09/04/2025
I was selling myself short.
Back in 2021, I was stuck doing work that didn’t really flex my capabilities. Every project felt like a means to an end.
I was bored and itching to build something fulfilling I actually felt connected to.
So instead of waiting around for a dream client... I became my own 🤷♂️
That’s how ST33P was born — a single-serve coffee brand geared toward the mountain biking community.
The vision was to use the brand to help build and maintain world-class bike trails — stuff you’d normally find in a paid bike park, but for free public use.
We even planned to make short films for each trail build and use them as campaigns for the brand. Genius, right? (Unfortunately, it never got that far 😢)
But I learned a TON through this project: developing a physical product, establishing a supply chain, finding the right 3PL, and turning a cold audience into paying customers (this aint easy).
The real lesson in all of this was realizing that, for me, it was never about the product or the profit potential. What made it fulfilling for me was being aligned with what the brand stood for — and using my capabilities to champion that.
About a year in, an outside party acquired majority share of the brand.
Though it changed hands, I’m still proud of what we built.
And I’m excited to do this again... perhaps alongside another entrepreneur next time 👀
