You know that saying about how if you love what you do, then you'll never work another day in your life? I call bullshit. If you love what you do, more likely than not, you'll work harder than you ever have before. You'll wake up early, stay up late, shed blood, sweat, and tears. You won't love all of it, but it will be so damn worth it. There is something so satisfying about giving A+ effort to something you care about and can be proud of. There is also something utterly terrifying about it -- putting yourself out there, daring to fail, doing something new.
Many of the ladies and gents we feature in our stories are doing just that. Taking that leap of faith [and often, finance] into the world of the self employed. Sometimes they fill a void in the market, sometimes they want to do something better than the other guys, and sometimes -- just sometimes -- they straight-up do it because they love it. Scott Rawlings of fullgive Leather is a member of the latter gang. His tale of metamorphosis begins like many others...with a dream. Except Scott's was a literal dream; he had visions of making belts in and out of consciousness one restless night. Having always been a handy guy, he wisely pursued the hobby of leather-making when he was gifted a small hide and some tools. He started simple: making belts with second-hand hardware and dying or painting the leather by hand. Belts were soon followed by bracelets, messenger bags, and laptop cases. Met with much success at the Provo Farmer's Market, Scott decided to make the switch from full-time real estate to full-time craftsman.
The name "fullgive" is slang from an old college pal meaning "right on", but basically, it's just a cool name representing some leathery goods and a positive attitude. Scott's hopeful about the future, he's working hard, he's self-promoting, he's expanding his business, and he's happy. He's also not delusional. There is stress, there are bad days, self doubt and long hours. But he and his gaggle of employees [family and otherwise] are gaining their footing after those first few years on wobbly new-business legs. Their etsy shop is blowing up and they've just exceeded a massive Kickstarter goal [to fund better quality, organically-grown, American-made leather] thanks to plenty of willing donors.
From a COLLECTIVE standpoint, we support local, we support quality, and we support the humans that are bringing positivity and good products into the world. Solid work, Scott. Keep skiving/stamping/tooling your ass off, and please let us know as soon as those black bucket bags are ready. We've got a waiting list over here...
