Signs That Built A Town

Farmington’s streets are a living portfolio of local work, and Ram Studios has quietly shaped that look for 36 years. We sat down with Mike and Monica Mordecki to hear how a family-owned sign company goes from one early job and pure word of mouth to producing everything from vinyl decals and vehicle wraps to monument signs, pole signs, and major rebrands across the Four Corners.

We get specific about what “making signs” actually means: scheduling installers across a 250 to 300 mile radius, lining up digs and concrete, managing travel, keeping crews productive, and navigating permits and municipal regulations that can change from town to town. They also share why administration often becomes the real engine of a successful custom signage business, and how they’ve had to evolve their systems and project management software as their workload and complexity grew.

The conversation moves into the modern sign industry, where CNC routing, robotic letter systems, LED message centers, and subscription-based software have replaced the older hand-painted world. One of the most useful takeaways for any business owner is their marketing lens: a sign is advertising, and advertising goes invisible when it never changes. We also talk about the hardest part of leadership, the challenge of employees, and the long-game lesson of building a life that includes time away from work.

If you care about small business, local branding, and what it takes to grow in Farmington NM and the Four Corners region, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a local owner who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Be sure to follow or subscribe!  And, if you're a local business owner who'd like to be featured - or know someone whose story should be told - get in touch at Ken@StrategicHorizonsConsulting.com

This show is brought to you by Strategic Horizons Consulting (a division of Ken Collins Marketing).

Transcript

Why Ram Studios Matters Locally

SPEAKER_03 0:00

If you've driven around Farmington in the last 35 36 years, this year is 36, chances are you've seen their work. From the big pole signs downtown to the vinyl decals on local delivery trucks, Ram Studios has been making businesses visible for decades. Ram Studios started back in 1990 as a full service electric and neon sign company. These days, they've got an 18,500 square foot facility where they manufacture everything from simple vinyl decals to massive monument and pole signs. They've done work for major clients like Wells Fargo, handling sign rebrands across multiple branches in the city. What really makes them stand out is that they've stayed local. This is a farmington business. It's been run by the same community-minded team for over three decades. They've got a reputation for being responsive, reliable, and willing to think outside the box to get customers exactly what they need. And here's the thing in a world where big corporations often grab the headlines, it's the locally owned shops like Ram Studios that really hold a community together. They're the ones making sure every local business gets a chance to stand out. So let's talk to the team at Ram Studios, the sign makers behind so many of the faces and businesses we see every day in the four corners. So introduce yourselves.

SPEAKER_01 1:26

My name is Monica Mordeki.

SPEAKER_03 1:28

Cool.

SPEAKER_01 1:29

I am a part owner of the company. And we've been together now going on 34 years, and the company's 36 years, like you mentioned. So we've been together through the thick of it.

SPEAKER_03 1:48

Yeah, yeah, you have.

SPEAKER_02 1:49

For that long. Yeah. I'm Mike Mordeki. So I started the company with my parents back in 1990. And I've been with the company obviously ever since. Monica actually joined the company in about 2000, if I'm 2001. 2001. So but I have been here from the very inception of it. Yeah. And that kind of all started when we all worked at a different sign company years ago and got the idea that we wanted to do our own thing. And a lot of um evenings, um, chatting and plotting and coming

Meet Monica And Mike Mordeki

SPEAKER_02 2:30

up with this idea and the scheming and all of it turned into um came to fruition in 90. And uh actually my dad ended up starting it um with five kids still at home. I was the only one that was out of my own at that time. And um he started it all out with basically about a one job over in the uh Bloomfield High School auditorium was a mural that he did on a wall there. Nice. And it was about a $3,500 job, and that kind of got him his start. Wow. And then after that, it was just a matter of getting more work, word of mouth. Everything was word of mouth back then. Yeah. It was literally canvassing the town. Yeah. It was just getting our name out there well long before any kind of electronic media. Yeah, we didn't have money to spend on advertising, so you just you hoofed it and you and you mouthed it basically. Yeah. And that's how you got your name out there. And really all it was was just kind of like, hey, can you give me a um, you know, a uh a good recommendation if I do your job, if I send somebody, you know, hey, can you call this guy a reference? You know, yeah. That's how it started.

SPEAKER_03 3:41

Absolutely. So so thinking back to those those first days, maybe the first day, um, what inspired you? I know you didn't start the business yourself, but what inspired you to decide that this is what you were going to do?

SPEAKER_02 3:59

Well, um, all of us, my folks and I, were the three that started it. We actually did start it all together. And um at that point in the game, we had all had a history of being in the sign industry. And my dad started out as an artist, commercial artist. Um, he spent time in the military doing uh renderings and drafting, technical drawings, that sort of thing. Yeah. So that was kind of his field of expertise. And so being an artist and a technical drawing um individual, he was quite capable of producing what was necessary to make the we we hand drew all of the sketches back in the day, right? Presented them to people. Right. And so at that point, he had many years under his belt, and he was also a hand sign painter, lettering with you know the the brush and the paints and stuff. Right. And so at that point, that was just at the infancy of all of the computerized equipment. We did still did most everything was just done by hand. Yeah. At that point. Wow. Yeah, it was it was a desire to just do our own thing under our own terms and just kind of chart our own course. That's really where it came from.

SPEAKER_03 5:09

Absolutely. Was there a a moment that you can remember from those first days when when you thought, you know what, this might actually work?

SPEAKER_02 5:20

Um, I think honestly, I guess with myself anyway, I believe I was 20 when we started, 2021, right in that neighborhood. So probably a lot of ignorance is bliss mentality. Sure. And and the folks, they had a family at home, so there was really a lot writing on their success. Me, I was a single guy, about the only thing I had was a car payment and my rent for my apartment. Had a roommate, so life was real simple for me back then. Yeah. Um, but them, yeah, it was a different story. They had to make it. And so I think really what it was is it was kind of when you step out on the edge and you know, well, I'm stepping out here, there ain't no turning back. I just have to make it work. Sure. So that's kind of what our mentality always was. We we always had the mentality we would do what it takes to get it done. Um, myself, I ended up working for the company for free for the first year. Okay. All the money went to my folks because they had the family. Right. So what I did was I cleaned floors at night. Okay. So that's how I made enough money just to survive as a young guy. Yeah. So kept it simple that way.

SPEAKER_03 6:27

To take on a second job so that you

Starting A Sign Shop In 1990

SPEAKER_03 6:30

could stay in the business that you helped start. Exactly.

unknown 6:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 6:35

That is a business owner's journey right there. It is. Yeah. It really is.

SPEAKER_01 6:39

And what finally led to them paying you?

SPEAKER_02 6:43

Well, I right along that time period, I met Monica, and it was kind of a situation where, well, I'm starting my own little young family here. So I told my mom, it says, Hey, I I gotta make a little bit of money, you know, working, working for the company. And so I guess it was about a year or so. And then she's like, I think we can finally afford to to give you a paycheck. So then I was able to just dedicate all of my time straight to the company without having to do the second job.

