Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chad Milford. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Chad, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Parents play a huge role in our development as youngsters and sometimes that impact follows us into adulthood and into our lives and careers. Looking back, what’s something you think you parents did right?
My parents are hard workers. I mean really hard workers. They were both raised by farmers, picking cotton, milking cows, hoeing corn, you name it, they did it. Work was constant and they didn’t complain.
My father’s parents had a dairy and so he was milking cows twice daily before and after school on top of everything else that had to be done on the farm. After graduating high school, he took a full-time job as a USDA Inspector working 40 hours a week and also maintained his family farms when his father was unable to do so. He ran over 100 head of beef cattle, cut hay on hundreds of acres of land sometimes 3 cuttings a year. He chopped wood to heat our home and had a wood pile sometimes 100 feet long and chest high. He also helped my Grandmother with her large garden all summer. The work was constant. He had to be tired.
My mother’s parents were sharecroppers. She was number 7 of 8 children. By the time she was old enough she was cooking the family meals because her mother had taken a factory job. She picked cotton. They moved to a new farm almost yearly throughout her childhood. As a child, my mother was a dreamer. She wanted a better life for herself and her children one day. After she married my father, she put herself through beauty school and opened her own beauty shop. At one time, she was doing around 20 hairdos a day 4 days per week sometimes not getting home until after 9pm in the evenings. This was at a time when most women didn’t have jobs. My mother had a booming business.
My parents also knew how to save money and not waste. Because of all their hard work and sacrifice, my life was very different from theirs. I was definitely “spoiled” but I did see and learn what it takes to own a business, to be successful and to have a comfortable life. It takes work. It takes constant work. I have found though that I’m happiest when I am busy. So now, I wear lots of different hats and usually work in some way or another from the time I get up until late afternoon. I am eternally grateful for the hard work and sacrifice they put forth for us and I know without a doubt, they are the reason for my successes I’ve had.
Chad, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
We started an event venue on my father’s family farm about 8 years ago. We call it West Milford Farm because the West Family lived here before us and built the house and a few of the outbuildings. My family has been here since 1939. Last year we did 101 events total with over 60 weddings, 9 outdoor concerts and everything from birthday parties to memorial services in between. My partner Thomas and I maintain the property. He cuts the grass twice weekly and when not cutting grass, he is running around with a blower on his back, or cleaning. I do all the email correspondence, I book the events, I do most of the showings and then we both do all the setup for the events we have here. I also help with florals for the weddings which usually takes days to prepare. We work all the time but it’s definitely a labor of love and I can’t imagine doing anything else now.
I think what sets us apart is we really are totally hands on. We are typically here all day on a wedding day to get everything just right. After the ceremony has ended, we rest and let our very capable staff handle the rest of the event and we get up the next day and do it all over again. During peak season this year we had 11 weeks in a row with 3 events (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) every weekend. We’ve also added Yoga classes during the week here with 6 weekly classes (which keep me grounded and halfway sane). We also have a mental health therapist who sees her clients here on Mondays and Wednesdays which will also be convenient for me if the yoga stops working. We also typically have 3-6 photographers here on any given weekday afternoon taking pictures with clients. There is always something going on here and I think that’s been the key to our success. Having a constant and steady influx of people visiting the farm for any number of reasons, keeps us relevant and in the public eye.
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
Before we had the event venue, we owned Antique Shops. I was renovating the property while running the shops and my cousin asked to get married here. I had an idea this might be how I wanted to use the farm so I jumped at the opportunity to host her wedding. We had a tent and porta-johns. Everyone raved about the place and the spark was kindled. After that, I poured a slab in the hay barn, and we really started hosting events from there. It started very slowly but once word got out we were growing and fast. Every year, as we could afford it, we added amenities. When we started, we only provided a clean room and nothing else. Now we do full-service events with catering, dishes, florals, entertainment, bar service, wedding cake, and a coordinator. This all evolved slowly over the years as we could add services and be able to know we could do what we were promising. Over the years, we’ve added, a catering kitchen, restrooms, a temperature-controlled dining pavilion, a ceremony pavilion behind our vintage glass greenhouse.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Do what you say you will do. Never disappoint. Never over-promise. In fact, do a little more than you promise, and you will have happy clients. Always have a smile on your face. Be present. Give back to your community. We host a benefit Easter egg hunt here yearly and it has been very rewarding to provide a place where the community can gather and give back. Keep your heart open to do what you can to help. Keep your mind open to new opportunity. Take things on slowly so you don’t become overwhelmed. 8 years ago, I would have never dreamed we would be doing all the things we do now. It’s very rewarding.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.westmilfordfarm.com
- Instagram: @westmilfordfarm
- Facebook: @westmilfordfarm