We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nate Bont a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Nate, appreciate you joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

Life presents itself at its own pace. However, I wish I’d have started earlier on this path. When I finished high-school the push was to attend college which was not the right thing for me. Who knows if I’d be more successful as a business by now but I’d have been happier, regarding work. It’s hard to look back and wish for something different as we can’t know what else it might have changed.

Nate, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

At its inception the idea was merely a hobby to help pass the time recovering from a broken ankle. But, as my skill level increased people began to take interest in what I was doing. At first it was just some friends who would ask if I’d make them a hat. I have a close friend who happens to have quite a collection at this point. It’s a veritable timeline of my progression. The next stage was a result of the dreaded pandemic. After 30 years of cooking professionally my industry and career were gone. I, like many, took the “paid vacation” for the summer of 2020. However, I became bored and restless. We aren’t meant to be stagnant. One day, whilst wandering through the local farmers market, I noticed other artisans selling their wares and inquired at the office about getting a booth to sell my hats. They were very receptive to the idea and I have been a regular vendor there ever sense. I’m currently trying to expand my customer base from there into pop-up venues and music festivals. So far, business has been nearly double what it was last year and seems to be growing.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

I’m an avid outdoorsman. About 6 years ago now, we were out for a hike at a local nature area. As is my way I was trying to cross a creek on some wet rocks when I slipped and ended up smashing a rock into my right ankle, the same right ankle I shattered in my youth. Needless to say, it did not fair well. The prognosis was not great, I was going to spend the summer recovering. In an attempt to fi d distraction I dug out a sewing machine I had purchased at a pawn shop some months before. It wasn’t much of a machine but I wasn’t much of a maker at that time either. My first project was to convert two pairs of old pants into one kilt. The results were meh, but I enjoyed the process and distraction. From there I moved into making bags. I had lofty goals but unfortunately a low quality machine, it didn’t make it, but I was hooked. I did some research and asked around for advice on what sort of machines to consider and found a couple solid old all metal machines. They weren’t very fast but neither was I. It was around that time that I started making hats. I have never fit the one size fits all idea and most non baseball hat hats fell in that category. I decided to change that. I spent the next three years or so finding my style and developing my designs. Then the pandemic hit. Life got turned on its head. My wife and I found ourselves in need of new career paths. She went into insurance and I went into business for myself. By November of 2020 I was selling my hats at the local farmers market. At first it was slow going. My hats needed to reach the next level of quality and craftsmanship. By the next summer they had. Now here we are some three years down the road. My sales are doubling each year and nearly more than I can keep up with. This summer I’m trying some different venues to see if I can expand my customer base. I can’t be sure where this is all headed but at least I’m enjoying the ride.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

My initial investment was very minimal. I started off using the leftover scraps and bits because I didn’t have money to spare. My first real machine I bought used from the local repair shop. It became the idea behind Rag Tops that I use up what’s left. This world is full of treasures that have plenty of life left in them, if you look close enough.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Rag.tops
• Facebook: Rag Tops