Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Peter Tuvnes. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Peter thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
I think it all began when I met an artist and we started dating. We were together for 5 years and I really enjoyed her art, her talents and by meeting her, it helped to open up my creativity as well. Not only a fine artist, she also did web design for a client here and there. Because of that, I got into buying domains and trying to sell them on auction, most of them went nowhere, but it was a way to keep my mind occupied sometimes while at my full time job as a Journeyman Steamfitter. As a steamfitter, and being in the trades on commercial and heavy industrial, I work around plumbers occasionally. When I started as an apprentice in 1999 the “Old timers” on the job would sometimes call the plumber ‘Brown Arm” similar to calling electricians “sparky” as an example “ hey Pete…go get Brown Arm, we need to ask him something” or “go get the sparky, we have an issue here. It wasn’t demeaning, but more of a slang term. Well, now 20 years later and I’m collecting domains and trying to find uses for them, Brownarmplumbing.com was created and I didn’t have a use for it at the time, I just liked it and thought it was clever and a bit humorous. So, rather then try and sell that domain or let it expire I hung on to it and put a lot of time thinking about what I could do with it. I think I had it for over a year and I was working out of town at University of Lacrosse in Wisconsin when I came up with the idea for a tape measure holder that holds a 3” wedge for pipe fabrication. As a welder I carry a steel wedge in my pocket, often times it will get lost, so I designed a tape holder to carry it. I call it “the wedgie” and then the lightbulb came on and I figured I would put the name Brown Arm Plumbing to use. I then began the process of designing a logo, it was different when I first began this endeavor, it was just three letters “BAP” I decided to change it to my main sticker and t-shirt image and use the “PROTECTING THE HEALTH OF THE NATION’” as my tagline. My girlfriend at the time created the image from my direction perfectly. I then started my instagram, facebook account, etc.. Bought an Ipad pro, sewing machine, and while away from home while working I would sit down for hours every night in my motel room teaching myself how to build websites, design, marketing, getting a business license, finding the right parts for my tape holders, trials and errors of course, setting up an etsy shop. On the weekends I would then implement things, teach myself how to sew etc and add new products such as my famous glove clip, made to last years. No more running all over the jobsite looking for your gloves. Right now I have a shopify store, and an etsy shop. I work on designing ads for instagram and building my fan club. Eventually my dream is to take this brand to a national level as a mechanical contractor, or use the name recognition to promote other mechanical contractors. I believe in my efforts, I work hard to make high quality products, I get awesome reviews on etsy, my sticker is popular and everyone loves it. My key products are the “wedgie” tape holder and the glove clips can be used for work or outdoor recreation. My next step is creating a plastic glove clip through plastic injection mould. I started my business in Oct 2019 I also have another brand I am working on that runs parallel to Brown Arm Plumbing, and that is Old School Merchant. I like this brand just as much and there may be more possibilities or avenues. Oldschoolmerchant.com My direct focus for marketing is mostly Blue collar tradesman, craftsman, or outdoor recreation for my clips. I believe strongly in my tagline “PROTECTING THE HEALTH OF THE NATION. I consider art, culture, music, etc a form of that which enriches a society making it healthy. I believe in a strong workforce, work ethics and that hard work pays off. Dream big.
Peter, 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?
I am a full time Journeyman Steamfitter by trade out of Local 434 in Wisconsin. I went through a 5 year apprenticeship starting in 1999. I make tape measure holders and glove clips for other tradesmen and women. I invented the “wedgie tape measure holder. I am self taught with my design and do my own marketing. I focus generally on blue collar fields, including welders, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, bricklayers, military men and women, firefighters, emt, and police officers love my glove clips as well. My brand, tagline emphasizes courage, duty, strength, humor, pride, and getting it done at all cost. I have a website, I have an LLC and am the creator of Brown Arm Plumbing.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I follow a lot of artist, I am fond of all talents. I think by following other creative people it helps to open other avenues which help in my marketing. I follow mechanical contractors in hopes that it will help my niche. I give a lot of praise to hard work and craftsmanship I see on post. I try to encourage apprentices and give them praise for their post on instagram and facebook. I try also to add humor to my post, something that is unique, comical and memorable.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
The fact that I am a tradesman and can relate to others in the field helps a lot. I meet a lot of people outside of my marketing that are in the construction trades. I offer a free glove clip and sticker to people I meet. I also send a free sticker with every purchase, and that helps to get my brand more exposure.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://brownarmplumbing.com/
- Instagram: @brownarmplumbing
- Facebook: Brown Arm Plumbing