, you know, went into this natural kind of defensive posture. But didn’t realize it was really out of love that the way they were talking to me.

And so that was a long answer your question, but yeah, it was about 2012, 2013 when when we really started to get involved in C 12 and look at our business from a perspective that these are God’s businesses and we’re just lucky enough to be a steward. And the whole purpose of it is to share his love and [00:32:00] just love on your team.

Love on your customers, run a good profitable business. And so that’s, that’s what we did.

Kathy: So back up just a little bit, cause now I’m curious. So the guy that said you should quit your job, why was he saying that? Talking about at the Harley Davidson?

Trevor: Yeah. That’s where that was where I was working. Then I think out of respect for that whole situation, it was just, he, I guess the short answer is he knew I wasn’t happy.

He knew I had kind of reached a point where there’s a saying unequally yoked”, And and we were definitely, you know, at that time I’d become a partner in the businesses in 2013. I actually became a minority equity partner in both dealerships. And, and I think it’s fair. There’s no right wrong or, you know, judgment.

But we, we were just very equally unyoked as, as partners and okay. And so they just challenged me. Yep.

Kathy: So different [00:33:00] values in the company versus your own values. Okay. That makes sense. And I, I respect that we may not need to go any deeper. You know, I am so fascinated by this whole Harley because listeners, you cannot see Trevor and Katie, but they are the most all-American looking comfortable. I don’t know if either of you have tattoos, but they’re not visible.

Catie: Nope, Nope, Nope. Crazy piercings or anything? No. We’re your average Joe’s.

Kathy: So, you know, once upon a time, Harley was this bad boy image and you know, Peter Fonda, dennis hopper came out on their custom Harleys in easy rider, but that image has changed dramatically.

And I remember when our oldest son Jeremy was in fifth grade, first day of school, he comes home and he is so excited. Like he’s not [00:34:00] usually excited about school, but he came home and told us that it was a real interesting teacher situation. It was a husband and wife that co-taught. And they both owned Harleys and that was their fun time.

They would go ride most weekends. And so he just thought that was so cool. My teachers ride Harleys. And so the image has really changed and I would love to hear a little bit about how you have seen the culture change and what part you have played in that, do you think?

Trevor: Without a doubt. You know, in 2001, I graduated from TCU with a marketing degree in 1999.

I’ve been in the softer development and the corporate scene for a couple of years. And I’d never written a motorcycle. I was 19. I mean, it wouldn’t even the word motorcycle never even came up in my house as a kid. It just, Dad’s a small town, family practice doctor, like, not even an option. Like not even something they give consideration to [00:35:00] when I was 18 and I rode my first motorcycle, I just went oh my gosh, this is freedom and adventure and independence that these people talk about.

Like even just in my first little lap, around the parking lot, it was like, I want to know more about this, but what attracted me even more than the experience was the people. And I remember sitting at Alamo city Harley-Davidson and the former Mayor Howard Peak and the district, or the County Judge Nelson Wolf and the Comal County sheriff, at the time Bob Holder, they were all hanging out, with three or four Bandidos, which are part of a 1% or outlaw motorcycle club. Right. As soon as they step out of that parking lot, those guys are kind of like sworn enemies to each other, law enforcement and judges and outlaw motorcycle guys. Right? But, inside that dealership, it was all about the motorcycle and that shared experience.

And I just was like looking at it and I can still visually see that, that moment [00:36:00] going, how amazing is, this that, and it is more than just a motorcycle, it’s the brand, its the lifestyle, but that, that is Harley Davidson motorcycle. It doesn’t matter if you’re the CEO of a billion dollar company, or if you’re the janitor, does it matter if you’re the local sheriff or judge, or if you’re an outlaw motorcycle guy, it was, it was just like the great equalizer.

Everybody was treated with respect. Everybody was treated, you know, as long as you’re being cool and being respectful, it was shown back to the other people. And so it was just before, Facebook, before Twitter, it was this incredible social network, of people from all different backgrounds and walks of life.

And just so diverse, with this common love of freedom, adventure, and independence, which that Harley Davidson motorcycle represents.

Catie: And I’d like to add to that. You know, me and myself, I also, I didn’t grow up in a motorcycle family. I was actually, my mother for, forbid me [00:37:00] and my sister, my little sister from ever riding a motorcycle, which it’s funny now it’s like the running joke because my sister also married a Harley guy who runs a dealership up North.

