Western Life & Style Trailblazers
Western Life & Style Trailblazers
Ep 17: Rooted In Grit: Judy Wagner’s Journey
A ranch kid with eight siblings. A marketer without a formal degree. A leader who turned Western heritage into living, breathing brand love. Our conversation with Judy Wagner charts a path powered by grit, purpose, and the kind of storytelling that slows a noisy room and makes people feel seen
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Welcome to the Western Life and Style Trailblazers podcast. I'm Ali D with me. My co-host and the co-owner of Western Life and Style is Nicole Nava James. And we are so excited to have one of the most incredible women, literally, in the history of Western rodeo, cowgirl, everything. I can't believe we're going to be talking to her right here on the podcast. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the first one.
SPEAKER_00:Such an honor to be here. Thank you.
SPEAKER_02:So for our listeners that don't know, Judy is one of our 30 over 30 winners. She also has had an incredibly amazing career as a cowgirl in the Western world. And what we usually like to do is kind of start off with the people in our audience all have different backgrounds. Some of them are first generation cowgirls. Some of them have been, you know, they grew up on a ranch, they grew up in the cowgirl life. So how did you get started? Tell our audience how you got into the Western world.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you. I love telling stories, so this is going to be a great day here. I uh got started as a rancher's daughter. I grew up with uh eight, seven brothers and sisters. I'm the eldest of eight. My mother had eight kids in ten years. That is a full house.
SPEAKER_01:Wow.
SPEAKER_00:With that, I learned so much. Uh my family actually uh lost our father when I was 16. And uh it was early December, and I think that really shaped a lot of who I am today. Well, I know it did, in that I remember going out and feeding cows Christmas morning, and like we had a history of always wearing the same color pajamas, you know, and all of that. But I learned at an early age that the cows don't know it's Christmas and responsibility and how you work together, how you have fun together. So that really is my roots and how I got started in this.
SPEAKER_03:You're a full-time range for some.
SPEAKER_00:From there, uh yeah, from there, yes. Uh it was it was early days, just skipping through it. Uh went to college at Montana State University, uh, was a county extension for agent for a while, and fell into marketing, if you will, because of my entrepreneurial spirit. Uh, started a rope company, uh, had that for 10, 12, 15 years, then uh uh sold that back and uh went on and became a director of marketing at Montana, ultimately uh ending up my career there as a chief marketing officer. So, how did I do it? I followed my passion. And it's that's my advice. Uh, if you follow your passion, you're gonna find your purpose. And all of it has been due to storytelling and really sharing uh values, I guess. I think that's really important as we market ourselves, our brands, our organizations, is to follow your roots and your values.
SPEAKER_02:What was it about working at Montana Silversmiths where you felt like this was your passion and this was what you were meant to do? Was it the storytelling side of marketing? Was it just being in the corporate world? What was it that not only drew you there, but you were there for 24 years? Is that what it was? Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Uh, you know, it was it was coming off of owning your own business. And all of you who own your own business know the stresses of that and everything you have to do with that. It was being a rancher's daughter and sitting out in a hay field and seeing somebody drag by and waving and going. All those things kind of came into my mind. I remember the first six months, if you will, of working at Montana Silversmiths. I was introduced to artisans that I had no idea really used that. Even though when I owned Gator Ropes, I used Montana and other buckle companies for my awards, but to really meet the people behind it, to sit in the hallway and go, hey, I got a fresh start, and just really got ingrained into what I knew first, um, you know, because I didn't come in with a marketing degree. I didn't come in with a business degree. I came in with passion and storytelling, and what I started with that was, you know, knowing, you know, uh rodeo and event and the people I grew up with the farmers and ranchers. I will I'll tell a little story. I was at uh Mount City during the Buck and Horn sale helping sell Montana my very first day. It's like everybody needs to come in, everybody needs to come in. And I started watching people walk in and they were wearing our product. And I I just knew then that it was really important to talk to who really loves you and your product and your brand. So I guess my advice to people out there is know who you're talking to, know who they are, and use that small initial group to build from there to increase your influence, if you will. So it's very homegrown, very genuine in my nature, uh, if you will, and really was just storytelling one on top of another.
SPEAKER_03:Oh my goodness. I love that.