SPEAKER_03 7:11

Sure. So cool. If you could go back um and tell yourself one thing before all of this got started, what would that be?

SPEAKER_02 7:22

That's a tricky question. I think I don't know that I would tell myself this because I probably would have found an exit door if I told myself this. But I think the one thing that youth and inexperience gives to a person, like referencing back to the ignorance as bliss statement earlier, is is that I always just knew it was gonna work. I still know it's just gonna work. I just know it is, yeah. And I think a lot of that just comes down to the idea that if you are willing to put in the work, do what you have to do, and not get too off the path, so to speak, in your personal life and in your business life, yeah, then you're gonna make it. You just gotta keep your nose to that grind and you gotta just keep your eyes looking forward. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 8:14

Focus.

SPEAKER_02 8:14

Yeah, focus. Yeah. So back to your question, um, what I wouldn't tell myself is is about all of the things that uh create a lot of hardship and stress in your life that comes with all of this stuff, because then a person may say, I don't know if I want to do that or not.

SPEAKER_03 8:30

I wonder how many business owners would actually make that same decision. Like, no, man, I'm not gonna say, I'm not gonna go back and tell myself anything or else I wouldn't be here.

SPEAKER_02 8:39

And I think it pretty well sums it up. I just, I just hadn't, I would have to let it be what it is. Because I I don't think that there's anything that um I regret doing along the way. It's just it was simply that whole guided tour, self-guided tour through that experience and that journey. That, man, I mean, you just you learn from mistakes, you learn from experience, you learn from others. If you're in in tune and you have an open mind, you listen to other people. I can honestly say that I've learned a tremendous amount of knowledge, life experience, all of that from my customers and from my employees. Yeah. Because everybody has their own way of looking at life. Yeah, definitely. So if you're willing to open your mind up and your eyes and ears up and listen and learn, you learn. Yeah. Outstanding.

SPEAKER_03 9:34

So what um what's a typical day behind the counter look like?

SPEAKER_01 9:39

What day of the week do you want to know about?

SPEAKER_02 9:41

Mondays are always worse than any other day.

SPEAKER_03 9:43

Yeah, sure.

SPEAKER_02 9:46

Well, I'll let you talk a little bit about like our day-to-day. Just since this is the freshest day.

SPEAKER_01 9:54

Yeah, it's just with scheduling jobs, out-of-town jobs, because we cover a good oh 250 mile radius or so. Okay. And there's just certain jobs that there's digs to coordinate concrete, trying to find different like equipment that might be needed for excavation so we don't have to haul our stuff over a pass or whatever. It's just a lot of back and forth. It's finding rooms for our guys, it's trying to get everything to line up just right for the dig, the concrete, the, you know, making sure they're productive and not just waiting around. Sure. So it takes it takes a lot of scheduling and and that's not our only job. You can see we're in our conference room, so you can see all of our jobs that we've got all in the works.

SPEAKER_04 10:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:46

That people want to know when their stuff's gonna get done. So we're we're running. This is our uh biggest crew we've had in a long time. We now have about 21 people. Wow, with about three of them being part-timers. So it just trying to manage people and get illness out of the picture. That's usually what rocks our boat pretty good. Is yeah, the flu bug went through several in our shop this last week, two weeks. So that kind of dominoed, and that was kind of tough last week.

SPEAKER_02 11:23

You have to shift gears pretty quick. You do make changes.

SPEAKER_03 11:26

That's rough. That's what one of those things I don't feel that um enough people are told, you know, when they're setting up a business and putting employees in place, that yeah, you want to make sure they show up and there's things you can do to make sure they show up and on their days that are supposed to be scheduled and show up on time and you know, all that kind of thing. But then boom, five people are sick. Half your workforce is down, you know.

SPEAKER_01 11:50

Well, especially what we do are installers. Yeah, you know, then the the work can't get in installed. And last week it was one of my gals at front and she was out the whole week, and yeah, it just it just when it goes through, it just yeah, it can wipe us out really quick. But you know, there's enough of us that we try and just juggle and we do our best. Sometimes we have to reschedule things, yeah, you know, and stuff like that. But every day here is eventful. It's always something different. It's making sure I've got somebody here for deliveries

Stress Grit And Learning Fast

SPEAKER_01 12:30

because we get signs that are delivered to us that we install for other companies. We're right in the middle of a bunch of uh gas station conversions. Cool. Marathons to Sinclair's and 13, 12 stores, I think is what we have left. And trying to keep all the signage for each location organized is a challenge in itself and stuff. So yeah, I mean it's just there's there's just a lot going on.

SPEAKER_03 12:59

And now you also having to navigate like um because you you have a a real especially for a local company, a relatively large area that you're servicing, um, like county and municipal regulations, um, stuff like that.

SPEAKER_02 13:15

That is an almost full-time job for somebody into themselves. We actually have probably four, maybe five of the staff that handle that at any given time. So everyone kind of handles their own job. They manage their own job. So our salespeople typically will sell the work and somewhat manage that job all the way through. Gotcha. And that means a lot of coordination, like Monica spoke about earlier when we've got something happening. We've got a job in Monta Vista, Colorado, where we're doing a dollar general general installation up there. And man, the hoops you got to jump through, you got to get permits done, you got to get you know, all the one calls done, you got to get air, all the ducks in a row before you can even think about getting rooms for your crew and then nailing a target date. Yeah. And then you've got them putting the heat on you because the store's gonna be opening next week. So yeah, right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:13

And with new construction, it's coordinating with the general contractor and making sure we're not there when they're trying to do paving or you know, things that just can throw a wrench in our schedule and to travel that far, that's huge.

SPEAKER_04 14:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:29

That's a big inconvenience if we can't get our own. You gotta make sure it's right when we get there.

SPEAKER_03 14:34

So that's a lot of time. Just that's on the clock that nothing's being done, just getting there and getting back.

SPEAKER_01 14:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:42

So efficiency is very important in this business, as as in any business.

SPEAKER_03 14:46

Yeah, sure. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 14:48

Well, and it's cool to see, you know, the different things that um we've done, you know, through the years, and you know, we have uh developed quite a c customer base all over the place. The reservation, the you know, um, because that's big in itself, the Navajo reservation.

SPEAKER_03 15:11

Do you occasionally find yourself doing this? So this is a thing that my my wife used to do. We'd drive through town and and she's just pointing out both sides of the road. I help finance that building. And that building.

SPEAKER_02 15:23

And that building. Oh, yeah, and that building personal connection. Yeah, yeah. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:26

I mean, you've been doing this for long enough. It's like I told her, it'd probably be easier if you just point out the ones that you didn't do. That'd be less pointing.

unknown 15:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:37

Yeah, it's um it's it's pretty neat. Um, and you know we don't have everything documented like picture-wise. You know, when the business first started, a lot of it was Polaroids.

SPEAKER_04 15:52

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 15:53

You know, or going and getting a disposable camera, taking your pictures, developing them. And a lot of times those got sent off to the company that hired us to do where photos we sent in for proof of completion.

