Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Howie Withrow. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Howie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. 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?
I think one good thing you can say about getting older, its gets a little easier to focus on the things that are important to you. I would like to think that if I started earlier, then I would be further along. But if I stop and think about it, I didn’t have the discipline that I do now. Call it ADHD or whatever, but as soon as I lost interest in something then I would just abandon it and jump to the next thing. Now I understand that if I feel myself start to lose interest or focus, then I need to step back and distract myself with something for a couple days. Then I see things with a fresh mind and get right back to it!
Howie, 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?
I am a custom knife maker. I make kitchen and every day carry knives. One of my favorite things is to spend time with my customers and come up with a one off design that they are fully included in. Sometimes they want to recreate their grandmothers knife from their childhood. Sometimes they bring me their favorite kitchen knife and want me to make my version of it. I have my personal design style and love making those types of knives, but I also like seeing my customers faces light up when their own designs come to reality.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
It is often a lofty goal for many knifesmiths to make a successful forge weld, especially when trying to create Damascus. A forge weld is when you heat up two pieces of metal hot enough to stick together and form a single piece of steel. This can be tricky and I have failed repeatedly. With much stubbornness, I persevered and eventually created a Damascus kitchen knife. It wasn’t the prettiest thing, but I accomplished that goal and I was proud of myself.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
My story is one of slow and steady growth. I started making knives that I would be ashamed of today. I would give them away to friends and family until my skills and talents grew. After I started selling knives I was proud of, I just started reinvesting back into the business with better tools and materials.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://feral-boy-shop.fourthwall.com
- Instagram: @feralboyknives
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FeralBoyKnives