SPEAKER_00:It was it it was fun. And you know, I I guess uh I just come off of um going to an event uh in Lubbock, Texas for Ag Women Connect, and I had an opportunity to visit with many lovely people there, and really uh one of my main messages there and for people and advice if I can go with it is the people we meet in our lives sometimes can teach us so much. And even if they're not there for a long time, we have to be observant to who's coming in and who's going out and what we can learn through those people. In addition to that, the um circumstances that we're put in often teach us, you know, so the highs and the lows of business or just life in general, my losing my father or you know, whatever happens in your life, getting bucked off in the branding pen. I've done that too. And breaking your femur. Whatever this is changes who we are, and we can learn from that and get through it, uh believe me. And then uh the events in your life, you know, um monumental things can change us and should change us to keep growing, to keep reaching, to keep doing more. And um, so that's all part of it. I summarized it. And so you you might need to I'll just keep talking about. So, anyhow, that was part of it, and I'm I'm just passionate about all of that.
SPEAKER_03:What did uh I love that? I'm so sorry, Ellie. When you worked with Montana, which um everybody knows that's like one of the greatest, you know, jewelry western companies in our uh world that we have. Everybody knows that Montana is. Um, what is like your day-to-day look like there? Like what was your like a normal day for Judy when she was there? And like what did she do? Or you know, how did you strategize? Like, just give us a little background of that.
SPEAKER_00:That is a really good question. I think it all comes from need and understanding again who your customers are. And so we we have a thing there, you know, like it's the people, and it really is the people behind the product that helps you. Then it is the products, and the products can give you stories. The products answer a need, if you will, hopefully. Uh, for us, uh, we fish uh our 50th anniversary was a couple of years ago, and really understanding what Montana brought to the game was that you can find Montana when people are celebrating what matters. So for us, you know, celebrating throughout the year, figuring out what that is, Mother's Day, Valence Day, Christmas, whatever, and really building into those particular things is how I kind of segmented the year for marketing or whatever. And then if you come out with a brand new product, you know, uh figuring again, you know, who it could fit, the program, so that it'd be your retailers or associations or the general public, how you fit into that telling the story. Um, and then again, you know, the partnerships that we establish throughout our lives, you know, from our vendors to our customers who really are a partner in building our brands and really understanding that. So it's very um, again, realistic in the approach. Um, you can't do everything for everybody and really understanding what you can do and excel there.
SPEAKER_02:What I think is so interesting about the time frame of your career is when you started to when you finished, essentially a whole new world began, which was social media. So that wasn't there in the beginning of your career, and then it, you know, at the end of your career, it was obviously it's a huge part of it. So, what was it like transitioning from pre-social media to post social media?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. Okay, here's the thing, ladies. When I came in, when I owned gator ropes, no such things as computers. I did everything by hand. If somebody called it was marked, like literally marked ropes, you know, one, one, one, craft, five, you know, that kind of thing. So I'm coming to Montana, that was uh 2000. And uh when I came there, uh there was no such thing as email. We had Office memos. That was in 2000, shortly after that email, website. We were a little late coming to the game with website again, you know, trying to figure out our place as a retail manufacturer, selling to stores versus consumers, all of that. So that was bit. And I remember in 2010 uh hearing from one of the board members asking me what my uh social media strategy was. And I remember saying, What social media? I mean, seriously, going to a library, going to a library to try to learn about Facebook. Uh, I was lucky to have uh surrounded myself with people, younger people that, you know, kind of grew up with it. But talk about changing how you tell your story, uh, the speed of it, the need for photo shoots back in the early days, one great shot or three great shots could push your marketing in the ads that we did on our catalog at that time. And now there is a need for so many different uh uh the collateral is just mind-blowing. So the speed got a lot faster. And think about it, that was in 24 years. Can you imagine in the next 24 years? Uh uh I just can't. I just the thing is, you know, to to find a balance for each of you, younger and when you're coming at, you know, family, faith, uh, and your work balance, and then really going into keeping it, I guess, a little more focused, like where you want to be, because again, you can't be everything to everybody. That's too hard.
SPEAKER_03:I know I feel like that right now with um AI. Like, I feel like I need to like stay in the game with it because now that's a new thing that we're introduced to. So I mean, Ali and I have seen social media grow. Like I remember having my first I was so excited we were in um high school and only selected a few because we got into university got to have a Facebook because you couldn't have Facebook unless you had uh a college email first, you know. And I remember that was like back then. And so now, you know, like with the whole AI stuff happening, I'm like, okay, this is a new chapter in a new decade that's about to begin.
