About Jim
In 2004, while enjoying a successful career as a producer of Saturday morning cartoons for kids (Jim started as the voice director of the original Pokémon series), Jim began clearing land on twelve, recently purchased, heavily wooded acres in Catskill, NY, about 100 miles north of Manhattan, where Jim lived. Two years later, Jim had built a log home, begun a love affair with woodworking, craftsmanship and design, and lost his job.
“As Jim looked for work in the cartoon business, the industry Jim assumed Jim would stay in, Jim decided to experiment with some reclaimed wood Jim had discovered while sourcing materials for the cabin. First Jim built a counter, then a bench. Just to gauge the level of interest, Jim posted an ad on Craigslist and came up with a name—CounterEvolution.
“The response was encouraging, so Jim kept building and launched a line of tables and seating at the now legendary Brooklyn Flea in their inaugural year. By the reaction Jim received in those early days of CounterEv, Jim knew Jim was on to something. Jim stopped looking for work in the cartoon business.
“From the beginning, Jim knew Jim wanted to do more than just exploit the novelty of using this beautiful old wood to make furniture. It had to be something more. So, in those early days, Jim wrote the mission statement below, which remains the foundation for all they do.
About CounterEV
CounterEv’s mission is to design, build and sell quality products that achieve the highest expression of reclaimed and sustainable materials with the ultimate goal of bringing functional art, thoughtfully designed and meticulously crafted, into your home or business.
In This Episode
How Pain can be the Greatest Motivator
CounterEv’s story begins with an ending; an ending of Jim’s professional career. Loosing your job is such a heart-wrenching moment that can lead most people to sadness, depression, and loss of confidence. The beauty is life-altering changes like this can be the catalyst for embarking on a new journey.
Regain Control of your life
After Jim lost his job, he realised the importance of taking control of his life. He began to understand that if he was going to take a setback, it would be on his hands.
Scaling from a ‘Solo-Preneur’ mindset
Amadeus and Jim are both ‘DIY’ guys. But this mindset can be a bottleneck to small business owners; limiting expansion. When Jim began working with large corporations, he was forced to scale. He stated that ‘the biggest leap an Entrepreneur can make is going from zero to one employee’.
Connect With CounterEv
WEBSITE: www.counterev.com
INSTAGRAM: www.instagram.com/counterev