So I know it’s it’s all in the family now, but what I, what I love about the motorcycle community is, and I’ve come to learn this as, because you know, a lot of, most people do look at motorcyclists and, you know, and think that those are the big, bad bikers, you know, cause they wear black and they have tattoos or long beards or this or that.

And you know, first lesson I learned was you just cannot judge a book by its cover, because these, the people that ride motorcycles and Harley Davidsons you know, they are some of the most loving, most charitable, giving souls I have ever met in my entire life. And I’m more scared of the normal people walking down the street, you know, downtown Durango than I [00:38:00] am with these big, bad bikers that have walk in and out of our shop every day.

And it’s true. It’s true because they’re also really big protectors. And I know that I feel extremely safe with my children running around in that shop all the time. They’re really not all that big, bad and scary, you know, some of them can be, but it’s not, it’s not the majority. No.

Kathy: Yeah. Yeah. Awesome perspective. Yeah. Do you ride, Katie?

Catie: I do. Yes, I have my license. I got my license about, it’s almost two years now, but I, I don’t have my own bike yet and I’m not on the road yet.

Trevor: She does have her own motorcycle. She has a really awesome dirt bike.

Catie: I have a dirt bike. That’s not the same as a road bike, but anyway, Trevor’s just a little nervous about me riding.

Because I’m a good writer. It’s, he’s just worried about other people. So we’re, we’re getting him to loosen up that fear a little bit so that I, cause I, I [00:39:00] enjoy it. It’s fine. It was being, I’ve always ridden on the back with Trevor and that’s fun too, and I enjoy getting to do that with him, but there’s definitely something extremely empowering about being able to handle a big machine like that.

And then be It definitely is a freedom feeling for sure. And it makes it a little harder to get on the back now, with Trevor, just because I know that I can do it, so yeah. Yeah. I’m going to get, I’m going to get there. Yeah.

Kathy: It’s a big machine,

Catie: It is, but it’s not as intimidating as it seems. It’s really fun.

Kathy: Okay. Awesome. And you guys were up there with that million dollar highway. I have driven that before and have seen many groups of motorcycles and just thought, Holy cow, what happens if you’re, I don’t know. I guess you can get a blowout on a motorcycle and that is just a drop off there, but beautiful scenery.

Catie: Beautiful, beautiful. Oh my gosh. Yes.

Kathy: So, you moved from new Braunfels [00:40:00] to Durango. And I really want to hear your story about how that came about and that process of you all becoming co-owners right? You both, you’re listed on your website anyway, as co-owners tell us more about that, how did that opportunity come up and how did you process that as a couple?

Trevor: A lot of prayer, a lot of prayer, and you know, they’re going out into the deep kind of approach to it. You know, by, by 2016, I was just kind of at a point where something needed to change from our current situation. And I kept trying to see if we can have that change happen there in Texas, but, through all of that, Harley Davidson motor company had approached me and said, look, we want dealers like you.

And, because you have this equity in these shops, maybe we can go out and look at at finding, you [00:41:00] know, kind of gave me some parameters. And Katie and I, we had never heard this-

Catie: true story of Durango, Colorado. No idea where Durango was. Never heard of it. No idea.

Kathy: Opposite side of Colorado. Yeah.

Trevor: Right.

Kathy: And Durango is in the very, very Southwest corner for those that may not be up on your geography.

Trevor: Right there in the four corners were New Mexico, Utah, Arizona, and Colorado, all connect. And and so I got a friend, phone call from a good friend and he said, Hey, this is kind of really confidential, but the dealership in Durango is listed for sale, and I think it would be a great fit. And so December 6th of 2016, Katie and I book our first flight to Durango and, we’re staying at the Strater hotel, which is this historic just, really neat hotel, right downtown main street. And we [00:42:00] didn’t realize that it was called Noel night, which is only happens one night a year, but it’s where all of the merchants, they all put up their displays outside on main street and there’s, you know, Santa Claus on a stagecoach down and there’s a nice little snow.

Catie: It definitely sets the scene. Yeah. It was a magical, magical evening in Durango

Trevor: We went and met with the owners. And it was really interesting cause it was the first time we met with the current owners and they were, they were getting into the early seventies and had run a really successful business.

