Two Cowboys: Clean and Healthy Cowboys with Chem Free Cleaning and Essential Oils in Okotoks, Alberta, Canada

Staying Clean On the Road

We travel a lot. We do it in our motorhome or campervans. We often "Boondock", or as it is known Downunder, "Freedom Camp".

We like to save on camping fees so that we have more money for beer, cooking, bbq, fresh produce, and great adventures. This comes with a few challenges. For example, staying clean on the road and keeping clean cooking utensils requires innovation. We don't want a man down with the runs during the journey. Things need to be sanitary.

Life on the road is a little different because, while we boondock, we don't always have ready access to water for washing dishes, knives and cutting boards. We have water. Just not a lot. We have to invent and use alternative ways to keep our cooking materials clean and sanitary and save on our precious water.

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Antibacterial soap may be the go-to for anyone doing dishes at home where water is plentiful. Every good cook should follow the standard operating procedure of soap, scrub, rinse and sanitize. It keeps things clean and safe to use around the home and during food preparation.

We've discovered that there is another way to do it when access to water is limited. People have been using vinegar as a cleaning solution for a long, long time. More and more people are also returning to it for a greener and safer cleaning option.

Through our trials and research, we've found that vinegar worked really well for certain things. For example, de-greasing, cleaning mould and mildew, cleaning and descaling a coffee maker, as a replacement for rinse aid in the dishwasher (not that we have dishwashers when we are on the road). It also sanitizes while it cleans. We've turned to our own self-made vinegar concoction to keep our gear clean and sanitized. The more we used it the more it made sense to have one go-to spray bottle that is cheap and easy to use.

There is a little problem with using vinegar, though. Everything smells like vinegar!! Lemon juice may be an alternative, but we'd rather keep that for seasoning our pork and chicken.

Charlotte Lomenda from Chem Free Cleaning made a call to us and offered us an alternative. She's done a fair amount of cleaning in her life and have experimented with combining vinegar and essential oils for an even better way to clean and sanitize. She launched her business in Okotoks and offers ready to use, alternative cleaning products that work, are safe, and that smells a lot better than we can make.

It is in fact only one product. It is the right formulation of Vinegar, but with different flavours (scents) of essential oils. She took the guesswork out of our own mixology and she made it smell nice. It is made with the antibacterial and antimicrobial cleaning properties essential oils provide. It is also food-grade safe! What does that mean? It means that it is so safe that it can be used to sanitize around food, in restaurant kitchens and dining areas, as well as in your own home. She even tested it for accidental human consumption. So did we!

Observations

We trust the ingredients that Charlotte uses in her Chem Free Cleaning products.

We've trusted it even before we met her. The nice part now is that she's made it a little easier for us to have something we can use to clean with, on the road, and at home. She's taken the guesswork out of the formulation and she made it smell nicer.

Our cooking expeditions are now cleaner, we stay healthier and some have remarked that we smell better ;-) Give it a try and while doing it you know you are supporting a local entrepreneur that truly cares about her products and her customers. We are proud to know Charlotte.

Hendrik van Wyk 

Fresh Cowboy

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Chem Free

Cooking Cowboy

Two Cooking Cowboys

Safe Mellon Cleaning

Life on the Road

Two Cowboys: Hipster Dressing With Authentic Canadian Plaid Flannel Shirts at Rocky Mountain Flannel Company in Banff, Alberta

The Original Hipsters

When you think Canada, you yearn for cozy winter nights in front of a fireplace and softly falling snow outside the window. Inevitably, your mind's eye wanders to all that is familiar about Canadian winters. The smell of apple cider, pie in the oven, and the snug feeling of soft flannel against your skin. You know you are home. Flannel is as Canadian as the word "eh". It is as authentic as your granny's smile.

What is flannel? It is a soft woven fabric. Flannel was originally made from carded wool or worsted yarn but is now often made from either wool, cotton, or synthetic fiber. Flannel may be brushed to create extra softness (which makes it ideal for keeping warm) or remain unbrushed. Brushing is a mechanical process wherein a fine metal brush rubs the fabric to raise fine fibers from the loosely spun yarns to form a nap. Typically, flannel has a nap on either one side or both sides. If the flannel is not napped, it gains its softness through the loosely spun yarn in its woven form.

