Why Can't Your Hobby Be Your Job?
2017 was the year Casey and I asked ourselves, "Why can't our hobby be our job?". As I reflect on ONE84's progress through the years I realize what it means to truly have a passion. In 2011 Casey and I moved into a beautiful loft in downtown Kansas City. I realized Casey had a sincere passion for design and creation when I would find him in the basement building furniture and creating art in his spare time. He once told me that if he couldn't create with the worst of tools, in the worst of conditions then it wasn't truly a hobby.
As ONE84 has grown from basements to garages we reflect on how naturally ONE84 has matured into an actual business. In 2017 without much marketing, business planing or organization this Colorado community embraced ONE84's vision for fine furniture and opened our eyes to the potential of ONE84.
2017 will be remembered as the year we learned that through community comes growth. We were encouraged by the support that comes from our local fairs and markets. We were intrigued by how participating in local events can help a business build a culture. And most important we were honored that through design we could play a roll in peoples daily lives.
But what 2017 will be most remembered for is the year ONE84 became a Family business. We welcomed our little girl, River Lee Roberts, into this world and quickly ONE84's designs became very relevant in nursery's.
River Lee in her custom ONE84 changing table and custom table top. Made to match the custom ONE84 picture frames.
2017 was full of 1st time experiences. As we take what we learned from 2017 we do what everyone is doing at this time; create goals for 2018.
Goal number 1 this year will be to have a stronger presence on Social Media. By posting more process video's/pictures, final product posts and tips on working with wood, we can share our hobby with the world. If you have ambition to do a little wood working yourself, you can draw inspiration and ask questions through our Facebook and Instragram accounts.
Our second goal for the 2018 season is to be out in our community. Through collaboration, we will be reaching out to new businesses who are calling our Sunnyside area home. Our goal, through design, is to provide our community with a distinct and unique touch, separating "your" business from the rest. We are excited to get back to the market rotation. We will be adding MORE market appearances and more inventory to our pop up tent and website store.
Finally our third goal is to always remember that a hobby is, "an activity done regularly in one's leisure time for PLEASURE." Separation between a job and a hobby is a hard line to follow. As ONE84 grows it is the passion to create and work with one's hands that we must remember.
Please remember to check our website at www.one84.com and visit our store for dropped prices on our 2017 inventory. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for our most recent projects and to see how we are going to make 2018 the year our job became our hobby.
CJ Roberts
Business Manager/Co-Owner