And, they were just looking to retire. Right? They, they, they had a good business and a great foundation that they had created, but they wanted to retire. And I just remember the wife, we, we met top secret. We met at the dealership that night and the wife said as we were walking out and she said, you know, I don’t know what God has planned for you two, but I’m definitely going to be praying that whatever it is is he just helps you find [00:43:00] it with clarity and understanding.

Catie: So she told her, she told me, she was like, Katie. I just like, I really feel like, I feel like this is it like, she’s like, she felt like we were the people they were looking for to take over their shop. And I thought that was super sweet, but in the back of my head, like Trevor and I had kind of already made the decision like, Oh, this dealership’s too small for us. You know, like we’re used to, you know, selling hundreds and hundreds of bikes and yeah, we

Trevor: were selling 1600 bikes a year between the two shops in Texas. This shop was not even doing 150 bikes in a full year. So it was, from a size perspective, it didn’t make sense.

Catie: It didn’t make sense, and so we kind of come on this trip with kind of just thinking like, Oh, this will just be a great getaway for the two of us, you know, we’ll get to go and spend the weekend in Durango and we’ll go check out the shop, you know?

Okay. But it’s not for us. Right. So when she said that to me, I was just like, wow. Thats a pretty powerful statement. Right. And I’m going to jump in from now at this point. But so Trevor and I, [00:44:00] we, we leave the dealership. We get in the car and we go to, we go off to dinner and we go and we sit in this awesome little restaurant here in downtown Durango called the Oar house.

If you ever come to visit, you need to go there. Best steak you’ll ever have. Anyway, we were sitting at the Oar House, I’m having dinner and I got my glass of wine and we’re just enjoying the evening. And Trevor looks at me and he says, Katie, I really feel like this is, this is where God’s calling us. I just have a feeling.

I think God’s, God is calling us here and I immediately just burst into tears. And I was like, Wait, you’re kidding. Right? Like, no, no. We already said this was not, where we’re supposed to be this wasn’t right for us. Like then my mind just starts tumbling, you know? Like, so you want to take me out of Texas? I never thought I would leave Texas.

And my family is in Texas. What’s happening, you know, I just panic mode. Right. Fast forward, we decided that we would, we would pray about it. We would pray about it. And you know, we don’t have to [00:45:00] decide right now. Let’s pray about it and see what, what comes of it. So fast forward to..

Kathy: Take a deep breath.

Catie: Exactly. Actually, I don’t know if it was a full few weeks. I think he may have been just like one week we get back and I had a pretty huge God moment that made me instantly changed my mind. God often talks to me through music. And there are actually a lot of other signs that led up to this point, but we don’t have enough time for all of that, but I, I, I just

Kathy: We might have to do another episode.

Catie: Yes. I mean, it’s, it’s a really amazing story, but the biggest point for me, it was, I was sitting in my Tahoe, my car, I just taken the kids to their mother’s day out program and I was driving home and I had my playlist on shuffle my car and that Hillsong United song oceans came on and That’s like a 10 minute song.

So I don’t ever, I’ve never, I don’t think I’ve ever listened to the whole thing before, but it, it just came on and I’m sitting alone in my car and I’m listening to the words and the song is, is so beautiful. And [00:46:00] it’s talking about spirit lead me where my feet could never wander, take me deeper than I could have, you know, that I could ever go.

I trust that you’re leading me where I should be, kind of thing. And of course now I can’t think of all the lyrics on my top of my head, but it was just the most beautiful song about trusting in God and where he’s leading you, keeping your eyes above the waves, which it’s referencing my favorite Bible story, you know, where Peter is walking on the water towards Jesus and he falls.

And he always says is Jesus help me and he does. And it, anyway, it was just, I get chills talking about it, but then I I’m sitting there and I’m just crying in my car. And I’m crying and, cause I’m just thinking like, wow, God is like being so clear to me right now. Like I just need to let it go. He’s a, he’s the one in control.

He’s obviously wants us to go to Durango. And so from that moment on, I never questioned it. And Trevor came home from work and I said, Trevor, we got to go to Durango. That’s where we got to go.

Trevor: And then I changed my mind. [00:47:00] Now we had to go out there and for the real estate transaction, raise a lot of money. We don’t have any partners, but we definitely have investors. And, and it started, and I was just like, I can’t do this. I can’t do this. This is too much. And Katie was like, no, you’re not, we’re not changing course. And so like her -God, Often speaks to me through my wife.

