We recently connected with Zack Finger and have shared our conversation below.

Zack , appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Last Chair Customs was born one night when I was at home having some beers with my roommate and complaining about my job. I’m a machinist by trade, and really wasn’t feeling good about the parts I was making, who they were for and what they were going to go out in the world to do (think military weapons). Gabe asked me “What would you rather be doing?”

With the career I’ve had working in manufacturing and in the ski industry, I knew the answer. I wanted to make something I could be proud of, I connected with, and something the people around me would get excited about. That’s where the idea of recycling, repurposing, and reinventing old industrial pieces from the ski industry was born.

Gabe then asked “What are you going to make and where are you going to get the parts?” We talked about turning retired ski lift chairs into benches and swings, old skis into chandeliers, boots into lamps. We’ve all seen the adirondack chairs made from skis. Anybody with a circular saw, a screw gun and a pile of skis can turn those out. My skills and experience with manufacturing made ideas like that too easy. That’s when the Craigslist and google searching started. There wasn’t anybody out there working specifically with old ski lift chairs. I found a few that had been redone, but nobody who had made it a business. I found a company here in Colorado what works with ski areas around the country reselling and moving infrastructure, and he had a few old chairs for sale. I tooled up a friends garage and got right to work on nights and weekends building my first prototypes!

Zack , 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 grew up in Maine, and my parents had me up on skis at a very young age. We spent every weekend at our local hill, Mt. Abram. I started apprentice coaching at 13 or 14 and was the youngest AASI certified snowboard instructor by 15. I coached at a few ski areas through high school and ended up going to college in Vermont for a year studying Ski Industry and Resort Management. I did well, but between the tuition costs and the seasonal job market, I decided not to continue. That’s when I went back home and enrolled at Central Maine Community College. I studied Machine Tool Technology and also took a bunch of Automotive classes while I was there.

After graduating I went to work in the maintenance & machine shop of a tampon factory, then a local job shop, then aerospace before moving to Colorado. Here in Colorado I made parts for vibration and shake tables, assembly machines, and then back to aerospace and weapons.

My background in all things making, building, fixing, repairing, creating & producing is what’s brought me to where I am today with Last Chair Customs. I’m most proud of my ability to be creative, producing the ideas I have in my head, and bringing to life the ideas of my customers.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Last Chair Customs started as the side hustle to my machining career. It was nights and weekends and time spent in the garage with my friends. After a layoff and a healthy severance package, I was able to splurge on some much needed tools and a bigger shop space. That space was shared with a car audio shop, which I also had experience doing. When I was slow and AC Customs needed help I worked for him. My side hustle continues today with auto repair for friends and family. We don’t advertise that as it’s not the focus, but if you know me, I’m probably also your mechanic. Last Chair Customs has been my full time job for over 10 years now. I am now my longest employer.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

The story of Last Chair Customs is a story of resilience. From lack of funding, physical injuries, big name customers not paying debts, copy cat companies ripping off my products and designs… It hasn’t been easy, but we always overcome. The bills always get paid, the ideas are always flowing, and the next great customer and project are always just a phone call or email away!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lastchaircustoms.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lastchaircustoms/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lastchaircustoms/