SPEAKER_02 16:08

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 16:08

And then you had your little digital cameras that came around, and you know, just the whole way of communicating with clients. Before, I mean, there was email, you were sending letters back and forth and faxing and you know, stuff like that. And now everything's just with email, but there are a few places that still do not accept emails for like they want you to drive it down, they want you to meet in person. Wow. And talk about an expense that gets passed down to the customer because they won't accept an email.

SPEAKER_03 16:48

I was gonna say, is that something that you're billing?

SPEAKER_01 16:50

We have to do that.

SPEAKER_03 16:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:52

You have gas. I mean, our local dealing with the city of Farmington, they are awesome.

SPEAKER_02 16:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:58

You know, they are quick. Not everybody is that way.

SPEAKER_02 17:02

Right. It is definitely a learned um environment when it comes down to the whole regulatory um world. You you get somebody and you get a great working relationship with them, and then they move on or not, they move away, what have you, and then you're starting all over again with somebody new, and it's like, oh my goodness. It can be a challenge. Yeah for sure. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:26

What what do you what part of the business do you think takes the most time or energy?

SPEAKER_01 17:33

My job. No, I'm just kidding.

SPEAKER_02 17:37

Um administration is very is very heavy in this business in a lot of ways, just because um having done this as long as we have, um we all are capable and we all produce signs. Um personally, I started out as a sheet metal fabricator and welder, all that sort of thing. I'm still capable of doing that. I still have to do that sometimes when I need calls for it. But back to the administrative thing, um, it's like everything from all of the coordination to the employee management to just that flow of information from salesperson to production to installation to final completion, all that stuff. You just have to be you're you're that orchestra conductor. Sure. We all play that role in a lot of ways because if we don't, it can really just kind of stagnate and sit in a little spot in the shop and not get moved down the line like it needs to. Right. So, yeah, that's probably the the thickest part of this business is just administrating all of that stuff. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 18:46

Well, and I I have a bookkeeper that has been with us since it started. Which has been pretty awesome because she's seen it grow from the beginning and still with me today.

SPEAKER_03 18:57

Yeah, she knows every aspect of the books at this point.

SPEAKER_01 19:00

And so, you know, I go to her with a lot of questions sometimes because she's been here the longest and knows, you know, she's very, very smart lady. And um, if I didn't have her helping me in my office, I probably would have I don't know, it just it takes a lot. I would definitely need f several assistants in there.

SPEAKER_04 19:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:26

But you know, when it's talking when you're managing your money and

Scheduling Crews Across A Wide Radius

SPEAKER_01 19:30

how you do things, it's just um, you know, trust comes into play.

SPEAKER_04 19:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:36

You know, being able to trust whoever you put in there and you know, and so it just I don't know, it just works great the way we've got it so far, so good, you know. But I I always have something to do in my office. Yeah. I'm never sitting there twiddling my thumbs or anything. And usually, I mean, we started a workout schedule, Mike and I personal, and so at five o'clock we gotta get out of here, which that's never been us before. Yeah. We're usually here seven, eight o'clock at night. Sure. Just taking care of business. Yeah. So we just had to do this for our health.

SPEAKER_04 20:15

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 20:15

Because that's important, not letting that get neglected and trying to get control of that, and and still everything's working out. So you know it's it's good.

SPEAKER_03 20:28

I struggled with that myself, yeah. Where I need to back away from it and say, hop on the treadmill. I'm thinking, uh yeah, but let me just do this one more thing, and three hours later it's all I know.

SPEAKER_01 20:43

That's me in my office because not only is it managing the company and making sure the bills are paid and employees are paid and all of that, I'm still involved in graphic design and helping customers and you know, helping some of the other um employees with things that they might not quite know how to do.

SPEAKER_04 21:08

Right.

SPEAKER_01 21:08

Um, we just there's a lot of call for people needing signs.

SPEAKER_04 21:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:15

You know, and so it's like, yeah, I try to juggle and you know, not drop any balls. So occasionally a ball or two gets dropped.

SPEAKER_03 21:24

But do you have, I'm sure uh you have to have processes, you've got those, but do you have um uh like systems or or software or anything like that that kind of helps you manage all of this? We do, like project management software.

SPEAKER_02 21:40

Um to a degree. We've actually begun to create, we've tried, we've dabbled into a lot of different softwares over the years, tried them out. Um, and we I'm gonna say we were fairly statically oriented, like with the boards and that sort of thing for many years. We've we had some. Systems in place that just worked quite well. And then when you get into a situation where you've just got too many projects going on, you got to digitalize it. You've got to just turn it into something that. So our daughter is currently working on something back to the we've tried a bunch of things before. They didn't really work for what we do because we're not a typical sign company. Sure. Uh we delve a lot more into the construction realm of life than just a straight up sign company does. And so that being said, yes, we've but we've kind of started to develop our own using some other platforms to integrate into what we do.

SPEAKER_03 22:36

Right. Yeah. But you got a lot of systems. Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_02 22:39

It gets too overwhelming.

SPEAKER_03 22:40

Definitely. Yeah. Um, how do how do customers typically find you? You mentioned word of mouth, and I mean you guys have been around for a long time, but Farmington's been changing over the last couple of decades at least. And and so I consistently run across people I've never met before in my life in this town.

SPEAKER_04 23:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 23:01

And and that's on a consistent basis. It's kind of like there's only so many people here. I've got to meet them all eventually, but I just don't.

SPEAKER_01 23:09

So how I think what has helped um us, and I I I have to give it to um our daughter, Jasmine Mordeki. She has joined the Red Coats, so she's part of that. And then uh Glory May, Quintana, is also a Red Coat member and also the president of the Red Coats right now. Nice. So they are involved in a lot of those community events, new ribbon cuttings that are happening for businesses opening up.

SPEAKER_04 23:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:42

Um people are like, oh, oh, that's you guys. Oh, oh, I do need a sign, or you know, just different things that it seems like signage is always the last thing that gets remembered when people are doing a business plan, you know. It's like, oh yeah. But with them being out in the community, um, they're starting to get well known, you know, for you know, if you need a sign, call them, you know. Or and there's those other companies that are um like in some of the other things that the chamber will put on. Um but um so you know, just it's a lot of it's word of mouth. And um just I think our 36 years of being in business is what's gotten us a lot of our regular customers.

SPEAKER_02 24:34

I'm gonna say um nowadays, of course, since you know, like things like yellow pages and print ad type things are, you know, pretty well passe at this point by several years. Yeah. Um, it used to be important for us to be in the yellow pages. Sure. Um, we never really pushed any sort of auxiliary advertising, radio or TV ads or anything like that. Never did that. One thing I have heard very consistently over the years is man, we see your trucks everywhere. So, well, that tells you what's what's on the side of it. There's a sign on the side of it. Yeah. If you saw our trucks, then you saw signs in action, right?