SPEAKER_00:That was a very thoughtful question because you could think about it, it was the internet and digital social media at that time, and now A AI and what that can do, good and bad, that can help us or or not. That's it, really is. We are sitting in, you know, a new era here. You are whatever, and um, it is a big deal. I I think that's a good direction for you to go there, yes.
SPEAKER_03:You too, though. I feel like I'm seeing you still everywhere. So, like your career isn't over by any means because I am seeing you um working on some projects. I am seeing you a part of our world still. So, Judy, tell us what more projects you're a part of.
SPEAKER_00:That's really funny because I have my family asking me the same thing on it. And uh uh I just wanted to share uh as a team roper or whatever, one of my endorsees uh with gator ropes was Jake Barnes. And uh I went to a couple of these different uh roping schools in an early age that are during our career when he was an endorsee. And I remember him saying to me, I must have said something bad in the arena. He goes, Judy, you don't ever quit until you're in the catch pen. And my son was asking me the other day, and he goes, Mom, you know, you're as busy now as you've ever been. And uh I said, Yes, I said, uh I said, remember, Jake, I'm not quitting until I'm in my catch pen. So right now, what am I doing? I'm following my passion. You know, I'm I I am. I'm lucky enough to still help and support with the Montana Silversmith and the team there. Uh, and then follow some of the other uh projects with them and and for myself for things like 30 under 30, the amazing women. I I want to stand back, and and this advice to all women out there, you know, we're not in competition with each other. I love to stand back and cheer for others. We are stronger together, and as we help each other up, as we support each other, we become better and it comes back to you tenfold. I love Art of the Cowgirl. I was a close friend with Tammy Pate. I've been involved with that since the beginning and continue putting on some workshops and just supporting that community. Um let me see what else. 30 under 30, Art of the Cowgirl.
SPEAKER_02:What about your can you tell us about your nice job cowgirl movement? I mean, it really is like a movement. Tell us about the, you know, how that came up and what that means and you know how yeah, just how it even became a thing.
SPEAKER_00:Well, thank you for asking. Here's the deal. I believe that God uses ordinary thing people to do extraordinary things sometimes. I feel like I'm one of those, but I grew up on a ranch, you know, so I've never thought of myself like this. But again, when I shared with you, when people come into our lives to pay attention, I had volunteered for a sidewalking job uh for uh to help out my daughter's good friend with some development disabled folks. So I'm walking along with this gal, she's probably 30, 35. They're asking her to do different stations, she's reacting and doing it, doing a great job. We come to a platform. They asked her to dismount. She wouldn't. She refused. And then she reached down and she put her arms around this horse and said, Nice job, cowboy, nice job. It gave me shivers because when I was sitting there, she didn't know I was listening. But what it said to me was, Oh my gosh, I can't think of a better compliment. And then I go, I hope when I go to heaven, I hear God say, Nice job, cowgirl, nice job. So when that happened, then I'm going, oh, and social media digital was kind of going, I'm going, well, maybe I'll just start telling people that, you know, and then I'm going, oh, that sounds kind of hokey. And then I went, no, it doesn't. Okay. Fast forward then I started doing it. And then fast forward, you know, to uh late 2023, and I'm headed to the NFR for the last time as the chief marketing officer, Natalie McFarland called me uh and said, Hey, I cut this wild idea. Uh and Callie and I, who's the director uh of events for Montana Silversmouth, talked from a dream last night at 3 a.m. that we need to tell, take video of people talking about you. And I said, No, no, what do you want to do that? So, anyhow, long story short, she does it. She gets done with the NFR. She says, I think this can be a feature documentary. I think this could be a feature film. I said, No chance in heck. I said, I don't even know what anybody's saying here. Only I didn't say that. I said, I don't, ah, I don't even know what anybody's talking about. So no. And anyhow, uh, she says, I'm gonna put it together. So she puts it together, and I'm going, is anybody gonna watch this? I mean, it's just a story, you know. And she goes, Yeah, I think we need a premiere. And I said, What do you think? And she so we got together. We're gonna have a premiere in Las Vegas at South Point, because you know, thanks to all our friends at South Point there, and I go, and was sure enough, we did last year. What's the story behind it? When it all said and done, we can never underestimate the power of planting seed. What that did was show that good works and really being kind to people, a fist pump to Kennedy Riggs. She remembered that, you know, like we didn't say a word, we just fist pumped. Little things make a big difference. And so for me, yes, it is kind of a movement. Nice job, Cowgirl is my platform right now. It's to share, you know, that we can be good to each other and that what we do each and every day really does matter.
