Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Bear Scharbarth. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Bear , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Taking care of customers isn’t just good business – it is often one of the main reasons folks went into business in the first place. So, we’d love to get a conversation going around how to best help clients feel appreciated – maybe you can share something you’ve done or seen someone do that’s been really effective at helping a customer feel valued?
As a small business, every single purchase we receive is special and deserves appreciation. I personally write a handwritten thank you letter with every order. The positive feedback that we receive by doing this is the reward itself. We are so grateful for our loyal following of supporters and customers.
The best appreciation a customer can show us is when we are at an event and we see our GFG logo on folks at the event, or the thumbs up we receive from those driving by the rig that we call “Big Girl,” or tagging us on their social media.
Bear , 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?
GoFastGirls (GFG) is an apparel brand that represents a ‘FAST’ society of female racers, a lifestyle is driven by swiftness and high speeds, and the chase to empower girls and women alike to go faster and push the boundaries of motorsports and action sports. -GFG founders, Bear and Kristen Scharbarth.
The founders of GFG recognized the ongoing gender inequality in the world of actions sports and motorsports. They also acknowledged there wasn’t a brand geared for speed queens.
And so it began — a relentless pursuit to provide the best girl and women’s racing apparel on the market, along with a community to back it up. The husband-and-wife team set out on a fast and fearless journey of gender parity — setting the wheels in perpetual motion.
Girls and women alike show up with the grit and desire to compete and the willingness to persevere through the challenges of failure, focus, and commitment — and GFG stands beside them.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO CREATE THE BRAND GO FAST GIRLS (GFG)?
We created Go Fast Girls (GFG) because ever since we had our three daughters, we have been known in the community to be a family that likes to go fast — whether it was going to the desert or riding at the track. Whenever we would go out to buy the girl’s gear and whatnot, we noticed there was never a good enough selection for girl’s or women’s apparel, and we noticed the blatant lack of female recognition in the sport(s). So, we decided if we couldn’t find anything to cater to our wants and needs as a family, we would create something ourselves.
THERE IS FAST AND THEN THERE IS GFG. HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE NAME GO FAST GIRLS (GFG)?
It all started when we taught our girls how to ride in the desert and at the track. Riding in the sand is different than riding in the dirt. To help them learn and get comfortable in the desert, we would say, “the faster you go the easier it is girls” — and the brand mantra eventually followed. The girls were always encouraged to go fast, so when coming up with the name, we named it GoFastGirls because it’s the motivational tagline we say to our daughters.
GO FAST GIRLS (GFG) IS THE MISSING LINK IN THE MOTORSPORTS AND ACTION SPORTS WORLD TO SUPPORT YOUNG GIRLS AND WOMEN PASSIONATE AND INTERESTED IN THEIR SPORT. WHAT DOES THE COMMUNITY MEAN TO YOU?
The community means everything. We love seeing people build lifelong friendships with each other which all stem from having the same interest in action sports. It creates a widespread community because, finally, these girls have a platform to share their own experiences on what it means to be a girl/woman in the action sports community.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IT IS ABOUT MOTOCROSS/ACTION SPORTS THAT BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER?
We think for starters, any sport can be a building block, but there is something about motocross/ action sports that pushes people to places they never considered. Also, we think the adrenaline is addicting and to have like-minded people who also enjoy the same things brings us all together because, let’s face it, being an adrenaline junkie (and more so going fast) isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. So, when people get together and share — they all contribute to conversations and ultimately build a relationship, and it is super rad to see.
WOMEN ARE NOW SHINING BRIGHT IN SPORTING EVENTS THAT WERE ONCE PRIMARILY MALE-DOMINATED. WHAT DO YOU THINK HAS SPARRED THE CHANGE FOR FEMALES IN SPORTS?
We think the momentum of women coming together and taking a stance for what they believe in, honestly — has sparred the change. Not caring what other people think, and just having fun and doing what you love. I believe this drive has ignited something in women that is super cool to see and ultimately so special to see girls finally get the recognition they deserve.
WHAT’S THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE YOUR BRAND HAS FACED SO FAR AND HOW DID YOU HANDLE IT?
So far, the biggest challenge our brand has faced has to be the COVID-19 pandemic. We are a people company, so losing our face-to-face customers was really hard. However, we handled it by just engaging way more in social media. Whether it was our website, Facebook, Instagram, stories, etc. — we have noticed the community built through this pandemic is something we never thought possible. Through sharing numerous stories of our ambassadors and creating a strong presence on social media, we believe that we were able to create a strong sense of community virtually, and we cannot wait for everyone to reunite again.
WHAT IS ONE THING YOU DO EVERY DAY THAT MAKES YOU FEEL EMPOWERED?
We think what makes us feel empowered is to see the improvement of all our team riders and supporters. Just within the past few years, we have watched so many different girls absolutely kill it and progress more than we could imagine. It’s also super empowering to see how far GFG has gone. We get so excited to spread our message through numerous sports.
ON YOUR WEBSITE, YOU HIGHLIGHT FEMALES IN THE MOTOR AND ACTION SPORTS WORLD. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO YOU TO SHOWCASE THE AMBASSADORS OF GO FAST GIRLS (GFG)?
It is important to highlight our ambassadors not only to show our support but to get other girls involved! We think sharing people’s stories creates a culture of belonging to other people, and more so, we believe that there is a place for all women within our brand. We hope to share as many stories as possible so we can continue to inspire women.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE GFG MERCH AND IS THERE ANY NEW MERCH COMING IN 2021?
We enjoy all the animal print styles personally, but our girls love the whole checkerboard style. We like them all, honestly, but we think our original logo tee has to be our favorite just because it truly was the design that got our company to where it is today. We must pay homage to the OG. We have lots of exciting plans for 2021 with where we want to take our company, but also, we greatly appreciate customer feedback because, ultimately, we want to cater to everyone’s wants and needs.
HOW CAN FANS FOLLOW THE RACES AND EVENTS THAT YOU PARTICIPATE IN EVERY YEAR?
Our website! We have everything linked on there! As well as our social media handles @gofastgirls. We are constantly sharing things on our Instagram story and keeping everyone updated on what is going on.
How’d you meet your business partner?
Well, Im fortunate to be in business with my wife. She’s the best partner in life and in business. We met at a kid’s softball game and I saw her in a white short skirt. I asked her to have breakfast and putt-putt golf the following day. 12 years later here we are, doing our favorite hobby and transforming it into a successful business.
How did you build your audience on social media?
Social Media is about connection, consistency, engagement, and a loyal audience. You have to approach it with purpose and always put something up there that you would want to watch on your own feed. We are at 34.4k and growing. Help us out and head over to our Instagram and give us a follow! @gofastgirls
Contact Info:
- Website: https://gofastgirls.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gofastgirls/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gofastgirlscom/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@gofastgirls2297
Image Credits
We took these photos so credit goes to @gofastgirls