SPEAKER_03 25:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:14

So it's kind of an interesting thing because there's a crane up in the air and there's some activity. What's going on over there? It's different. So it catches the eye. Oh, Ram signs is putting someone's sign up. I wonder what's going in there. Right. That sort of thing. Yeah. Bring it into the modern world. I mean, obviously, like most folks, we've got we've had a website for as long as there's been that. Um, and we've got Facebook presence, we've got social media presence, we've got companies that kind of help us in that realm to try to keep it fresh. We partner with some of them that way.

SPEAKER_03 25:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:47

Um, so all that being said, we we always have tried to stay as plugged into the um the modern media scene to as much of a degree as we feel is necessary.

Permits Rules And Heavy Administration

SPEAKER_02 26:00

I have people asking me all the time about increasing sales and doing this, that, and the other, and all that stuff. And it's like, that's all cool, but what I really need is I really need some qualified employees, some more equipment to put them in and that sort of thing. Those are the those are the things that we really need in order to, you know, to solve our problems.

SPEAKER_03 26:19

Yeah. Yeah, you mentioned your own trucks, you know, as drivable billboards for you. I didn't actually realize um, I never thought of you guys as doing reps. And so I was looking through your website, and there's a bunch of trucks that I recognize that I see all the time around around town from other businesses that you guys did did the reps on them.

SPEAKER_02 26:43

So that goes back about 20 years ago when the whole wide format printing thing kind of hit the scene, 05, 06. I think we got our first machine in 06. Yeah. We got them right after they came out. Um, and that's when the whole rap thing started.

SPEAKER_03 27:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:01

But no, it's like it it changed like your typical van or pickup or what have you commercial vehicle from just a something with some wording and a phone number on the side of it. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. To uh, whoa, what was that that just went by me? A literal. We've all seen them for 20 years, so they're not as dramatic as what they used to be. They're still memorable. Yeah, they are. Yeah. Far more than something plain Jane.

SPEAKER_03 27:25

Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_01 27:26

That's definitely a great form of advertising, is those raps.

SPEAKER_03 27:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:31

And you know, it's something I have kind of developed in uh communicating with my customers is I try to make them understand that when they purchase a sign from us or a wrap, whatever thing it is that they purchase from us, they're not purchasing a tangible asset that appreciates and depreciates and the normal thing that you know business owners look at. You're purchasing advertising. Yeah. Yes, it's tangible. We build you a sign and you want it to last and you want it to look good as long as it can, but what you're really purchasing is advertising. That's exactly it. And you have to keep that advertising fresh and change it up once in a while. Because if you don't, it's like anything else. It blends into the surrounding environment and nobody pays any attention to it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:30

But you change it up, and then people notice it. Oh, whoa.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

I've tried to explain that concept to people, and it's really hard to get people to understand that it is that bit. I used to do a bunch of uh event marketing for the city for Parks and Rec. And and um people wanted the posters. Well, these division heads wanted their posters out a month ahead of time. I kept explaining it to them. You stick it out a month ahead of time, and no one's gonna show up because it's gonna be there for maybe two weeks before it just disappears. They're just no longer gonna see it. Now there's two weeks of time that they've forgotten. They've already forgotten the thing that's supposed to happen. And so that was my was adamant posters go up two weeks at a time.

SPEAKER_02 29:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 29:16

No earlier than two weeks.

SPEAKER_02 29:17

Yeah, there's a lot of psychology to it.

SPEAKER_03 29:19

Yeah. Yeah. And I I mean, I it happens a lot even without posters, just regular signs, you know. That was always the the joke, is we need to put up a sign because no one reads the signs. They've been there for 10 years and no one just sees them anymore. So you're not seeing the signs. It has to change. It does. Yeah. Yeah. So maybe, maybe instead of me repainting the oxidized paint job on my truck, I can just have you guys wrap it.

SPEAKER_01 29:49

No.

SPEAKER_03 29:51

Dang it. It's a caveat to that. Yes, you can, but the wrap won't stick if it's oxidized. Cute. Yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 30:02

That's uh we get that question asked a lot. We do, actually. Yeah. Oh well. And so it just, you know how when you touch it and it just leaves that chucky feel.

SPEAKER_03 30:12

Yeah, that's not good.

SPEAKER_01 30:14

So the vinyl just can't bond to that. Yeah. And so that's why it's like, yeah, no, sorry. You'd be wasting your money because it won't go right. Take it down to the street to auto specialties or yeah. What's Martine's. Touch a class. They'll hook you up with a nice.

SPEAKER_03 30:35

I've seen a couple of vehicles that people put uh covered the entire vehicle in truck bedliner. Oh, good.

SPEAKER_02 30:42

Spray on bedliner.

SPEAKER_03 30:43

Yeah. Just black and textured. Yeah. So weird. Guess if that's your thing.

unknown 30:51

Right.

SPEAKER_01 30:52

Because it gets scratched really easy.

SPEAKER_03 30:54

Yeah. So what's um what has surprised you the most about running this business? Oh, that's a good question.

SPEAKER_00 31:05

Mission of time flies. So I guess we're having fun.

unknown 31:10

Right.

SPEAKER_02 31:11

I don't know. I guess I'm gonna go back to something that I was thinking about earlier in the conversation. And I think what surprised me more than anything is how incredibly um technical this business has become um in terms of when we started out, we had a paintbrush, a a box of brushes, let's say, and we had multiple colors of paint. We had some basic hand tools. We started out with our little crane truck. Everything was very manually operated, um, integrated within the the system. And now just the amount of technology that our industry has come into. Um, everything is high tech in in this business. Um probably the most, the craziest thing has been the big giant digital screens that you see. Right. Because those things were they were around, they've been around a long time.

SPEAKER_01 32:15

He proposed to me on the first one in Farmington.

SPEAKER_02 32:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 32:17

Really? Mm-hmm. Oh. Have you lived here a long time? Uh uh, sort of. So um I grew up here, left in 89, and came back in 2003. So you just missed it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:31

So I proposed to her in '92. So the first sign was over there where uh there's a Jiffy Lube. It used to be called Lubentune.

SPEAKER_01 32:41

By uh Nissan, horse Nissan.

SPEAKER_02 32:43

Right.

unknown 32:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 32:44

So Animus Nissan Now. Put the sign up and proposed to her on it.

SPEAKER_03 32:48

She didn't know what I was gonna do with it.

SPEAKER_01 32:52

It was a nice surprise. It was very cool.

SPEAKER_03 32:54

That's awesome. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 32:55

I mean And those are just bulbs. At the time, those were literally little bulbs

Word Of Mouth And Community Visibility

SPEAKER_01 33:00

in them.

SPEAKER_03 33:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:01

And now they're like teeny, the color. Yeah, they're LEDs.

SPEAKER_02 33:08

Yeah. So yeah, back to that. I mean, the technical aspect of all of this stuff. I mean, we got into CNC routing equipment. We just bought oh, about this time last year, we just got a new robotic system for building our letters. Uh letters. Yeah. So it forms all of the returns around the letters. Yeah, so that kind of stuff. Um, yeah, it's just really interesting stuff.

SPEAKER_03 33:32

There aren't many things immune. Uh I mean, even in the sign business, you've gone from analog to digital. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 33:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 33:38

Even when the sign itself doesn't look like it's digital technology, it really kind of is. It was either made with or yeah.