Flannel is commonly used to make tartan clothing, blankets, bed sheets, and sleepwear. The term "flannel shirt" is often used to mean any shirt with a plaid or tartan pattern.

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Flannel's origins can be traced back to 17th century Wales where farmers wore flannel shirts to protect themselves from the elements. This tradition would continue for other blue collar workers as the prevalence of flannel grew. The word "flannel" most likely comes from the Welsh word gwlanen, meaning "woolen article." 

Not many people know that the Bow Valley in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta has its very own flannel garment company. Gayle Houlton is the founder of Rocky Mountain Flannel. It is a business with a history that spans almost three decades. Her background in pattern making and design, and her extensive experience in retailing helped Gail to create a thriving little apparel jewel with a beautiful store that she recently relocated from Canmore to Banff. 

Rocky Mountain Flannel Company has flannel pajamas, nightgowns, pants and shirts and deliciously warm flannel bed sheets. Every product is researched and tested for quality, fit, wear and tear. In exchange for good honest feedback, Gayle often gives a new item to friends and family to try out and review. “Believe me, they are honest!” It is like dressing your children, she shares with us. They will tell you exactly what they like and dislike.

Observations

Garment manufacturing is not a kind of business you associate with the prairies and mountains of Canada. On the other hand, garment design, retailing and distribution are again growing in popularity. Enterprising designers are taking advantage of flexible sourcing opportunities. It allows them to address the localized needs of a discerning and increasingly demanding clientele.

Good quality fabrics can easily be sourced from all over the world. Combine this with cost effective small batch manufacturing, and it opens up opportunities for designers to craft unique items for their local markets. Clients are turning away from uniform, poor quality, lookalike, and almost disposal clothing articles in discount stores, according to Gayle. They are shifting towards higher quality, locally sourced, better designed and more comfortable fitted garments.

Call it the hipster movement if you like, and call it out for its non-conformist flannel wearing patrons. As far as we are concerned, wearing flannel is about being Canadian. It is also about supporting Gayle to make us our favorite shirts we proudly wear because they are nice! We like wearing our Rocky Mountain Flannel shirts, especially when it is cold outside.

Hendrik van Wyk

Flannel Cowboy

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Underwear?

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Winter Shirts

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New Beginnings in Banff

Two Cowboys: Renewal and Reinvention With the Third Generation of Buckle Makers at Olson Silver, High River, Alberta

Renewal and Reinvention

If there is an incentive for people to produce, then what is the driver for it to happen?

In 2013 High River was one of the small towns in Alberta devasted by flash flooding. The nearby Rocky Mountains had a larger than usual snow pack. Spring arrived early with the first rains. Everything melted faster than usual.

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Overnight, rivers and creeks turned into raging torrents. Like many other communities in the Foothills of Alberta, High River was in the way. Its downtown core and many of its small businesses, which already faced economic uncertainty from a faltering oil industry and globalisation pressures were caught in the deluge. We thought that the town will never recover. The character of High River, which was the pinnacle stop on the Canadian Cowboy Trail would forever be altered.

It is now almost four years after the floods. The good news is that High River recovered and reinvented itself in the process. It now stands as a symbol of the enterprising nature of the people of Alberta. It is open for businesses once again.

Albertans find new ways to move forward when they face adversity. They are builders that work with their fellow community members to reinvent and take charge of their destiny. They make lemonade when they have lemons. Brew beer and distill Whisky when the oil price is down. They build better towns when those are destroyed by flooding.

Olson Silver Company was one of the businesses severely affected by the flood. They are located in High River. The company has grown from a hobby of Jim Olson’s in the early 1960’s into the largest belt buckle manufacturing shop in Canada. The third generation is still making everything in the same shop, with very little reliance on outside suppliers.

Olson belt buckles are some of the most sought after trophies at many rodeos, from small town amateur events to the Canadian Finals Rodeo and all levels in between. It is an authentic and inspirational business that reinvented itself after the floods and as a consequence of it.