So it just, I knew I, I knew like I, there there is no turning back and we’re going to have faith and there’s so much more, like the LLC that owns Durango Harley-Davidson is Ash Motorsports. It was on Ash Wednesday. Katie had come home and she had the ashes on her forehead. We both go to the Catholic church.

And we had to come up with a name that day for the LLC we’d run out of time. And so we were thinking about C 12. And like, you know, this being a company that we want to, and I’ve, I’ve got our purpose and vision statements I can share with you, but we wanted to honor God through this company. And so for us, the [00:48:00] Ash was “always serving him” with him being Christ.

And so it’s just, it’s been really neat to watch. The more that we just gave God back his company. And instead of just work through us and you know, the last three and a half years, it has been just amazing the stories and the experiences and the blessings and the success of the business. I mean, it’s incredible and incredible journey.

Kathy: Oh, my gosh. That is a wonderful story. What’s a high, and what’s a, a low point since you’ve taken over the dealership.

Catie: Let’s see. Well, for myself, I would say the high for me is the opportunity to get to work side by side with Trevor. You know, we weren’t sure how that was going to go at first. But we actually compliment each other really well in the workplace and Very respectful of each other’s roles and lift each other up that way.

So I’d say that’s been the biggest high for me. Is that the [00:49:00] opportunity to work next to him and learn so much from him through all of it. The low, I think would definitely be, it’s been, it’s been difficult being far away from my family and all of our friends back home in Texas, we really created a really amazing community of friends and in new Braunfels. And and my family, we’re all super close. I’ve never lived more than like two and a half hours away from my mom and dad. So, you know, going from having a huge network of family and friends to lean on to not knowing anybody, that was definitely really hard.

And it’s taken. Let’s see, we’ve been living here now for almost four years, and I’d say it’s taken about four years to really feel like Durango’s home just because we had such, such deep roots in Texas and still do, those roots are always there. Yeah.

Kathy: Good. You’ve been able to stay connected.

Catie: Oh yeah. Oh yeah.

Kathy: Yeah. What about for you, Trevor?

Trevor: You know, I would [00:50:00] Definitely echo Katie. It wasn’t really part of the original plan that she would be working full-time in the dealership. Like we knew like we’re going into this as co-owners and, but, but being there full-time was not, was not part of the original business plan. And after about six months, I just realized like I was, I was suffocating. Like I just couldn’t. I was working 14, 16 hours a day. And she said, I’m I’m going to come alongside you and really roll up my sleeves and dive into the day-to-day stuff. And it could have gone probably one of two ways. And we’ve been really, really blessed now, of course we still have our days, but it’s just been so neat to watch her grow in her confidence as a leader and everything. And then also just getting to serve our team, our customers with that has been absolutely amazing. The other high would be our second full year in business, we came in out of 600 plus dealers in the country by Harley Davidson, motor companies,

we were ready [00:51:00] seventh in the country in 2019. And then, you know, just seeing the growth of our, our, our team members and seeing them grow personally and professionally and being a part- I mean, we’ve almost doubled the revenue in three full years of business, from where we bought the dealership to where it is today.

Like we’ve pretty much doubled the top line revenue and it’s been, you know, it’s just been an awesome journey. And I think the low is- I didn’t have as tight of a family network. And, and, you know, I love my mom and dad. I mean, just amazing, amazing people, but , we weren’t as close knit as Katie was with her family.

And so, you know, for me, I think the low is I totally respect and appreciate how much she misses her family, and misses that closeness . Wishing, you know, wishing that I could, I could close that gap a little bit where Katie wasn’t so far from her family would having her [00:52:00] so far from her family would be kind of my low.

Kathy: What would you guys say to other couples that are considering going in business together? Because like you said, it could have gone one of two ways. It’s not for everybody. What are some of the questions that you guys worked through in coming to that decision even?

Catie: I dont know that we ever talked about it that much, we just kind of did it.

Trevor: It was survival, you know, it really was, it was like we we’ve gotta make this work and it’s going to take both of us. And

Catie: I think any advice I’d give other couples that are thinking about going into business together is making sure that you know, that they’re friends too, you know, you, you’ve got your life partner here and you share, in the responsibilitiesof everyday life and raising kids and stuff.

