Meet Makenna Schley | Vice President

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

Hi Makenna, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
My work life balance has changed a lot ever since I got out of college. I have done a lot of playing in my life and am very blessed! Now, I work very hard but still feel like I get to play a lot. Work life balance is easy when you love what you do… work feels more like play when you love what you do.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
The powder coating industry is very interesting and it changes every day which I love. We do all kinds of parts form flatbed trucks, to hand railing, to pedicabs that you see in Denver! My dad and little brother troubleshoot CNC machines so it has been very fun to work in a similar field. We share a lot of customers and experiences. My entire family is basically in the machining industry so it has been awesome to powder coat stuff for my family and share this commonality with them. I think what sets us apart from others is how personable we are with our customers. We care about quickness and quality, but also care about our customers. It is really fun to talk to customers with the knowledge my dad and brothers have given me about machining and powder coating.

It was not easy for me to get to where we are today, but it has been a very rewarding journey. I had to learn everything from scratch. I had no idea what powder coating was and I had no experience in business management. I quickly learned that the success of the business was not going to happen on its own. I started cold calling companies and driving to their locations to introduce myself. After a while I got comfortable with the process of powder coating and was no longer nervous to reach out and bring work in the door. I will say that being a young female in this industry can be hard, especially at the beginning of my career. I didn’t know much and I felt as though I wasn’t being taken seriously at times. However, once I gained the knowledge, it got easier. Being able to answer any question that someone throws at you confidently is an amazing feeling. Once I was able to do that, I feel like the business really took off. A lot of lessons have been learned on my journey. I have learned what dedication and effort truly looks like.

I want the world to know that anything is possible. I think the most important thing a person can do is find something they love to do. I have learned that work doesn’t have to be just a job. I know a lot of people that just have jobs… they don’t like them but they pay good money. Happiness is far better than money and if you find something you love, it doesn’t feel like a job. Once you find happiness in what you do, you will see that money follows because it is easier to grow and invest since you truly enjoy it.

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.
If my friend was visiting the area for a week, I would first show them my shop. We would eat in Old Town Arvada and then tour my shop! Then we would go up to the mountains and if it was winter, we snowboard or snowmobile for a few days. If it was summer, we would go to the mountains to dirt bike or fish! I love going to restaurants in the mountains and sitting on a patio with a nice view. We would most likely go watch some live music as well.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to dedicate this shoutout to my older brother, Camoren. He was the one who gave me this amazing opportunity. He bought the company but simply didn’t have time to run it due to his other companies that he has. I was lost after college and had no clue what I was going to do. He asked me if I wanted to answer phones at the powder coating shop until I figured it out and my response to hime was, “What is powder coating…?” Before I knew it, I was running the place with very little help from anyone. It was scary but also very exciting to learn how to operate a business. Now I own the company with my brother, Camoren, and I feel so lucky that he gave me this opportunity. It has been amazing to be able to work with my brother and create a successful business with him. I feel very lucky!

Website: www.accurate-powder.com

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Image Credits
All photos were taken by me or a family member.