It now combines the traditional, tried and tested approach of high-quality craftsmanship with new talent and designs. Two young brothers joined Greg Hitchner's team, after the flood. Greg is the owner, custodian and chief maker currently presiding over the company's legacy of beautiful and famous Cowboy style buckles and silverware. With new talent comes a new energy for tradition. They also bring an enthusiasm for inventing, new designs and for the art of making something beautiful, valuable and authentic that is from Alberta, our home.

Observations

Greg and his team made beautiful decorative buckles for us that we wear proudly.

It is a symbol of the tradition and values that we stand for as the Two Cowboys & A Camera. The buckles are tokens of our commitment to the makers in our communities. It showcases the integrity, tradition and authenticity that comes from buying and using local products. These are people we support and that supports us.

Manufacturers in foreign markets can churn out thousands of buckles an hour. Making buckles is no longer an art only reserved for a select few talented artisans. Some of these factories may even come close to the quality and design of what Olson Silver produces. If it was only about the buckle, it would probably not have mattered when one buys a cheaper version made elsewhere. However, it is not only about the buckle. Buying something made by a local artisan comes with a much bigger story.

Wearing an Olson Silver buckle tells the story of the company, its people, the town of High River and the resilience of the many makers in our communities. We hope to encourage more people to shop locally with these and other makers. If we support local producers we are creating employment, character and capacity for growth. We are building our community. We are ultimately investing in ourselves.

Order your buckle from Olson Silver Company. It is something personal, and they will make it exceptional.

Hendrik van Wyk
Silver Cowboy

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o-CNN: How to Fill Big Shoes and Take Care of Your Boots at Alberta Boot Company in Calgary, Alberta

Filling Big Shoes

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Most family businesses don't survive generation three.

Forbes states that family businesses generate over fifty percent of the US Gross National Product (GNP). It is no different in Canada, New Zealand or Australia. In fact, it is even more widespread Downunder due to the higher concentration of smaller firms.

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These businesses are significant economic contributors. They create wealth, and scores of people are involved with them in job creation, local employment and support for activities in their communities. It concerns that less than one-third of family businesses survive the transition from first to second generational ownership. Another fifty percent doesn’t survive the transition from second to the third generation.

According to Harvard Business Review, seventy percent of family-owned businesses fail or are sold before the second generation gets a chance to take over. Just ten percent remain active, privately held companies for the third generation to lead. Why is this?

The reality is that family businesses only change when the pain is so great that they can’t stay where they are. There are many challenges subsequent generations face such as coping with shifts in technology, changing business models and consumer behaviour. Family firms in developing markets also face new threats from globalisation. Products are made cheaper overseas and shipped all over the world. It threatens smaller local operators. In many ways, leading a family-owned business has never been harder.

Ben Gerwing is the third generation in charge of Alberta Boot Company Co. He has big shoes to fill because his legacy is integrally part of the western identity of the Province and the city's character thanks to the annual Calgary Stampede event. This comes with opportunity. He also has to battle a substantial amount of inertia as a young proprietor of an iconic brand and the last remaining - only western boot manufacturer left in Western Canada.

Alberta Boot Co. was an idea that came from Ben's grandfather, Clement Gerwing in the mid-1970's. He was selling western boots from Mexico and Quebec out of his wholesale footwear store. The demand for well made western boots was high, and he didn't like the quality and products coming in from out of Province and out of Country. This was when he decided to start a new venture at an age many were considering retirement. Alberta Boot Co. was founded as premium western boot manufacturer.

Thirty-nine years later they still make all their boots the same way they did at the beginning, even using quite a few of the original machines to add to the allure and individuality of every pair of boots produced.

Alberta Boot Co. has outfitted Royalty, movie stars, entertainers, celebrities, athletes, public figures, religious leaders, and most importantly - ordinary people from all over the world who are intrigued by the mystique of the Wild West! "There is no greater compliment that we could receive," Ben says, "than when a customer comes into our store and lays down their hard earned money for a pair of Alberta Boots. People still appreciate quality hand-made boots.

Observations

I admire Ben for his continued commitment to the foundational values of the business he inherited. He remains dedicated to his heritage and to the community that trusts him to continue the legacy. Alberta Boot Co. was founded on hand-crafted quality custom boots and personal service.

