Meet Anthony Apodaca | Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Anthony Apodaca and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Anthony, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
Becoming a business owner has definitely changed the way you look at life and how you manage your time. Before starting the business and working a M-F 9am-5pm job, you would wake up and go to work and leave work at work once you left at 5pm. Now you kind of eat sleep and breathe your business. I once saw a meme where it said “quit your 9-5 to start your own business and work 24/7” and that statement couldn’t be any more true. So it did take some time adjusting and trying to manage your work and social life. It is important to get away from work and have some you time.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
One Offs Plus is mainly known for our patented home decor bottle lamp. The name comes from that a lot of our designs are custom or “one-off.” The plus is everything else that we offer which are our in house designs ready to be place lamp and shipped to the customer. It is pretty cool being able to call ourselves inventors ever since our patent got approved. That shows that we have such a unique and one of a kind product. That is what really separates us from our competitors. It is new a gift that no one has received before. The bottle lamps can fit any theme or special occasion which keeps us busy year round. Also, with it being such a new and different concept of a product it has been a challenge to show people over the internet how nice they really are and how it is used. It has been nothing close to easy but has made the journey that much more worth it. It requires you to really be committed, mentally tough, and think outside of the box. One Offs Plus started in the basement of my parents house, we were making the bottle lamps for friends and family and everyone loved them. People were and still are telling us we should go on Shark Tank so I decided to take the leap and start the business. We are now in a 1,500sqft office and plan on out growing that space. It has been very exciting to watch the growth of the business. We are currently in our second. year of business and excited to see where we are at this point next year.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First, we would head downtown and get a delicious meal in the RiNo area. After a nice meal and few refreshing beverages we would head to a sporting event depending on what time of the year. Preferably a Broncos or Nuggets game but cannot go wrong with an Avs or Rockies game. Then we would head to Meow Wolf and show them that unique experience. I think everyone needs to experience the incline in Manitou Springs. The view at the top makes it worth the hike. Also, since the mountains aren’t too far from Denver we would drive to Breckenridge or Estes Park. It is always nice to experience a change of pace from the city. Nothing can beat the small town feel. All the restaurants and bars are walking distance from each other so the options seem limitless. One of my favorite hobbies currently is golfing. I think one of the nicest courses we have to offer is Arrowhead so we are definitely getting a round in there or playing at X-Golf in Centennial which is an indoor golf simulator that is very accurate to actually playing. Denver all around is a great place to live and explore and would not be able to check every box but I believe that would be a good start and give them a good enough reason to visit again.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
It is hard to point out one person or book to give credit too but we can definitely start with my parents. They have been there for us (me and my brother) since day one and have supported us every step of the way. Even if their was some doubt in the back of their mind through all the ups and downs they never showed it. Growing up they always said, “you get out what you put in” and I believe that applies to everything in life. Applying that quote to my life allowed me to play DII college football where I got to meet our now business partner Austin Ekeler who plays RB for the LA Chargers. Meeting him and watching his success has had an impact on everyone around him including myself. I think sports and has helped me get to this point as well. Sports require a lot of hard work and dedication to become successful and really excel. So being able to understand and carry over those traits to your business and other aspects of life has helped.

Website: www.oneoffsplus.com

Instagram: @one_offs_plus

Facebook: One Offs Plus