Trailblazing with Mari Bodensteiner and The Space Trailers Story [EP 428]

Welcome to Episode 428 of the Outdoor Biz Podcast with Mari Bodensteiner and Space Trailers. Mari grew up on the backwaters of the upper Mississippi. She is an avid hiker and amateur angler. Before her career in marketing, she taught English and Rhetoric at several universities across the country. Additionally, she contracted with the State Department to develop international educational programs in Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe. She currently works to grow the SPACE Trailers brand and is most inspired by the passionate consumers that she gets to interact with each day.

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Show Notes

• 00:00 The individual discusses their transition from teaching to a marketing role, emphasizing the influence of lifelong learning from education on shaping their career path. They note a connection between teaching rhetoric at the university level and their current role as a marketing director, highlighting how the communication principles they taught, such as ethos, pathos, and logos, directly translates to marketing messaging.
• 04:15 Chris and Rich have collaborated for over 30 years in manufacturing and entrepreneurship. They have a strong background in manufacturing and have successfully built numerous companies together. They recently acquired a company called space trailers from two eccentric brothers in Minnesota, and are now working with their family in this dynamic.
• 07:37 Families are enjoying the convenience and excitement of cross country road trips with compact trailers, freeing up extra space in their jam-packed vehicles for bikes and kayaks. There has been a surge in the shipping of these trailers, which are compact and lightweight, and can be stored vertically for easy delivery. This increase in demand for trailers is attributed to the transition back to a hybrid workplace or less flexibility in work arrangements.
• 10:03 Choose between a high rider and a low rider based on preference, considering the hitch height for vehicles like vans and Jeeps. In 2023, a new high rider XL was introduced, offering 20% more space, higher sides, a heavier axle, and additional wells for carrying more gear. This new trailer received positive feedback for its increased capacity, prompting requests for even higher sides.
• 15:21 At trade shows, we actively engage with consumers by encouraging them to visit our booth, share their experiences, and connect with us on social media. We also refer them to relevant consumer-driven social media groups for quick answers to their questions and concerns.
• 17:21 Enjoys outdoor activities like hiking, swimming, and angling. Described the pleasant location on the Mississippi River and the bluffs, and mentioned the lack of snow and mild winter weather. Shared an experience of doing a polar plunge in Northern Wisconsin over the new year due to the absence of ice, usually used for fishing.
• 21:05 Customers express a strong affection for the brand, noting its unique appeal in the form of the substantial number of follow-up pictures they send. They derive a sense of pride and ownership from assembling the product, particularly appreciating the feature of the removable canopy. The process of putting it on for the first time and being able to take it off and on as needed evokes a feeling of accomplishment for them. Moreover, they find joy in sharing their experiences of traveling with the product, often showcasing the initial location they take it to. This not only offers a rewarding experience for the customers but also adds a layer of fun and connection for the brand.
• 25:43 The text emphasizes the importance of community-building for achieving success, drawing on Malcolm Gladwell's ideas about talent and success. It highlights the shift from solely focusing on talent to recognizing the significance of community, both internally among coworkers and externally through networking with other brands and brand partnerships. This approach extends to engaging with consumers and emphasizes that success is not just about making sales but also about nurturing a strong community within the business.
• 26:29 Encourages connecting and sharing ideas through social media, website, or email, emphasizing the presence of a person behind digital interactions. Expresses a strong desire to connect and engage with marketers, consumers, and developers to share and grow ideas.
• 17:44 Do you have any suggestions and/or advice for folks with a product idea to get it into production? Yeah, I think there are so many great ideas out there and to build something is easy, but then to reproduce it again and again and again.So we, we've got a really strong build process and making sure every trailer is exactly the same and. And being able to put those processes in place, um, that's, you know, the, the ideas and the building are the fun part, but making sure that like process and documentation and kind of quality control in a sense are there.
• 21:29 What is your favorite outdoor gear purchase under $100?I really love Minus 33 Socks, and then compression socks, the CEP, I think it's CEP compression socks.
• 23:22 How about some of your favorite books? Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss

Learn More

To learn more about Mari and Space Trailers, visit their website at: https://spacetrailers.com/

You can also visit Space Trailers on these social sites:

YouTube

Linkedin

Facebook

Instagram

Next Steps

If you enjoy interviews devoted to the outdoor industry, find us online at ricksaez.com/listen. We welcome likes and comments, and if you know someone who is also an outdoor enthusiast, go ahead and share our site with them, too.

Keywords

#Space Trailers, #Red Wing, Minnesota, #trailers, #customization, #outdoor activities, #fishing, #marketing, #family business, #manufacturing, #community, #customer engagement, #product development, #outdoor industry, #outdoor gear, #swimming, #cold water, #Great Lakes, #Alcatraz swim, #base layers, #Smartwool socks, #compression socks, #off-road, #ATV hauling

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