With these values firmly ingrained, Ben is now taking cautious steps towards moving Alberta Boot Co. into the new millennium, with newer products for a younger, urban and more contemporary consumer. The good news is that it is made with the same uncompromising commitment because the core values of his business don't go out of fashion. Ever!

We checked in with Ben to get instructions on how to take care of our Alberta Boots during the cold, dry Canadian winter months.

If you don't yet have a pair of boots, you can order a pair online. No, it is not the "one-click" order variety that so many online stores offer nowadays. Fortunately, you will still have to talk to a real person. The good news is that once they have your size, it is easy to order another pair or a different style. Ask for Ben. Tell him the Two Cowboys sent you.

Remember that you better like and look after your boots. You are going to have them for a very long time.

Hendrik van Wyk
Alberta Cowboy

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Two Cowboys: Getting Introduced to Chicken Delights (Coxinha) at Durello Traditional Brazilian Foods in Auckland, NZ

Coxinha

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When a thigh is not enough.

Thanks to Wikipedia, and Durello Traditional Brazilian Foods in Auckland, we know that Coxinha is a popular food in Brazil consisting of chopped or shredded chicken meat, covered in dough and moulded into a shape resembling a chicken leg, battered and fried.

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Coxinha was originally made with the meat of chicken thighs. Its traditional shape is also meant to resemble a chicken thigh (a small chicken, obviously). In its modern form, it may have originated among the Brazilian Royal Family in São Paulo in the 19th century. This is where we encountered a story that explains the existence of the Coxinha. Thanks to a talented cook faced with a dilemma, who invented an artificial chicken thigh to appease a hungry young prince. Today we have Coxinha.

History tells us that Prince Gaston, Count D'Eu, husband of Princess Isabel of Brazil (1846-1921), had a favourite dish, chicken. But, he only ate the thighs. One day, not having enough thighs, the Royal Chef decided to turn a whole chicken into thighs by shredding it and making the filling for flour dough shaped into a drumstick. Messing with a Prince's chicken thighs is risky business. Luckily, the Monarch endorsed the results and today we have Coxinha.

Empress Teresa Cristina, when visiting him, could not resist this tasty delicacy. She liked it so much that she requested that the master of the imperial kitchen learn how to prepare the snack. So Coxinha won over the nobility and became history. However, somehow this delight and its amazing story didn't escape Brazil and Spain for Canada or New Zealand, until now, thanks to Durello.

You can't ignore the Coxinha if you want to pretend to provide any sort of complete coverage of Brazil's world of food and eating. Barbara and Marcelo certainly couldn't either if they were to pay homage to the authentic food of their motherland, Brazil.

Observations

We checked in with Marcelo and Barbara before we left New Zealand's summer behind for Canada's winter. Previously we learned about Brazilian Cheese Bread from Barbara. She insisted that we were missing the best part. We had to return one more time and try their Chicken Delights (Coxinha).

We couldn't refuse, knowing how delicious their products are. We wanted to learn what is so special about these Chicken Delights that gave it its local notoriety. It is so unique that it allowed Durello to walk away with the winning prize at the New Zealand Food Awards of 2014.

What we found again was an attention to detail and a laser focus to make the most authentic product surpassing the best in Brazil. They are so good that Durello has been asked to export it right back to Brazil!

Talking about export. Durello succeeded during 2016 in getting their export compliance licensing to start shipping this delight to Australia in 2017. Initially, it will be positioned for the restaurant and bar trade, and soon after, you will be able to buy it in the grocery stores. You already can buy it in New Zealand's stores as a frozen product you can prepare yourself, or at their tiny little downtown store in Auckland.

We are encouraged by Marcelo and Barbara's dedication to their business and will excitedly follow their international expansion. It is an amazing story when you realise that a person from the Netherlands (Barbara), married a fella from Brazil (Marcelo), then moved from Brazil to New Zealand for a new life, started a manufacturing business making authentic Brazilian food products, that will now be exported to Australia. One day, they will send it to the rest of the world. Possibly, even back to Brazil.

What an amazing story!