But I think having a friendship is really important because that creates the trust and the respect. [00:53:00] You know, I, I have the utmost respect for Trevor because of, one his knowledge of the business, you know, he’s already been with Harley Davidson for so many years. So when I joined on, I knew that I definitely am not the expert here.

So knowing to take my, my cues and my leadership from him in order to do well myself. So I think it’s important to have that friendship and respect, mutual respect for each other. And also like, know, when you need to leave the office and close the door, you know? Trevor and I, you know, there are definitely days where one of us is not in the best mood and there might be some higher level things, drama going on or whatever,

and I just know to stay out of his office on those days, you know, whatever we gotta discuss will happen later, you know, it’s, we try to really separate work and home as much as we can, except at three o’clock when the kids get out of school and they usually end up coming back to work with me, and then it’s a big family affair all the way around.

Yeah,

[00:54:00] Trevor: yeah, yeah, no, I agree with everything she said and, you know, having boundaries, I think that that’s important that it’s, it’s impossible to keep, keep it from crossing over, but, you know, when you’re at home trying to focus on, on home and the, the marriage and the kids and, and that, and not always bringing work home with you or, or even bringing your home life to work and trying to keep kind of keep those a little bit separate.

And there again, there’s no perfect equation for that, but you know, one thing is, make sure you know, each other, you know, Katie and I, we had been through some rough times in our marriage before we moved up here and we had, you know, we had a few years of really kind of working things out and like really getting to know who we were deep down without like all the stuff on the surface. And, you know, having that friendship that Katie mentioned, understanding each other’s boundaries and just even the level of respect. I mean, it blows me away, katie [00:55:00] comes to every one of our meetings. We have a weekly owner’s meeting and, you know, she comes with an agenda. Like I’m like trying to tell the rest of my managers. I’m like, why can’t you? She’s the one person that doesn’t have to come with an agenda, but she comes prepared and is always really respectful of our time, and you know, we’ve even got a big note on our 2021 meeting agenda template that says work, not, not home or something that our work, not personal to make sure when we’re talking about work, and it always happens, I always bring something in about, Oh, what about the kids ski class this weekend?

Catie: The reason for that is I’m the one that made that rule because I’m not there full time like Trevor is nine to five every day. I’m there from about eight to 2:30, because when the kids get out of school, that’s when we go do all the kids’ stuff, you know, soccer practice, ski team, all that stuff. So the hours that I’m in the office are so crucial. So I try to not talk about home stuff, unless it’s really something pressing and important, but I need to focus on [00:56:00] work while I’m there, so I don’t fall behind.

And so, and the agenda thing, I’m just a type a person so I can’t help that.

Yes. He’s respectful of that and he understands that and he’s also a super great helper with the kids and everything outside of work too. And I think that’s a, you know, that’s an important thing to say as well, if you’re gonna, if you’re a husband and wife and you’re going to work together, you need to share the responsibilities outside of work too.

Whereas when I was, when I was staying at home with my kids, you know, yeah I cook dinner, I cleaned the kitchen , I took care of those home, those home responsibilities. And Trevor helped, but it was mostly me, but now, like we really are a team. So if I cook dinner, he cleans the dishes, you know, we both share the laundry and we do all of that.

And I can’t tell you what that’s done. My love language is acts of service. So when he does those things, I mean, it’s just a huge it’s just, it’s so wonderful. Yeah.

Kathy: Yeah. So it sounds like you guys learned to [00:57:00] pivot in a lot of different ways and you know, some couples, they get very fixed in their roles.

Like you have to do this and I have to do this. And I think it shows some depth and flexibility in your relationship to be able to shift, you know, there was a time when Mark had gone back to school and we literally kind of flipped roles. He would cook dinner. That was a little scary cause he really didn’t cook a lot at the time.

I remember he made something one night and I was like, Hmm, it’s good, honey. It tastes a little salty or maybe it was missing salt one or the other. He was like, “yeah, well, I, I had Hannah on my hip and I was talking to mom and, and I was cooking” and I was like, I just realized that, you know, as women, I don’t know, we just seem to be a little more

able to multitask and but we did, and I think it gave us both an appreciation [00:58:00] of the whole picture of what it takes to run a family. Somebody has to bring in money. Somebody has to do laundry. Somebody has to cook. Somebody has to clean, somebody has to pick up the kids, but it doesn’t have to be the same person all the time.