SPEAKER_03:I love that so much. That's so great, Judy. That's like you gave me chills telling that story as well.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, thank you. Yes, and and and can you think about it? She had no idea. And that her saying that would end up in a feature film, or that I would be out there talking about it, she would never, never know. And so, was that my message? Was I to really be paying attention that day? Because I could have just let it go and not have it mean so much inside my heart. You know what I'm saying?
SPEAKER_02:Oh, yeah, I'm I got tears over here. I'm trying to try to hold it together after that one. But what what um is also so incredible is just, and I'm just curious about this. Your love of storytelling. Is that something that you've studied? I mean, I because I've recently been more and more fascinated with storytelling. I've been reading books on it and learning more of the art of storytelling. And I just was curious, is it is this something that, you know, is is just naturally part of your life, or did you fall in love with it in, you know, in some kind of educational aspect, or how did storytelling get so important to you?
SPEAKER_00:Uh like I I think I have a natural art. Like I remember uh naming my dad's horse Sunfisher because it kind of pranced or whatever, and my dog back then was Ace. And so I did it as a young age, and then I just would tell people, you know, use humor or tell stories to explain, you know, what I was trying to get across sometimes. But again, you know, just things stick out, and I love weaving those stories into business a little bit, so I'm continually doing it. So uh most recently, you know, I had to decide what I was gonna do with my life, and I said, What are you really good at? Like I had a heart to heart with myself. Like, what you know, like I'm really not an educated marketing person. I just grew up in it, if you will. And and in my heart to heart, I said, You are a storyteller, and you might as well leverage that. And so as I started to put together the workshops for Art of the Cowgirl and various things I went to, there was a common thread in my storytelling from using purple cows, if you will, to create better progress. And what I mean by that was something that pushes a product to the edge and makes it more. For instance, Montana Silversmith uh D-Box presentation box that they give the buckles away came from a book I read uh by Seth Godin called Free Prize Inside. You do something extra that makes your products mean more, or with Gator Ropes, it was a little gaiter, uh, or with our product Elmer was a mascot, or even in doing something to give back to uh the industry, like our Pursuit of Excellence scholarship program, which really came self-funded in through trophy sales and later the hat feather. Now we're in our 20th year at Montana Sobersmith giving scholarships back to people. So there was always a story, and then take something to the edge and make it more, make it better. So it was an evolution. Again, I didn't really know I was doing it, so now I'm just going, oh, and then to your point, now it's kind of chic to tell stories that are going, ah, think about it. The greatest stories ever told was the Bible. How'd they do that? They told stories and they told it over, over, over and again. Or our grandparents are sitting on the porch. How treasured is it to have a story? How rich is their history, how rich is what they're saying. And so all of that plays into uh, you know, it's not so much the stuff we sell anymore, it's it's that story of how it ties to me emotionally that makes it so much better. And that really is, you know, like if once we take it off that, and again, looking at our customers or looking at them as partners and telling things to them that mean something, that's that's what's truly rich and really important today.
SPEAKER_03:That's so beautiful because it's so rare. Like what you said when you said it's it's treasured. It's kind of sad to admit that like these days now the stories are getting lost. And so those moments that we treasure and this, you know, you trying to relay that in a product, it's like not having that we're losing that emotional bond or attachment now. It just kind of just goes, you know, in the fast lane and having those stories is so touching, Judy.
SPEAKER_00:So here's the other thing, you know, with AI right now, you know, it's faster, you can get information on there, but it will never have your voice. It will never have that emotional pride. So that's where the magic comes, marrying that up so that you still stand out. You have the edge, if you will, coming in there because it won't. It can't. So rich stories, authentic stories, genuine people telling that is where the power comes from, I believe, in looking at it from my viewpoint. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I I also love how you said you use storytelling sometimes to get a point your point across, even in business, because the world moves so fast. Like we're in and out of meetings, we're in and out of this, we're checking our emails, we're on the phones. And what storytelling does, and why I like how you brought this up, is it almost makes everybody slow down for a second and pay attention to something that's not the normal noise. And I think it's so captivating, and just to hear that you were naturally talented at this is one of the most like to use the word again, treasure skills that people can have this day and age because it's just constant swiping, constant noise, and and storytelling makes you go it like perks your ears up and you and you get lost in the moment of the story, and it makes the message so much stronger.