Hendrik van Wyk
Coxinha Cowboy

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Tiny Chicken Thighs

Happy Man

Ready to Travel

Two Cowboys: Every Kiwi Kid's Dream at Rayglass Boats in Auckland, New Zealand

Dreams On the Water

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There's a modesty that comes with the Kiwi culture that is striking. New Zealand's producers are doing phenomenal things on the international stage with innovative products and services. They set the tone for, and lead innovation in many industries.

The source for this success is quite simple. Make the things you love, and keep making it better. However, when you ask them about it, the most you get out of them is. "Yee-na, Mate. We're just doing what needs to be done until she's right." Simple!

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There is one industry that is in the blood of every Kiwi. The boating and fishing business is big business Downunder. They love fishing whenever weather permits and is working daily to refine this art and the tools of the trade. The best fishing is in a Rayglass boat on the water, we're told.

We checked in with Dave Larsen and his team at Rayglass Boats. The company's products are well known in New Zealand and abroad as a premium option for leisure craft. The dream of every fisherman on the Islands is to have a Rayglass boat for his weekend fishing "trup".

Not many people know that their Protectors range is also an option of choice for hard work on the water. They've found favour with companies and law enforcement in most parts of the globe. Especially in Europe, United States, Canada, Australia, Scandinavia, Russia, Asia and throughout the Pacific, they are used to travel quickly, safely and comfortably in virtually any conditions. They serve as patrol and rescue boats, as support vessels for international yacht racing teams, as fast pleasure cruisers and sports fishing boats and as superyacht tenders.

Dave and his team are living the dream by making the boat ownership dreams of others come true. Their reputation for excellence in design, construction, finish and performance is the result of a total commitment by everyone at Rayglass to quality. Their boats are the product of extensive research and development to constantly improve the designs, ride, seaworthiness and all round family comfort.

Observations

We've asked Dave about this extensive research and development and was surprised by his answer. I am not going to repeat his words, but it comes down to the fact that they have so much knowledge and experience of what works on the water, and so many years of refining the offering that they remain untouched by their competition. They set the standard by listening to their customers and iterating quickly to be responsive to meeting these needs. Their exceptional on-water performance comes from the utmost attention to quality and detail.

The highest endorsement of Rayglass’ performance came from the organisers of the world’s most prestigious yacht races - the Louis Vuitton Cup and America’s Cup - who have chosen on several occasions to have a fleet of Legend and Protector boats for on-water patrol and umpiring vessels.

Rayglass manufactures all their boats in Auckland New Zealand and sends it the world over. According to Dave, none are at the bottom of the ocean. Of all the units that have been manufactured in almost three decades, none have ever sunk. "They are unsinkable!" When I enquired about the colours in which the boats are available I was politely informed that the latest craze in Kiwi boat fashion is a "racing green stripe" (see photo below).

Talk about modesty and simplicity! The best unsinkable fishing boat in the world with a racing green stripe.

Hendrik van Wyk

Captain Cowboy

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Rayglass in Glass

Boat Finishing

Protector Protecting

Perspective

Racing Green

o-CNN: Checking In With Two Birds Furniture that Makes Pieces from Recycled Lumber in Alberta Canada

Metamorphosis

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Thanks to Wikipedia we know: "The word metamorphosis derives from Greek μεταμόρφωσις, "transformation, transforming", from μετα- (meta-), "change" and μορφή (morphe), "form".

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What then do you call it when you transform a hundred-year-old barn and turn it into beautiful furniture and decorative finishes? In Okotoks, they call it: "Farm to Furniture, by the Two Birds".

Clint and Robyn Pigeon (two pigeons - birds - get it?) established the business in 2013 with a helping hand from within the community. Both were raised in rural Alberta where they cultivated an understanding and value for the importance of hard work. These are farm people. They can farm where most of the year there is only snow and ice.

Their appreciation for Alberta’s heritage and a passion for their own sparked an initiative. They wanted to reclaim the beauty of historic farms and ranches by creating heirlooms from the weathered barns and outbuildings. This leads them to the recycling old lumber and turning it into quality things that will last for generations.

The natural next step for these ageing and often unsafe structures is to be burned down. Clint mentioned that this is the way he gets to know about them. The owners usually apply for a fire permit with the Town. The Pigeons step in by negotiating the opportunity to dismantle and salvage the weathered lumber from the old buildings.