And it really does feel so empowering doesn’t it? To, to be that team.

Catie: Absolutely.

Trevor: Yeah, Katie and I were going through marriage, like pre-marriage counseling and stuff, and you know, I’ve, I forgot who said it, but somebody said it’s none of this 50, 50 stuff. Like you’re either a hundred percent and a hundred percent, or not at all. And like that really, you know, Katie and I, I mean, and there’s, there’s seasons. I mean, there’s seasons of life where I’m running on empty and I just can barely go anymore and have these challenges. And she’s always there to pick me up and lift me up and then, you know, it flips. And then there’s times where she needs me to step it up a little bit more and chip in and help out and support a little bit more, but [00:59:00] it always, I’ve never felt anything less than a hundred percent from her. And I never- I always try to make sure I’m giving her a hundred percent of myself back.

Kathy: Yeah.

Catie: Yeah. And I think that was a, that was a big kind of aha moment for both of us was when I was hearing that. And I think it was Raelynn that told us that maybe? Our business coach back home, she I think she’s the one that said that, you know, marriage is not a give and take 50, 50, you know, each person has to give a hundred and a hundred. So that’s something that we frequently fell back on that statement. Yeah. Yeah.

Kathy: So you had a business coach that talked to you about marriage also?

Catie: She kind of covered all the boundaries.

Trevor: We had come in under the, under the guise of a business coach, but she was actually a chaplain, but did amazing professional development, personal development.

Yep.

Kathy: So great. When did you guys start working with a coach?

Trevor: Man. When did I start working with her? Probably in 2006 or seven.

Kathy: Okay. And what [01:00:00] prompted you to do that?

Trevor: The father that was the owner of the dealerships at the time. There was a lady named Sally who had, who he knew, Sally worked at picante, the, the little hot sauce company. And Sally went off and started Sally’s salsa, which was being sold in every HEB, across the state of Texas and Hal, the boss said, how did you go from working on the line at Picante, to now you’ve got this wildly successful salsa company. And she said, Because of my business coach and the dad looked at his son and I, and he said, you see these two, they need some of that in their lives.

They need a little direction. And it was really interesting because when she showed up, she asked these really strange questions like, well, what’s your mission statement? What are your core values? What type of legacy do you want to leave? And I’m like, who, what are you a totally foreign language? I’m like, what the heck are you talking about?

Like our mission [01:01:00] is to make money and have fun. Like that was all that legacy like we’re living for the moment. And Raelynn had such a tremendous impact on that pivoting that, she just brought this perspective to life of, you know, having a vision and a purpose and a mission and values, and then taking that with what Katie had learned at the San Antonio spurs have a value based leadership approach to running the business.

And all of those components kind of came in together to really form us to the type of leaders and owners that we are today.

Kathy: That is really cool, such great mentors. You mentioned some challenging marriage times and we don’t have to get into specifics, but part of the reason that I started this podcast is, especially in the entrepreneurial world, and you look at what you all left. A lot of security family, friends, to go to something that though you felt [01:02:00] strongly led to do, it was still scary. And it was, you had to put both feet in the same boat if it was going to float. Right? So there, there are challenges, and I just see so many couples that when hard times come they’re just flabbergasted or scared or, they think there’s something wrong with them. So I would like to hear a little bit about what are some things that you all have done when you’ve hit those hard times? What are some things you’ve done to strengthen your marriage and get through those hard times?

Catie: You know, a lot of the big issues that we had in our marriage happened a lot earlier in our marriage, all becoming stepping stones and building blocks and making a stronger, you know, cause we’re, we’re pretty rock solid. We still have our lows, but not like back then, but back then, I think what really helped in a lot of ways was we weren’t afraid to go and [01:03:00] see a counselor. You know, I warmed up to the idea first and then Trevor saw how it was helping me, and then he jumped on board and being able to have someone outside of us, you know, that doesn’t doesn’t know us personally, but you know, can sit there and help mediate a discussion and help us see other ways around, you know, how the other feels I think that was a huge. A huge thing to have for us in our marriage early on. Even now, we still go to a counselor once a month now just for maintenance, we call it, you know, because there’s always things to talk about and work on.

