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A lot of people think custom engraving is just pushing a button on a laser. Then you meet Bonnie Cummings, owner of Third Axis Custom Engraving in Farmington, New Mexico, and you realize the real craft is equal parts creativity, technical mastery, and staying power when life gets heavy. She shares how she starts with crystal engraving that creates 2D and 3D images inside blank crystals, then steadily expands into laser engraving on all kinds of materials, metal engraving, and full-color sublimation printing.

We dig into what it takes to grow a home-based small business in the Four Corners area: multiple moves, the overhead squeeze, and the double shock of construction plus COVID. Bonnie explains why cutting fixed costs can be the difference between closing and continuing, and how she builds a customer-first approach that turns first-time buyers into people who call back years later because they remember how she made them feel.

You’ll also hear the unglamorous truth behind personalized gifts and one-of-a-kind awards: pixelated logos, rushed deadlines, hours of image editing, and the importance of deposits and pricing your time. Bonnie breaks down why you’re not selling “materials” as much as you’re selling experience, design judgment, and the ability to run expensive equipment reliably. We wrap with her advice to other entrepreneurs: keep going one step at a time, learn something new every day, and let systems free you up to focus on the people and the meaning behind the work.

If you enjoy stories about local business, customer service, laser engraving, crystal engraving, sublimation, and real-world entrepreneurship, subscribe, share this with a creative friend, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.

Be sure to follow or subscribe! And, if you're a local business owner who'd like to be featured - or know someone whose story should be told - get in touch at Ken@StrategicHorizonsConsulting.com

This show is brought to you by Strategic Horizons Consulting (a division of Ken Collins Marketing).

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A family restaurant can feed a town, but it also ends up raising it. We’re joined by Carrie West, third-generation owner of The Spare Rib BBQ in Farmington, New Mexico, for a candid talk about what it takes to protect a legacy while stepping fully into modern small business ownership in the Four Corners. From the early days of the shop to taking over “for real” with payroll, taxes, and nonstop responsibility, Carrie explains how the job changes when the risk has your name on it.

We get into the practical side of running a successful barbecue restaurant: ordering and inventory, equipment upgrades that reduce stress in the kitchen, and why staying consistent matters more than chasing constant change. Carrie also shares the mindset that keeps her steady when the cooler breaks or the day goes sideways, plus the leadership lesson many owners learn late: your mood sets the tone, and your tone becomes the culture.

Along the way, we talk customer service and community support, watching families grow up as regulars, and the “country wisdom” that keeps the team grounded in roots and gratitude. Carrie also hints at future plans, including the possibility of a pickup window, while staying committed to the same clean dining room, friendly service, and quality food people remember when they come back home.

If you care about family-owned restaurants, restaurant management, and what makes local businesses last, hit play, share this with a friend who loves BBQ, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

Be sure to follow or subscribe! And, if you're a local business owner who'd like to be featured - or know someone whose story should be told - get in touch at Ken@StrategicHorizonsConsulting.com

This show is brought to you by Strategic Horizons Consulting (a division of Ken Collins Marketing).

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Opportunity doesn’t always announce itself; sometimes it looks like a rent hike that forces you to choose who you really are. We sat down with Clay Jaqua, owner of 505 Motorsports in Farmington, to unpack how a near-crisis became the catalyst for a smarter move, stronger numbers, and a clearer lane. Clay’s story runs from a 20-year-old dad asked to leave college, to fourteen formative years in a Ford store, to a Dairy Queen detour that sharpened his love for the car business. Along the way he built a community-first dealership with a showroom of classics and performance gems, and a lot tuned to a $15–20K sweet spot that actually matches how locals buy.

We dig into what most people get wrong about selling cars: it’s not the metal, it’s the options, the financing, the trust, and the follow-through. Clay lays out why small, nimble operations can adapt faster than big lots, how to pivot without losing your brand, and how to use consignment and bank relationships to make deals frictionless. He shares the mindset shift from “get rich quick” to “build slow, protect the downside,” plus the unsexy habits that create staying power: own your building when you can, avoid overextension, and let small margins add up. In a small town, reputation is oxygen—fix what you can, don’t duck hard conversations, and put people over the policy when it really counts.

We also talk creative marketing that actually works. Clay’s viral social videos aren’t slick; they’re genuine, funny, and unmistakably local—proof that a clear voice beats a big budget. For owners chasing discoverability, we cover local SEO, Google Business Profile basics, and why consistent YouTube walkarounds plus TikTok and Instagram Reels can lift brand search for terms like “505 Motorsports,” “Farmington used cars,” and “classic cars Farmington.” Finally, Clay opens up about freedom, family, and a new bourbon venture—Burnt Tavern—as the next chapter in staying curious without overreaching. If you’re building a resilient business in a volatile market, this conversation is a field guide: stay open to opportunity, make risk survivable, take care of your people, and keep your sense of humor.

Enjoy the episode? Follow, share with a friend who’s building something, and leave a quick review to help others find the show.

Be sure to follow or subscribe! And, if you're a local business owner who'd like to be featured - or know someone whose story should be told - get in touch at Ken@StrategicHorizonsConsulting.com

This show is brought to you by Strategic Horizons Consulting (a division of Ken Collins Marketing).

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