They then turn the lumber from the buildings into custom, authentic, one-of-a-kind furniture and decor, that they assure me is more affordable than I expect. What is for sure is that they turn it into quality pieces that will last another hundred years.

Observations

I asked Clint about the best part of his day. His reply: "When I am out in the open with the old barn, by myself in thought, admiring the history, appreciating the character and I realise that I am merely another step in the evolution of the story that came before, and the one that will be after." The next natural step is for Clint to make something beautiful for someone to use and appreciate.

Robyn mentioned that people appreciate the furniture because it comes with a story. I think people appreciate it because it is really beautiful, solid and something one's grandchildren will still be using decades from now.

If you have ever found two pure entrepreneurs, it is Clint and Robyn. The business started naturally with love for the material, the creative processes, the hard work that goes into creating a utility from passion and recycled old wood. They turned it into useful and beautiful items for their family and friends. All that remained was to keep doing it. Get better at it, and share it with more people.

For now, you need to get to know them personally for their custom pieces they make in a new workshop in Okotoks, Alberta. However, they assure me that more standard items will soon be available for order through their website: http://www.twobirdsfurniture.ca.

We are eagerly following the story of Two Birds Furniture because we share the same values and we also have a passion and love for the history of this beautiful Province of Alberta. We will definitely be bringing you more from Two Birds Furniture in future.

Hendrik van Wyk
Birdwatching Cowboy

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o-CNN: Market Day in Cochrane, Alberta

A Market Community is a Healthy Community

The Two Cowboys were fortunate to visit with Valerie McCracken, the volunteer organizer of the Cochrane Farmers' Market. Over the last two weekends we had a taste of what Cochrane's micro businesses have to offer and we loved it!

The Cochrane Market is an Alberta Approved Farmers’ Market. It comes with rules and regulations that help distinguish the market from a typical "Flea Market" or "Public Market". For example: eighty per cent of the vendors are Albertans who meet the "make it, bake it, grow it" criteria. This means you are buying from the community's producers and product makers, directly. The remaining twenty per cent of the vendors are selling products that complement the market mix, within the discretion of the organizers. 

Another key differentiator is the organization of the market. An "approved market" is sponsored by a not-for-profit community group, local Chamber of Commerce, municipality or agricultural society, or have formed their own not-for profit society under the Societies Act. Hence, the market is a collaborative effort for the benefit of all the participants. It even has a vendor meeting to include the participants in the decision making. The "approved" status plays a distinguishing role to define the character of the types of businesses that participate in the market and how the activity is organized. 

The Cochrane Environmental Action Committee sponsors and operates the Cochrane Farmers’ Market at the Cochrane Ranche Historic Site. The market runs from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. each Saturday, rain or shine, from the beginning of June until the end of September. The market just celebrated its 18th birthday. They continue to grow, and each year is better than the last, with a downtown evening market added this year! 

Somehow, as Valerie mentioned in a her interview, Cochrane may have managed to get something right after eighteen years of trying to have a vibrant and healthy market. This year is the first year where the rest of the Cochrane retail and business community started to recognize, that to survive the onslaught of the national and multinational big box store invasion in small town Alberta, Cochrane has to turn to its own. The Farmers' Market was invited into the downtown core to help attract customers with products that make Cochrane unique as a destination, and inspiring as a community.

I make no mystery about the fact that I think markets are the critical, and often missing foundation of a community's character. A community with a healthy market and locally originating commerce is one that thrives in other areas too. It shows the societal health of a place when people come together to interact and trade the value they create. 

A market shrinks complicated value chains by offering direct access between producer and consumer. Markets overcome commerce imbalances in a community, which are often caused by an over representation of real estate reliant retailers stocked with out-of-town goods. Retailers offer a simple and safe tax base for local governments, and is therefore favoured over the complexities of the organizational overhead, and transient nature of market vendors. 

Yet, many successful producers and businesses started at markets. A market offers a safe place with low entry cost and low tax overhead, where government regulations and compliance costs are delayed a little longer, before it exercises its potential to kill the entrepreneurial spark of budding entrepreneurs.

