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

Hi Jared, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Was getting burnt out with my day job, and thought it was now or never if we wanted to open our own store.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As a licensed civil engineer from Tucson AZ, my professional career revolved around large mega industrial projects based out of Houston TX. All of which had absolutely no help in running a small business! Small business management is by far the most difficult thing my wife and I have ever gotten ourselves into. But at the same time, seeing the impact you directly have on people is the most gratifying feeling I have experienced. We started our businesses by ourselves, and still to this day maintain them independently. I can’t say that taking our your own funds to start a business is the best idea, but building a relationship with a small local bank has helped us when times got tough; much more than the big banks did. Relationships with the city, bank and media have proven to be very important to us. Our brand pays tribute to our first dog, the original bird dog, Skeet. He taught me more than I trained him, and was the glue for Kathleen and I during our early days. Tradition of sporting dogs, and the notion that trust, heritage, and the good ole days should be components of modern retail is the Ballad of the Bird Dog.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Check out our blog!

https://www.balladofthebirddog.com/blogs/news/the-local-s-secret-spots

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
If it wasn’t for my wife Kathleen, we would not be in business. While I still maintain a 40hr job, she runs the stores, is the head chef, HR manager, CEO, COO and all around glue to holding our stores together.

Website: balladofthebirddog.com

Instagram: balladofthebirddog

Image Credits
Hanna Myers Rivas Can get other photos off instagram.

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutDFW is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.