Meet Zac Crosby | Wooden Map Maker

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

Hi Zac, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
Ever since I was a kid I loved maps. I was always holding a book on maps on road trips across the country. A visitor’s center in New Hampshire had a relief model of the White Mountains and I was enthralled with it every time we passed through the area. 20 years later I am tinkering around with homemade computer controlled router machines and I realize I can recreate all the mountains I want.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I get excited that my art is a huge combination of digital and physical design. 2/3rd of the process is entirely digital, but it ends up as only a physical piece that feels entirely handmade. I think that sets it apart from others because of there being no trace that it was once entirely digital.

It was incredibly hard getting here. I started when I was laid off and had no income, got my job back and got through 2 holiday seasons without being too busy with my fulltime job and Topside. Then this year is when I just became so busy making maps that I had to leave my cabinetry job behind to just keep up with my map orders.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My wife was the one to push me into creating my business and then taking it full time. When I was first creating my business the Pandemic hit and I was temporally laid off. My son was just a few months old and we weren’t quite sure what to do. But she pushed me to look into purchasing a larger, less DIY, machine to create these maps on. And then when going over how busy I was just this year, she was the one to suggest I take Topside full time.

Website: topsidemaps.com

Instagram: topside.llc