Not only is the community's market a meeting place for town folk, it is the first place where budding entrepreneurs get to show their ideas, offer their products, and solicit feedback from potential customers. It is a place where you usually get something unique, delicious and practical while meeting friends and exchanging the week's news. 

With a healthy market, people have a chance to belong, a chance to contribute, and a chance to count on the support of those around them. Show me a community's market, and I will show you the health of its people.

Why then do we in Canada, mothball our markets during the long winter months? Granted, winter impacts agricultural pursuits, but that is not all you get at a vibrant market. These very important months is exactly the time when there is more opportunity for adding value to the season's harvest and inventing and making new products. 

I make the case that we need more markets (approved or not), and that these markets should be given the opportunity to operate year round in Canada. It is a community's prerogative to have its market, and you have the support of the Two Cowboys to help you make the case. We are so enthusiastic about markets that we are going to devote more time to this topic during the second half of this year when we travel to New Zealand to see how it is done in a country that thrives, thanks to its local micro producers, and its markets.

Hendrik van Wyk

Local Market Advocate

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Who we are: We are a social enterprise. We are funded through donations and sponsorship. 
All our earnings are applied back to covering our costs of marketing and promoting Producers and inspiring local communities. Please support us to bring you more (www.forwardthefavour.com)

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My Place

Market Fanatic

Rock Face 

Dozens and Dozens

Ouma's Preserves

Hand Made

o-CNN: Cowboy News Network - Okotoks Trade and Lifestyle Show 2016

Not Only About the Rock Anymore

If you thought Okotoks is only about the rock, you are sadly mistaken. This sleepy little Cowboy town south of Calgary has grown up from being the place where city folk escape to for a slow Sunday afternoon drive, to a shopping and enterprise hub in the Foothills of Alberta. 

Okotoks is for everyone that chooses to live in the country, but who cannot do without the city's comforts. I should only whisper the name "Okotoks" and my family jumps in the truck, dog in the back, and ready for a full day of shopping. It is now five years since we left Okotoks to live in the beautiful mountains of Canmore, and somehow Okotoks stays with us, and my credit card remains empty.

Okotoks doubled in size in ten years, but its people are still just amazing country folk, proud about their town, their sports teams (some of the best in Alberta) and motivated to sell the place's virtues to everyone willing to listen.

We are at the Okotoks Chamber's Trade and Lifestyle Show 2016. Cheryl Actemichuk, Andrew Gustafson and colleagues at the Chamber will leave no stone unturned to give their members and fellow Okotokians a hand up. This event was no exception. They've outdone themselves. We had to run to keep up with them.

If you need a jam packed dose of Okotoks hospitality, innovation and entrepreneurial flair, then you get it at this annual show in spades from local and visiting entrepreneurs. This year it added a whole new section at the curling rink for automotive and watercraft enthusiasts. Why? Because Okotoks boasts its own leading manufacturers in this lucrative sector. See Excalibur's truck accessories.

The festival of flavours was another innovative idea to showcase Okotoks' new restaurants and flavours. We had tasty Albert lamb from Bradley's Grill House. Seriously, Alberta has lamb, and they do it perfectly at Bradley's. Compliments don't come cheap from this fake Kiwi. The lamb was good!

Thank you for hosting us Cheryl and Andrew. We hope to back for the next event, and we are sure you have much more to show the world about the great businesses you have in Okotoks, Alberta.

Hendrik van Wyk
Wandering Cowboy

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Who we are: We are a social enterprise. We are funded through donations and sponsorship. 
All our earnings are applied back to covering our costs of marketing and promoting Producers and inspiring local communities. Please support us to bring you more (www.forwardthefavour.com)

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There It Is

Solid

Nice Hair

The Heart of Okotoks

Gitter Done Bud!

Think Mexico, Mexico, Mexico

Two Cowboys: Customers are the Custodians of the Brand - Swazi, Levin, New Zealand

Outdoor Clothing Made in New Zealand - Swazi, New Zealand

(Learn: ** Inspire: *** Amaze: *** Live: ****)
(The Two Cowboys Subjective Rate-o-Meter.   )

Levin was New Zealand's fabric and garment manufacturing epicentre until the industry was decimated by companies moving their operations overseas. Headlines such as: "A New Zealand clothing company goes 'global' and shuts all local factories." became too familiar in this part of the world over the last decade.