SPEAKER_02 33:45

All of the artwork that originated it originated digitally. And yeah, and some process had its workings with that, however, it was the cuttings of the vinyl, the layout, whatever, it had that, it has that touch to it.

SPEAKER_03 34:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 34:01

And it's cool because we got to see that whole transition from that world into this world. And now we're like almost fully into the digital world with everything we do.

SPEAKER_01 34:10

Even the communication to the message centers is by cell phone now. So anywhere you have a cell signal, you can change your change your message on your. So if you're on vacation and you're on the other side of the world, you want to change your message, you can change that message.

SPEAKER_03 34:24

Changes it. Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 34:26

So it's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_03 34:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:28

Everything now has a monthly fee for programs. It's like man, I miss those days when you just bought the software and it lasted for a long time.

SPEAKER_03 34:38

Everything went to a subscription model.

SPEAKER_01 34:41

And now you're cloud-based and you have updates that just install, and sometimes that messes up your settings. And yeah. It's not a perfect thing, but it just yeah.

SPEAKER_03 34:52

It's the world we live in. It's the world we live in. That's right. Yeah. Um, what what part of the business has been the hardest to figure out?

SPEAKER_02 35:01

I would say um, for me personally, it has been the employee side of things. Um what I have really had to wrap my mind around, and this is something that as a business owner, no one will ever tell you because you just no one knows this until you start getting into it, is is that whole that world of employees, that world of how they work as people, that it sounds simple. It is far from simple. There, there are times when you're a mentor. Yeah, there are times when you have to discipline, there are times when you reward. There are all these times and all these things about employees that you just do not think about at all when you're starting out. And I I would say to be good at that really just requires an incredible amount of patience with your fellow man and woman, because it's like you just have to give them a lot of birth and leeway and grace a lot of times in life, because we set our expectations at one point and sometimes they're exceeded, sometimes they're they don't meet expectations, and I'd say the employee part of it. Yeah. It's the most challenging for me personally.

SPEAKER_03 36:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 36:32

I would have to agree.

SPEAKER_03 36:33

I think you're not alone in that. I I think that's for people with more than a couple of employees, um, that's probably the hardest part of their job for all the reasons you just mentioned.

SPEAKER_04 36:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 36:45

Just um I have struggled with that myself and in other situations where I'm a logical thinker. I'm natural with a computer and systems and processes and things like that. And I grew up in the military and everything was exacting. And so my brain just operates like a machine, and I forget that people aren't machines. And when they're not operating like I'm operating, I feel they're broken. And we fix that. Yeah, it's not always the best thing. So um I've had to I've had to to really work that out. And I've I'm there now, but uh, it took me a while. Took me a while to really figure that out. Yeah. Um, if you could solve one challenge in this business tomorrow, what would that be?

SPEAKER_02 37:37

I know what it is.

SPEAKER_01 37:39

What?

SPEAKER_02 37:41

We need more space. We're outgrowing our digs. Are you? We are.

SPEAKER_01 37:46

And we better change something because we am moving. We're not moving.

SPEAKER_02 37:52

No, that's sad story. Go vertical. Next door, vacant lot. There you go.

SPEAKER_01 37:58

Yeah, we're gonna have to do something. We're just running out of the room.

SPEAKER_02 38:00

Yeah, we are. I mean, it's a blessing, it truly is. But no, we uh we um we're as large as we've ever been, um, larger than we've ever been. And so it's just one of those cases to where we're you know, we're and and we're at that point in our lives. Um I'm 57, fixing to turn 58. So we're at that point in our lives where we're kind of looking at end stages. Sure. And yet we still have a very successful upward trajectory going on with our business. And so, you know, we have to think about those kind of things as well and make sure that the that we we stay healthy and we're moving things in the right direction on the right path.

SPEAKER_03 38:37

So, yeah, space. I get that stage. I mean, I'm kind of there too, right? I call it the beginning of the end. So I'm looking at the starting line of my end journey because you know, 20 years from now, 15, 20 years from now, it's that's it. I don't want to be working anymore. I want to do stuff. Other stuff I want to be retired.

SPEAKER_02 39:00

We're in the fall of our seasonal, you know, our careers basically. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 39:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 39:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 39:05

I guess. Um where would you since we're talking about moving forward in the future, what would you like the business to be in the next few years?

SPEAKER_01 39:17

Still here, still doing what we do. But maybe us not involved in it as much.

SPEAKER_02 39:23

Sure. Yeah. So Yeah, our our our strategy is is to most likely stay plugged into it to a degree, but I've told the crew here that we're we're going to, you're gonna see us take time for ourselves to enjoy life. Because if I did have to go back and tell you about that one thing, I would go back and tell my younger self now, it would be I know I wouldn't listen to my older self, sure, but I would tell my old my younger self this. Take a little more time in your younger life to enjoy your years, yeah, so that you do not end up in your old life with nothing left energy-wise to enjoy because you spent it all just simply working so hard. Delayed gratification is a necessary thing in a businessman's life, businesswoman's life, but you have to be careful with that because you only get so much delay before you're done. And so that's where we're at. It's like we want to make sure that we have while we're somewhat young and healthy

Vehicle Wraps And The Psychology Of Signs

SPEAKER_02 40:30

still, we want to enjoy some of that time. So that's yeah, that's the one thing we're gonna do.

SPEAKER_01 40:34

Yeah, I told them like a year, year and a half ago, I don't know. I think you're gonna have to start making time for a couple vacations a year. Otherwise, I might just burn out. Yeah, you know, it's that's a real thing. It is uh you have to take that break. Yeah, you do, and unplug for a little bit. You're gonna pay for it when you come back.

SPEAKER_04 40:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 40:56

You always do, but you know, it just when you have the right key players on board, it just it works out. Right now I'm real thankful that we do have those people that will let us be able to allow us to, yeah, sometime every so often. So yeah. So we did Alaska this last year.

SPEAKER_03 41:19

Nice.

SPEAKER_01 41:20

We did a land and cruise little trip. Okay. We were gone not quite three weeks and we had a blast.

SPEAKER_04 41:28

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_01 41:28

And then we went Caribbean and did St. Lucia towards the end of the year.

SPEAKER_04 41:34

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 41:34

When it was colder here and enjoyed the beach for a week and had a great time with that. So just it's those little things that just energize you to get back and kick butt and take some time away, you know, do something different.

SPEAKER_03 41:49

Absolutely. Yeah. So it it is sad. I mean, the the younger you are, the more, you know, it's not it's not a one-for-one thing. But a lot of times people, when they are younger, are way more motivated and and hungry and and you know, they're reaching and trying to achieve and all that kind of thing. And so, you know, you stretch yourself and you have the energy to stretch yourself, so it's fine. And it's when you're older that you realize the importance of balance, that you know, you're not on this earth to work yourself to death. You're on this work earth to provide something, to create something, to make it better, to whatever. But part of that is making sure that you're also good in the in the process. You're not at the expense of yourself, I guess. That's it. Yeah. Um, are there opportunities you see that you haven't been able to pursue quite yet? Besides the empty lot. Yeah, we'll have to talk about that.