You know, marriage is a commitment and we made our commitment in front of God and it was something that we take really seriously. So I’m also extremely thankful because I, I have a really amazing man here that loves me unconditionally. And he shows me that every single day and he He’s never given me one ounce of, or inkling at all that he wants to give up when things get tough, if anything, he’s the rock that keeps us together.

So I [01:04:00] think God every day for him, but I don’t know, I guess, you know, counseling and being able to communicate. And it’s not always easy. We both struggle with communication. That’s something that’s so important.

Trevor: Yeah. And, and through that, you know, through counseling and not just, not just with the marriage counselor, but with other friends, with other, you know, Couples that have been doing this longer than we have.

And being able to talk to people that have the experience and, and kind of like what you’re sharing with your listeners of, you know, we’ve learned so much from, from couples that are, you know, five, 10, 15 years out ahead of us that we’ve been able to lean on and in times of need and, and really understanding how to communicate with one another, understanding the triggers and that it’s not always us, like, I might react to something, and it’s not because of Katie, but because it’s something in my past that I’m still kind of figuring out and for her to go, okay, I know I’m not going to take that personal because I know he’s still working through that or [01:05:00] vice versa. So just understanding our triggers and how to communicate and all of that has been a big help.

Catie: I also think being able to say, you’re sorry, it seems so simple, but for a lot of people, it’s not, it’s not easy for me to admit that I’m not perfect. So I, it’s probably in our relationship, it’s probably harder for me to say, I’m sorry. When we’re in the wrong, but that really does go a long way, you know, as being humble and recognizing when, okay, maybe I was a little harsh on you. Okay. I am sorry. And being able to fall on your sword, knowing then. Yeah.

Kathy: Yeah. Real quick. We haven’t, I don’t think I’ve brought up this topic before on the podcast, but you, you talked about your kids taking them into the dealership after school. It’s a big family thing. How do you guys talk with your kids? Do you, especially when you have maybe some difficult things you’re having to talk through. Do you [01:06:00] try to keep that away from the kids or, I mean, they’re still fairly young, but what, what are your thoughts about raising children while you’re growing a business and kind of teaching them about what it means to run a business?

Catie: I think it’s one of the biggest blessings we could ever give our children as being able to be in that dealership with us and see their mom and dad working hard and leading a team and them also getting to be a part of it. When we first took over, my son was four and my daughter was six. And my, my daughter to this day, I mean, She amazes me still, but she’ll go and help out in the motor clothes department. And she talks to customers. She answers phones. She’s an expert t-shirt folder.

Trevor: She shows up at our weekly staff meetings in the summertime and we, we start the staff meeting off, we open an, a prayer, and then we do values and actions. So our [01:07:00] core values of teamwork, integrity, passion, and service. We open it up to the team and go, Hey, is there anybody that deserves a shout out for values and action?

And our little 10 year old daughter will go. I’d like to recognize McKenna because she just did an incredible job helping this customer the other day. And she really showed a lot of passion and teamwork and I’m just going, yeah. Wow.

Kathy: Oh, that is so cool.

Catie: Yeah, it’s amazing to see her just feel so comfortable in that environment and feeling like it’s home, because it is, it’s like, you know, if we’re not at home, they’re either at school or they’re at the shop with us.

And so it really is a family run business and every person in that dealership that works with us, part of the extended family. And they feel like Millie and Reese are their kids too. So so they, our kids they have been immersed in it since day one. We try not to, you know, when there’s, we don’t, we try not to have money conversations with them or, you know, things that are just beyond their [01:08:00] understanding, but when it comes to leadership and hard work we absolutely let them see it. And we encourage them to to do it. They’ll come up with business plans or we’ll hold we’ll even have like little interviews with them every once in a while. Different things they want to do around the shop.

Trevor: Our daughter for several years during the labor day weekend, we, we host a huge, it’s called the four corners motorcycle rally.

And our daughter has been running a lemonade stand every, every weekend for the last three years now. And one night we got home and I needed change for the babysitter. And I told her I’m like, all I’ve got is a hundred. And Millie goes, Oh, dad, I’ve got changed for that. And I said, what do you mean you have changed that she had $400 that she had saved from running her lemonade stand.