SPEAKER_00:It's easier to remember too. You'll buzzwords out there uh but when you touch your heart and you tell that, then it's easier to remember you. It's easier to remember your brand, it's easier to remember um by using a story.
SPEAKER_02:I was just gonna say, I know you have some do you have some events coming up that um or like what are what you know, I know you mentioned the art of the cowgirl. What like how can people catch up with you in the like end of 2025, 2026? Where can we find you? I know there's gonna be a lot of people that are gonna rush over to your socials and follow you on there. So let us know what's what's Gary.
SPEAKER_00:Uh yeah, I just did mind dropping when I started dabbling at that. Remember, I have people that have helped me there, uh, but I do have a website and uh it's just JW Judy Wagner. And um I I like LinkedIn uh business-wise, uh, I found that very valuable a little bit on Facebook. So I was dabbling in Instagram. So I'm I'm out both of them either as um Nice Job Cowgirl or Judy Wagner. Um and as for most recently, I'll be headed um to um NFR and supporting Montana there and doing that the entire of course. Uh my nephew Ty Erickson uh is back uh for the stir wrestling, and of course I'll be there cheering him on and all of that uh with family and friends. And then for Art of the Cowgirl, uh uh I am on the board for uh the foundation there, and uh I'll be there also with a workshop in February um for that. So uh, you know, it's pretty simple, uh I guess, just follow my passion, and I really thank uh you guys for asking. Um and and again, uh I just want to leave you with a message, you know, like your own good deeds, the seeds that you are doing with your business in this are really important. And I've I've just seen it grow, and so I encourage you to keep that and just keep on keeping on.
SPEAKER_03:Thank you. We're gonna have to have you help us with some 30 over 30 stuff as well.
unknown:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:You need to get perfect.
SPEAKER_00:I'm gonna leave with one thing too, if that's okay. I got one deal. My hat. Nice ladies. You know, it's like just okay if I wear my cowboy hat, you know, and I want to share with everybody, you know, part of the reason it took me a little while to figure that, but without this hat, I am a maturing woman. And uh under this hat, my stories are always better, but it is like my power. It it gives me the strength to carry on. Um so tip my hat to you girls and keep on.
SPEAKER_02:I love it. Judy, I just want to say, have you thought of starting your own podcast?
SPEAKER_00:Seriously. Uh the the company did, and uh that's possible. You know, I I kind of tried to wear it away from it um only because I wear hearing aids. I call them Pete and Repeat, and I I don't want to ever miss things or not be able to hear, or like my family says, you know, miss a joke or come back in on it. So I've stepped back from it, but uh uh you know, I do feel that I'm supposed to share uh what I'm doing here. And um I don't know, I kind of again make fun of myself, but um there is a there is a nun back in the day, her name was Mother Angelica, and she actually started her own like um radio kind of thing, talking and doing this. She had super let uh humor and whatever. And I was started laughing at her, and you know, I thought of that as a young woman, you know, I just remembered some of her stories or whatever, and then I come in and I go, Oh my gosh, I'm turning into the Mother Angelica of the Western industry. I don't know what that means, but I do know I need to share my stories. I do know um that I can be of value in whatever way that is. So uh I just uh intend to do that. Um my heart, you know, I in wherein if if you work for Montana Silversmith, your brun your blood runs blue. It'll always run blue with that. I'm I'm very passionate that I can still support that and then be able to encourage mentor and to speak with others. So wherever that takes me, I'm I'm just gonna be there.
SPEAKER_03:I feel like a book is in the works, maybe too.
SPEAKER_00:I I did do a little bit of writing. I need to editor really bad. Like it's in like my own sentences, you know. Like I carry on, oh look at my hat here, you know, I don't finish sentences and I do whatever, but uh I do love to weave stories together and do it with a business twist. So we'll see what happens there.
SPEAKER_02:Well, I'm just gonna close us out by saying thank you so much, Judy, for being here. And we are just thrilled that we were able to speak to you and get your story for the Western Life and Style Trailblazers podcast. And we will certainly see you soon at one of our events. And just again, thank you for joining us.