SPEAKER_02 42:56

Um yeah, there is. Um and it goes kind of hand in glove with the new equipment that we purchased. What one of the things that excuse me, one of the things that I would like to see us do more of is to delve into the world of of the fabrication of the science here. We do have a full fabrication facility here from everything from sheet metal to paint to done and digging tools and all that kind of thing to make it all happen, the art tools on the front and all that. But no, I think what I would like to do is I would like to really develop that fabrication part of our business. Okay. We tend to be, I mean, it's a fair balance with that because we build most everything here in-house. But being in a remote area, you don't have the same opportunities as say if we were in Dallas Fort Worth or Phoenix or someplace like that, because you can specialize in a lot of that. I just build the signs for all the other shops in the area and uh and then they put them up, you know. Okay. So that is the one. Area that I think I would like to see us be able to fabricating and shipping out. Yeah. Yeah. Farmington is a bit of a remote area.

SPEAKER_03 44:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 44:09

So.

SPEAKER_03 44:10

And that would allow you to kind of speed up that process or speed up and at the same time take up more.

SPEAKER_02 44:18

Create um, like if you can get a contract with a, you know, somebody who's got, let's just say that um, well, for instance, the gas stations that we're doing all the sign work for. We're just doing the installation part of it. Okay. We're capable with a little more equipment to produce all of it in-house. Right. So that's the kind of thing that, and we've dabbled in it and tasted a little bit of that world over the course of time. Yeah. Um, and it's it's kind of cool because you get it, you get a control that part of things too, and not just be the installation company. We do a lot of installations for other companies. Let's say a McDonald's is coming into town or a Taco Bell or something like that. They're gonna just have the signs made by that company that makes the signs, ship them out to us, and then we do the installation. Right. But we would like to be the manufacturer too.

SPEAKER_03 45:06

Right.

SPEAKER_02 45:06

That's a goal.

SPEAKER_03 45:07

Okay. Awesome. Um, if if you had more time or resources, what would you focus on improving first?

SPEAKER_01 45:18

Well, a lot of our equipment is getting older. I think we're gonna have to look at some upgrades.

SPEAKER_04 45:25

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 45:26

Our router's one of those. She's been a good tool back there. And um, but with technology changing, it can affect the equipment with the programming, operating systems and the world.

SPEAKER_02 45:43

Yeah, you can't.

SPEAKER_01 45:44

And that's that's another thing that's kind of an irritating thing as you get everything, you're plugging away, going, going, and then something like that happens, and it's like err, an update, or you know, something. So um, yeah. Uh just the newer equipment, even some of our crane trucks.

SPEAKER_02 46:07

I thrive on fixing things, being efficient in what I do. Um, I love to see the the quintessential well-oiled machine. I love seeing that. Um, and so to Monica's point, it's like a little more room to spread out, um, to have some places to do things. Um, we work on a lot of our own equipment here just because of the nature of it. Yeah. Um saves money. It's it's I can get it done now or fast, not waiting on somebody else. Um, and so, and we just being down is not good. I mean, you have to have that equipment. You've got 20 guys that need a truck to go out and do work in. So, yeah, I mean upgrading some of that equipment would definitely be a plus. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 46:55

And that's to be expected after about year 36.

SPEAKER_02 46:58

Right. Yeah, we've been through a lot of equipment over the years, bought it and sold it.

SPEAKER_01 47:02

And yeah.

SPEAKER_02 47:03

Yeah. I'm uh definitely I'm gonna buy the good deal type thing and fix it up a little bit and make it work for me for 10, 15 years, and then you know, probably sell it and buy another one and do the same thing.

SPEAKER_03 47:14

So I mean, if you have the ability to do that, that's actually the smart move because it is the the the new price is is uh it's gonna drop too much in value. And so if you can get it already dropped but still functional, yeah, then save the negotiation.

SPEAKER_01 47:34

Oh yeah. Yeah. And our equipment's not cheap.

SPEAKER_03 47:37

No, it's not. No. You know, and it's weird. I I was just putting that together as you was ex are you as you were explaining that, that um um all the people I've worked with and all these machines, it's funny that that's never really discussed, but it for someone who uses the machines, they know that the software is is an issue. And so even quilters, I've worked with quilters and they're quilting machines, that the software is an issue. My mom's a quilter, so I know many times. Yeah. I mean, you wouldn't think with something like quilting, but yeah, it's still that too. Yeah, yeah. Even quilting is digital. It is, it is.

SPEAKER_01 48:14

It's crazy. Yeah, it is.

SPEAKER_03 48:17

Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_01 48:19

It's useless without the computer that runs it.

SPEAKER_03 48:22

Yeah. Yeah, it really is. What do you think um makes doing business in this region

From Hand Paint To Digital Tech

SPEAKER_03 48:30

unique?

SPEAKER_02 48:34

I would have to say doing business in this region is probably just our location in terms of the fact that Farmington kind of is the industrial hub of the four corners. And so to Monica's point, as she mentioned our 250, 300 mile radius of of work scope, um, it's just not uncommon for us to go up. We've been in probably every town in New Mexico and done something there. Yeah. Um, we've been up into just about every one of these communities throughout our area. Most all of the little communities out on the Navajo Reservation been into all of those, and our work is out there in southern Colorado, Utah, even. So geographically speaking, it's tough because it's like you have to have equipment that is going to get your guys there and get them home without trouble.

SPEAKER_04 49:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 49:33

And yet, back to that whole quandary of can't afford to buy the brand new thing, gotta have the thing that's most of my stuff's 20 plus years old. Sure. Um, so it's like you're always having to fight that distance thing because everything we go to do, we don't make um I I I how do I say this diplomatically, but Farmington proper, right? If we had to just rely on Farmington proper, we would probably be a four-man shop.

SPEAKER_01 50:04

Yeah, we wouldn't have that many people.

SPEAKER_02 50:06

But no. So there again, you that's what we've done over the years is we've spread out. And so if if we don't have much going on in this town, well, Durango's got something, or Pagosa's got something, or somewhere down Gallup's got something, you know. So you're just you're moving around right on the road.

SPEAKER_01 50:23

We have uh several construction companies that we work with on new construction, yeah, and helping them with the same package for their clients. So we've got several of those that go on, and you know, it just um that keeps us busy quite often, you know, and uh with that comes like your ADA sign just for the interior and and stuff like that, room signs. We do a lot of schools, um offices. Yeah. Um but yeah, it just the workscopes really just through the years we've we've been involved in some very cool things like Silco Theater. They um Silver City. Yeah, Silver City. Um if you ever go to Silver City, you have to go check that out. Okay. It's downtown. Um, they wanted it replicated back to what it was original.

SPEAKER_02 51:22

Really? Was that the 40s? Yeah, it was an old neon side. So that was the deco look and all that little flowing yeah.

