We recently connected with Jeff Pilgrim and have shared our conversation below.

Jeff, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Almost every entrepreneur we know has considered donating a portion of their sales to an organization or cause – how did you make the decision of whether to donate? We’d love to hear the backstory if you’re open to sharing the details.

When I started teaching I donated all income to scouts. In time my donations exceeded what they needed to run their paddling program so I started looking for other opportunities and donated to the local nature center, the boys and girls club, and most recently contributed to a boat launch at the county park where I also have taught rescue skills to staff.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

One day walking to class I took a shortcut through a parking lot and saw a car with a kayak on top. I left a note, and soon thereafter started building boats with the car’s owner and paddling with the college club. I no longer build boats but I do repairs and instruct. In order to teach what folks need there’s a fair bit of interchange, focus being on what have your paddled and where would you like to? I’ve taught folks who wanted to trail their spouse on distance swims in the ocean, whitewater paddlers, expedition canoeists, folks with disabilities, kids as young as 6, people who want to paddle with their dog, and along the way have donated time and money to scouts, local nature centers, disabled veterans, and local parks.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Listing through community education was historically the best source of new clients, but the season before COVID began they started wanting to direct content for some reason. For years they provided feedback but demanding and directing was a new tack that ultimately ended our relationship with some help from COVID. Now, new clients come from word of mouth, social media, and folks who find me on the web.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

My skills and teaching abilities helped to build my reputation. I’ve always tried to learn what my clients need to learn and then teach that at a level and pace they can follow.

Contact Info:

• Website: pilgrimpaddles.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pilgrimpaddles
• Other: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g43466-d8642286-Reviews-Pilgrim_Paddles_LLC-Rochester_Minnesota.html

Image Credits
Robyn Keyport