Meet Brad Evans | Artist/Woodworker

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

Hi Brad, what makes you happy? Why?
I’m a creative individual who thrives on pursuing my passions and making a positive impact on others. There are several aspects of my life that bring me immense happiness.

One of the greatest sources of joy for me is the act of creating. Whether it is designing, crafting, drawing, or even coming up with innovative business ideas, the process of bringing something new into existence fills me with a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. It allows me to express myself and share my unique perspective with the world.

As an entrepreneur, I find immense happiness in the journey of building and creating my own business. Ever since I was a child with a paper route and a desire to make my own money on my own terms, I’ve had the drive to be an entrepreneur. The freedom to pursue my vision, take calculated risks, and create something meaningful, and artistic, energizes me. It’s a constant learning experience that challenges me to think, adapt to new situations, and make a difference in the lives of my customers and employees. I am lucky that my wife has a similar mindset and we are able to collaborate and combine our skills, talents and passions in a shared endeavor. It strengthens our bond, fosters a sense of unity and allows us to support and uplift each other on both personal and professional levels, not to mention it supports our amazing 4 year old son, Morgan.

Support and connection within the artistic community is important to my happiness. Connecting with fellow artists, exchanging ideas, learning from one another and celebrating our collective achievements provides a sense of belonging and inspiration, which fuels my creativity and encourages me to push boundaries.

Being able to provide employment opportunities to others is incredibly fulfilling. Seeing my team members thrive, grow professionally and personally, and achieve their goals brings me great joy. Building a supportive and inclusive work environment where everyone feels valued and inspired is a priority for me as an entrepreneur. I value the creativity and talent of my fellow team members.

The dynamic nature of my work means every day is different. I love the variety and excitement when each day presents new challenges, opportunities and experiences. It keeps me motivated and continually learning and creating. The process of taking an idea from its inception to realization is incredibly rewarding. It’s exhilarating to envision something, develop a design and drawings, overcome obstacles, and witness it come to life. The sense of achievement and pride I feel when I see a project or venture through to completion is unparalleled and fills me with a deep sense of happiness.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I design and build a line of furniture and home accessories from recycled wine barrels and shipping crates. My company’s design and attention to detail set us apart from the competition. I am proud to have built this company from scratch without any initial capital funding, 17 years later we are still going strong! Everyone on our team has outstanding work ethic and we produce products that are unrivaled in quality.

Several factors directed my arrival at this business. I was blessed with supportive parents that sent me to art classes from the age of 4 and music classes at the age of 5. As far as woodworking, I am mostly self taught. I had an amazingly handy engineer father and two great brothers that taught me woodworking and hands on practical skills. Together we finished a large basement, build an extreme skateboarding half pipe from scratch, installed fences and built cool tree houses, and generally took on any project together as a family.

I learned that hard work and reinvesting in my business has its rewards. I’ve also learned that selling handmade works made in the US is extremely difficult and not always a profitable venture. We have had major catalog companies skip out on payments and had to literally chase down money from storefront accounts. That’s not fun! Direct to consumer channels are certainly better and the invention of better internet outlets and websites like etsy.com have been very helpful.

I want the world to know Alpine Wine Design is the premier source for wine barrel furniture and wine crate home decor. Each piece is created by a group of talented artisan woodworkers and we stand behind our product 100%!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’d hike the trails around Red Rocks, go to great restaurants downtown: Root Down, Post Oak BBQ, or Barolo Grill. Go to downtown Golden and bike around. Take a drive to the mountains and explore. Swing through a farmer’s market or two, have a cocktail at Stanley Lake Marketplace. Visit Union Station and the shops in Cherry Creek North. Beverage and a snack at Hillstones. Golf Fossil Trace in Golden.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Thanks most to my wife and family. For putting up with the long days and obsessive work hours throughout the last 16 year of our business. Love you!

My parents are incredible and have always supported my artistic endeavors: guitar lessons since the age of five, guitar building lessons, so many art class, pottery lessons, singing lessons, and so much love and encouragement always.

To my art teacher Linda Fisher in Middletown, Ohio, who always said “every piece needs a little purple” Turns out red wine barrels as your primary medium is quite appropriate.

To the late Jose Madrigal, who always pushed me to be great person, a lifelong optimist, a guitarist, and a luthier.

Website: alpinewinedesign.com

Instagram: @alpinewinedesign

Linkedin: alpine wine design

Twitter: @alpinewinedesign

Facebook: facebook.com/alpinewinedesign

Youtube: alpine wine design

Image Credits
Ignite Images -Josh Barrett