SPEAKER_01 51:29

That was a cool project to be involved in, but it kind of landed in our lap with the last minute. We had three weeks to do it. Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_02 51:41

And to actually produce it. Yeah, produce it, we but we didn't.

SPEAKER_01 51:45

And it had neon on it.

SPEAKER_02 51:46

It was a state grant, so we had to get it done in the timeline.

SPEAKER_01 51:49

Or else they lost it if they didn't have the sign.

SPEAKER_02 51:53

Yeah, so it's like almost the very last day we were done. We were it was a Friday, we rolled out of town and it was done. Wow.

SPEAKER_01 52:00

Yeah, so the goal.

SPEAKER_03 52:02

Kudos.

SPEAKER_01 52:03

But yeah, there was a lot of recognition with that project. And basically it was because we did neon uh that even turned them on to us because not many shops do neon. Well, and we no longer do neon as of this year. Just because it's it's a dying art and it's hard to get the materials to do it. So we had to let it go and um stuff. But um there's been just several that have taken us different places, and I don't know, but that one's one of the cool projects that might kick out, man. It's a good thing.

SPEAKER_03 52:41

Are there are there technologies now that that replicate neon? Like to the untrained eye, you would think, oh, that's neon sign.

SPEAKER_02 52:49

Most people can't tell. Yeah. So it's basically a flexible LED. So it's siliconized um tube, basically. So it's very flexible. And it has just a bunch of LEDs packed inside of it, and then it's encased in the silicone.

SPEAKER_03 53:04

And all that's great.

SPEAKER_02 53:05

And it diffuses it so it glows just like neon. Um it's it's neat stuff, but it nothing is foolproof, as they say. So it's whenever you make a cut at the end of it. Well, now you're allowing water to get in there and water and that stuff don't get along. So yeah, now it's it's coming cool a long way, though. It's been around for a while. Okay. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 53:28

And usually when you do stuff like that, you send in a file to the manufacturer and they'll cut them all to cut them to size and make sure they got the factory seal on them so to alleviate some of those issues with water getting in them and stuff. So that happened on another project that we were involved in in Santa Rosa. So yeah, it's just, you know, you you learn a lot from the jobs you've done in the past and you learn from it, you know.

SPEAKER_02 54:03

It comes and you're like, wow, this is the coolest thing. You don't know the pitfalls yet. And then it's like, oh no.

SPEAKER_01 54:11

And it's different if it's in Farmington, but to be five hours away, it's like that just complicates the whole process. It does. Yeah. So that's another project we learned about.

SPEAKER_02 54:21

We worked through it and we got it all done and resolved, and learning experience everyone has those.

SPEAKER_03 54:28

Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_01 54:29

And you know, that's why every other year we go to the ISA sign convention just to keep up with the latest greatest.

SPEAKER_04 54:38

Sure.

SPEAKER_01 54:39

Because the sign world does change quite frequently. Oh, definitely.

SPEAKER_03 54:43

Yeah. So I mean, without even really thinking about it, I I can just very briefly scan through time and and and uh pull up images of of changes in signs and this in styles and and trends and and all that kind of stuff. Yeah. Just constant. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 55:03

Yeah. Signs of all kinds.

SPEAKER_03 55:05

Like everything else, you guys aren't immune. No, no. What advice would you give someone starting a business here?

SPEAKER_02 55:15

I would say if you're going to start a business here, anywhere, honestly, think about what it is you're doing. Um and make sure that whatever you choose to do has a market for it so that you do not put yourself in that spot to where you're you're putting it all on the line for something that is possibly unproven. Try to do something that is proven. Try to do something that you know you're gonna have a customer base and a client base for. Um, that's number one. Number two is make sure that you are made out of some very durable stuff. Yeah, because you will be tested like you do not know. Yeah. You will be tested.

SPEAKER_04 55:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 55:59

And so you got to stand up to that. And you better be tough enough to withstand what it's gonna throw at you, because it's gonna throw some things at you that test your metal.

SPEAKER_01 56:09

So absolutely when you're a business owner, it's not eight to five.

SPEAKER_02 56:13

No. No. Be willing to put the time in.

SPEAKER_01 56:16

Yeah, and you won't get compensated for that time.

SPEAKER_03 56:19

No. Because then you, you know, it's like especially in early stages, many business owners find that their employees are making more money actually, taking home more money than they are.

Employees Space And Work Life Balance

SPEAKER_03 56:30

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 56:35

Better get cozy with that because that's what you're gonna be looking at.

SPEAKER_01 56:39

Yeah, but you know, there is a lot of fulfillment in it.

SPEAKER_02 56:42

Tons of it.

SPEAKER_01 56:43

And I'm I can tell you this Mike has built this business off his back. I mean, he if he doesn't know how to do something, he researches it. He figures it out, he's very determined. And without the desire to learn and grow, if he was not that mentality, that personality, yeah, this place wouldn't be what it is.

SPEAKER_03 57:13

Right.

SPEAKER_01 57:13

It takes a lot of determination, effort, and passion really to see something be s you know, just awesome. Like, you know, to take something from nothing 36 years ago, his dad's last paycheck from the other sign shop to start the company, you know, and just see just see the it's kind of crazy because so much time has gone by. But just like in the 34 years we've been married, the different things that we've just seen happen in the area.

SPEAKER_04 57:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 57:52

You know, there's uh well, I don't know if you saw it on our Facebook page. There was a documentary that it's about 35 minute one that Z Immedia Group didn't.

SPEAKER_03 58:03

I tried before you walked in.

SPEAKER_01 58:04

I need to go look find that yeah, you'll need to check that out because I mean and my daughter set this up. It was a very nice surprise that she did for our 35-year anniversary party last year.

SPEAKER_04 58:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 58:18

And so interviewing even his mom, my mom, because we both work they both worked with us, you know, um, our bookkeeper who's been with us from the beginning, you know, and just a few of the other employees, and just this just finds through the times. I mean, it's just we've done a lot. Yeah. We've, you know, and it just and we're still growing and doing and and stuff, and with the technology changing, it just there's always something, and and that's I think where Jasmine's passion is going to come in. I wish she was here. She's on vacation this week. But she's she's uh she's the future of Ram. So very cool. Yeah, we'll see what what happens in the future. I mean, I see a lot of good, good things happening, and she's currently involved in a in a project to try and help a school, Animus Elementary School, raise money so they can get a message center pylon sign.

SPEAKER_04 59:26

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 59:27

So cool. There's been a lot of community effort.

SPEAKER_04 59:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 59:31

Um saying that they're gonna help this school to get their sign and donations are being made to the school.

SPEAKER_02 59:39

And that is one thing about our community too, is it's a very good thing, yeah. It's a very good community for, you know, those causes. Um lots of good people in this community. Yeah. And that's been a really neat thing that we've gotten to be a part of in the 35, 36 years.

