I build things.
Then I teach people how.

In the mid 90's, I started my first company out of the belief that small businesses deserved the same quality of strategic thinking that big brands took for granted. I called it Meakins Marketing, and later Precise Communications. I offered copywriting and strategic planning to clients who needed a voice and a plan. I was building the foundation before I even knew what I was building toward.

I went back to school, earned my BA, and kept consulting. I rebranded as Fjord Marketing Group, expanding into full end-to-end brand and marketing services. Then I went in-house. I joined Lund Food Holdings, the company behind Lunds & Byerlys, one of Minnesota’s most respected grocery retailers. Over the years, I worked my way up to managing their Gift Store and Private Label Gift Category. Every non-food CPG and general merchandise product that hit that shelf was conceived, developed, and brought to market by me. More than 50 products. Concept to shelf.

2020 burned me out in ways I hadn’t anticipated, and I left L&B in 2021. But before that, life had already pushed me to get creative. Facing a housing situation that wasn’t working, I did what I do with most problems: I built my way out of it. I converted a cargo van into a fully functional tiny home, wiring the electrical system, installing solar, laying the flooring, designing the cabinetry and finishes, and everything in between. I moved to Ely, Minnesota, bought a house, and started an entrepreneur club.

That club led to a business partnership, and the partnership led to Ely Mercantile Co., a brand I co-developed from the ground up with a full identity system, product lines, and go-to-market strategy. The partnership ended badly. I lost the inventory, the assets, and the customer base. I won a lawsuit, filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy, and rebuilt again. It's the kind of experience that either breaks you or clarifies everything. For me, it clarified everything.

I left Ely and now live in the Twin Cities. Before I left Ely, I started teaching and have been teaching since. I've also been building the HUB.

The HUB is where I hope everything I know about brand, strategy, product development, and go-to-market plans will live. Free tools for pricing, costing, merchandising, and product development. Workflows that walk you through the process step-by-step. A glossary that gives you the language to walk into any room with a buyer, vendor, or retailer and hold your own. Content that teaches the actual work, not a watered-down version of it.

I am not interested in trading time for money anymore. I am interested in building things that work while I sleep, and teaching people to do the same. The HUB is the expression of that. Every tool, workflow, and piece of content here comes from real experience, not just theory.

I develop products from concept to shelf. I build brands from the inside out, starting with the language and working outward to the visuals, packaging, positioning, and pitch. I write copy that sells without being pushy. I design workflows that make complex processes repeatable. I teach the stuff that most people in this industry assume you already know, but nobody ever taught you.

I have done this in corporate environments, in my own businesses, in retail settings, and in classrooms. I have sourced from domestic vendors and international manufacturers. I have built gift categories, launched private label lines, managed buyers, negotiated terms, and designed displays. I have also built a van from scratch and converted it into a home, which is a different kind of project management but requires the same set of instincts.

What connects all of it is that I move ideas from concept to reality. That is the thread that runs through everything I have ever done. The HUB is just the latest version of it.