"Swazi will never manufacture overseas!" Davey Hughes, the founder of Swazi, New Zealand stands proudly behind this statement and his commitment to making their products in the market, where they are the most recognised and respected. We’d get an ‘I LOVE MILEY’ tattoo before we’d manufacture in China!

Swazi is an outdoor clothing and niche garment manufacturer that is proudly making its products in Levin, New Zealand.  Swazi produce innovative and practical agricultural, hunting and outdoor leisure clothing, hand in hand with an assurance to make the voice of the outdoors heard by promoting adventure, hunting, conservation and a sense of responsibility among young people.

It’s made by a passionate bunch of people who live close by. So close, that many of them walk to work every day. For Davey and his team, it’s about community, something that’s easy to forget about if you have your product made on the other side of the world. Creating jobs for people who live in their town is pretty much the best community oriented thing they can do. It’s awesome to see people develop pride in what they do every day. It’s awesome to watch that pride spread through their families and whanau (family).

Impressions

It is initially hard to place Davey in his garment business.

Here is a hunter and trapper in a country of possums. Let's face it. Regardless of the country's breathtaking beauty (which everyone knows, thanks to Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings), New Zealand is not really known for its animal wildlife, is it? What is a big game hunter doing there?

Davey is a rough outdoorsman, world traveller, and television personality, but with an unwavering commitment to the success of everyday people in an age-old and very competitive industry. He is in an industry that seems to have departed from New Zealand some time ago. That he makes garments and design clothes in Levin, is not something that comes to mind when you watch the fella trying to spear a Grizzly in the Canadian outback.

Not even the name "Swazi" fits. It is the name of an African people and tribe from Southern Africa, thousands of kilometres removed in the distance and in culture from Kiwiland.

Maybe, it is just this initial confusion and contrast that makes the Swazi story and its values so attractive and intriguing. There is a surprise around every corner!

Here is what stood out for us:

• Patriotism: While from Scottish lineage, Davey has an unwavering commitment to his country, New Zealand and its people. He demonstrates this with the loyalty to his workers and town, by continuing to manufacture in Levin even though the country's own Government decided to pass its production over in favour of manufacturing in China.
• Niche Product Innovation: Swazi's clothes stand out because it keeps people alive. Davey found a niche in outdoor garments because of the harsh climates people face working in the rain, snow, and wind. It is not only recreation clothes, but safety gear, high visibility gear, and even speciality suits that keep helicopter pilots from getting hypothermia. 
• Global Online Business: The majority of Swazi's products is sold online. This was bold, and some would consider risky move they made five years ago. It is paying off for the business. Products are shipped all over the world. It is no longer a local success story. It is a global one. More so, because five years ago there were still a lot of scepticism about selling apparel over the Internet. Today, people on every continent wear and love their Swazi gear they ordered online.
• The Brand: Davey's personal brand is probably the strongest selling point for Swazi. Not because of the hunter, adventurer and traveller persona. It is because of his down-to-earth honest and practical approach to overcoming life's obstacles, and the changes were thrown at him and his team. "Every change has an opportunity" is Davey's motto. He is the person you want to know when "chips are down". Because, when you have to rely on someone like many individuals rely on Swazi's clothes to keep them alive, you want to count on Davey. As we say in Canada: "He's got your back."

The most notable comment in the conversation with Davey is his acknowledgement that Swazi's brand is no longer his brand. "We are merely custodians now for our customers," Davey says that the customers of Swazi own the brand. They get married in it. Buried in it. All he and his team can do is not disappoint the loyal and the faithful.

It was an excellent adventure to spend a day with Swazi in Levin. We hope to be back for much more soon.

Hendrik van Wyk
Producer

Get rewarded for supporting our local Producers. Receive special offers and invitations from the Two Cowboys.

Who we are: We are a social enterprise. We are funded through donations and sponsorship. 
All our earnings are applied back to covering our costs of marketing and promoting Producers and inspiring local communities. Please support us to bring you more (www.forwardthefavour.com)

Photos

The Original

Making Something

Missing Canada

Focus

Safety First

Creating Something New