SPEAKER_01 59:58

Because they the schools have been our customers.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:00

Learning a lot of these people, you know, befriending a lot of these people as customers, as friends, you know, and right. You get to know them on a personal basis, and you know, you're just a lot of good people in this town. Yeah. Really is.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:10

And a lot of people who want to help. Yeah. You know, if they know there's a need, they they will they will help. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:16

Yeah. So this is a s a strange uh little area for for lots of different reasons. We're kind of geographically isolated. Yeah. So from a manufacturing point of view, it's it's weird. It it you because there's not easy lines for incoming and outgoing stuff.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:38

I've I've heard it told to me, and this is true. There's no outbound freight here.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:42

No, right. It's all inbound freight.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:46

And so the like the trucking companies to your point, it's like, you know, if it's off I-40, it's like they don't care about making another two-hour trip one way to you know, come here. Right.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:56

It's like, you know.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:58

They got nothing to pick up and take home.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:59

There's been times we've had to offer to pick up our stuff in Albuquerque. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:03

Or Gallup.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:05

You know, and it's like, well, if that's what we gotta do, we'll do it, you know.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:09

So yeah, there's that aspect. And then and then Farmton itself does not have a big population, but we have all of the amenities of a city with a big population because of what happens. Yeah, all the all the region comes in. Yeah. So it's a it's a it's a weird kind of place um to try and wrap your head around doing business in and setting up a business and whatnot. And so sometimes it's easy to forget that typically in smaller towns, they're relationship driven. And so, since we don't typically operate like a small town, we are a small town that does not operate like one, but we still have those small town things. So relationships are vastly important here. Much more than they are. You mentioned some place like Dallas or, you know, Dallas, Phoenix, Denver, you know, some other big city. Sure, relationships are still going to be important, but not to the extent that they are here. I mean, it's nearly 100% in the importance factor.

unknown 1:02:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:11

You want to keep people happy because you want the the whole talk thing, it's the word of mouth thing, as we talked about, you know, from the very start of the conversation. It's like it's so important because man, everybody knows each other here. Yeah. If they don't, if I don't know so-and-so, well, I know this guy that knows, you know, it's it's that close. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:30

Yeah. The degrees of separation aren't many. Yeah. Is there a local business that you admire?

SPEAKER_02 1:02:38

Yes. Riley Industrial. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I'm going to always say that one first. And the reason I'm going to say that one first is because on several fronts, um, they were probably our very first customer when we first started. Sonny um had a good relationship with my dad. Um, and then when my dad ended up starting um the company and and getting out on his own, Sonny's like, well, I'm gonna come to you with my work because I like dealing with you. And that's uh still a customer, good customer of ours to this day. Yeah. All these years later. And on the other level of that, um, kind of more of a I'm gonna say a silent mentor to me. Um, those guys, because um Sonny is man, Sonny's probably close to 90.

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SPEAKER_02 1:03:31

Um, and then um George is in his 60s, so a bit older than myself. But the reason I'm gonna say that is because I'd always look at them and they were basically they started the same way we did. Um, many years ago, we got a chance to do a sign for the first trailer that Sonny Riley, and it's out in front of their place. That's how we started. Is he started out in this really small trailer that isn't much bigger than this room right here? That was his office.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:01

And then he started his painting and sandblasting thing, and that was his office. That's where he started. Yeah. So it was it was really neat for me to look at those guys and say, you know what, if he can do it, I can do it. And yeah, I'd see his car there, I'd see Sonny's truck there. Six o'clock in the morning, we'd roll in to go out early on our jobs, he'd be there. Yeah. It's just like, you know, if he can do it, I can do it. Absolutely. It was that.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:23

That's probably my my one business.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:26

That's hard to come up with a better example than that one. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:29

Gosh, we have so many loyal customers. Yeah. Thankful for all of them, you know, the schools, the city of Farmington, they're different divisions of the city. Yeah. Um, our bank customers, you know, they're just especially Four Corners Community Bank, they've they've been a very good customer for us as well.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:52

Yeah, I guess if I ever if I had to give you a motto, my favorite motto for my business, we love change.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:00

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:01

You do. We do. Change makes us busy. Yeah, it keeps you busy. We're nearly when there's change. Somehow changes, they call us.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:12

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:12

Yeah. So wow. Well, I've kept you guys actually longer than than my allotted time. Okay. So we're going to wrap this up with a lightning round. This is just going to be fast and fun. So, right off the top of your head, just don't even think about it. Favorite local restaurant. Chili pod.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:30

I was going to say.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:31

Okay. Best business advice you've received.

unknown 1:05:38

Oh, gosh.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:39

I'm going to leave that up to Mike because he's the one that started the business. I join him. I mean, I he's my partner in marriage, and it's so this is all him.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:48

Business advice is going to be I'm trying to think. This is silly. I've got to recall how he told it to me. Um you snooze, you lose. Um it sounds silly, but I'll never forget it. I remember going to a local business. I think he's still around, but anyway, I was gonna give him a quote on something and I waited a little too long and I went back there with my quote in hand and I said, Here's my quote. I already got somebody else to do it. You snooze, you lose. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:06:16

I have been a victim of that several times. Learn a valuable lesson. Very, very true.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:21

You know, and it's that's the challenge right there is getting quotes out in a fast manner.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:28

Because I'll tell you what, there's times phone ring all day long and you're writing notes and trying to go back to this, and things pile up, and you know, it's it is what it is, but sometimes, yeah, like you snooze, you lose. That's yeah, that's the way it is sometimes.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:47

Another thing I too, I just have to add this too, because it was one I thought of too. Very i it's a little more um profound. Um, an older gentleman told me years ago when I called on him as a young man to do something business-wise, he admired me coming out and talking to him. But he said, never forget this. He said, Never be willing to work harder for someone else than what you are for yourself.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:11

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:12

So that stuck with me too.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:14

Yeah, I had to come around to that one. That was that was hard learned on my end. Because I usually just toss myself on the shelf and go do everything for everyone else. And and uh that's not a great, that's not a great way of do doing things. Yeah, yeah. Okay, one last one. One thing customers might not know about your business.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:39

That we're family-owned. I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:44

That we're secretly rock stars and no one knows it. There it is, right now.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:47

You're a rock star, baby.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:48

And that's all we're gonna say.

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SPEAKER_02 1:07:50

Everything else is a mystery from there on.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:52

I can't say anymore. I've said too much.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:54

You know, that's his other passion. He has a band. He's after midnight. Oh, that's right. That's right. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:02

So I say he's my wanted to do is just be a musician.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:05

It would have been so much easier.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:06

And I said, and you would have paid the bills.

SPEAKER_02 1:08:08

Wouldn't have any bills. Yeah, this is true.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:12

Well, it's been amazing chatting with you guys. I appreciate it. Thanks for coming on the show. So how can uh how do people get a hold of you?

SPEAKER_01 1:08:22

505-326-5801 or check out the website, ramsigns.com. There it is. My contact email is on there. If they need anything, they can submit a request through the website. I get a lot of those actually. So it's a good form of keep contacting me.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:42

So um, yeah. We're here Monday through Friday, eight to five.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:46

Very cool.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:47

So, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:48

Awesome. All right. Well, thank you guys. You're welcome.

SPEAKER_01 1:08:52

Enjoyed it.