So we went and we opened up her first kid’s savings account for her. And. It’s just been so neat to watch her, you know, understand the, the value of, of earning a [01:09:00] dollar and with the lemonade stands, like they have to pay rent, they have to donate 10% back to the church. She on her own picks a charity to donate all of her tips to, they have to pay for any help. They have to pay for the cost of goods. And you know, I want them to understand the cups, cost money, the ice costs money, the lemonade mix costs money ,and whatever’s , leftover.

Kathy: So there’s your profit.

That is so awesome. Well, you’ve talked a little bit about this along the way, but I always like to ask, what do you guys do to keep the fun, friendship, and intimacy in your marriage?

Trevor: Never stopped dating your spouse. You know, when you, when you’re running a business, a growing business, you’ve got two young kids, never stop dating your spouse.

And you know, I, I hear myself saying that and at the same time, I’m going, you need to ask her out on a date really quick. You know, we, we do try to make time for one another. Obviously with COVID the whole last year has been, it’s been so crazy for everybody, but you know, [01:10:00] Katie and I we’ve, we’ve done a little book studies together.

We’ve been trying to take walks together more often. We try and we’re not perfect, but to set aside 20 minutes of intentional time where there’s no screen, no kids where we can just talk and just talk about the day. And then sometimes it’s weird and it’s a little awkward and clunky to get started to like, sit there, going, okay. But all sudden you find yourself 20 minutes later and you’re just, Oh my gosh, don’t forget about this and that. So I just think that’s important. I never, never stopped dating her, you know, never stop making her feel important. Just bring home flowers one day, just because, not cause you’re in trouble, not because you did something upset her, but just because, because you love her and the acts of service and just, understanding the other’s love language and you know, mine, mine’s physical touch, surprise, surprise, right? Like, and

I know no something as little as walking up to me and just kind of putting her hand on my back or, [01:11:00] or, you know, a couple extra seconds when she hugs me when I get home, like those things. Just have this incredible impact that I’m learning. Like, you know, I, I desire that, I need that, where she needs acts of service and quality time.

And so, you know, understanding what, how, the other one works and how you can talk to them in their love language, I think is important.

Catie: Yeah. And I definitely, you know, another way to keep the fun going and the intimacy is we flirt with each other all the time.

I mean, you know, I guess it could be supposed to be like inappropriate that at work. Right. But we like to cross the showroom floor and give them a little wink, you know, and he just smiles and we just go on about our day. Those little things, you know, I think are really fun, is being able to you know, have, have fun, whatever atmosphere we’re in.

Trevor: It amazes me, you know, 12 years, you know, I remember when we got engaged and you always have the [01:12:00] naysayers. “Oh my gosh. You know, your life’s going to come to an end and forget about any intimacy in your relationship after you get married”. And I feel so sorry for people that experienced that because 12 years later, and it’s not always easy,

I mean, there’s definitely ups and downs and challenges, but when you look overall in the last 12 years, I still just can’t believe how much more I fall in love with this woman every day. Like every day, even in the bad days, it just blows my mind that I can continue to fall deeper and deeper in love with her and, and on every level, every level, spiritual level growing in our faith and, you know, just as friends, the intimacy, all of it, like, it’s just, it’s amazing.

Kathy: That’s so great.

Katie. I was reading up on your Facebook posts. You know, I do a little checking around just what’s something that catches my eye, just to get to know people a little bit more before we do these interviews. And I found a [01:13:00] really great quote and I want to just close us out with this because I thought your words were so perfect, but it was a picture you guys had and out on a ride, I guess, and you said “you are my home and my adventure all at once”. And I love that. I, I may be stealing that. I will credit it to Katie bird, but I love it. So we’ll just leave it there and wish you many more adventures. Thank you guys. So much.

Catie: Thank you, Kathy.

Trevor: Thank you, Kathy. You’re a real blessing. We really appreciate it.

Kathy: thanks so much for listening through to the end friends. Hey, before you go, can you think of someone else who is also on this journey that would benefit from hearing this episode? sharing an episode and especially giving a rating and review really helps others find the podcast. So thank you in advance for doing that.

[01:14:00] If you have a question related to this episode or anything we’ve talked about in the past, you can email me at info@kathyrushing.com. I’ll be adding an option soon for you to leave a voice message on my website and I’ll share those comments or questions in upcoming episodes. You can always find a full transcript of this episode on my website, Kathyrushing.com.

You’re building a life together. Make it a great one. See you next time .