Meet Derek Skapes of Everarbor

Today we’d like to introduce you to Derek Skapes

Can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today. You can include as little or as much detail as you’d like.

• In 2006, I graduated from Baldwin Wallace University with a degree in Business Administration and Environmental Studies. That fall, I took a job with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife that was living in a cabin (no heat, television, or internet) in the Wenatchee National Forest and headquarters at the Oak Creek Wildlife Area.  I conducted habitat restoration, led wildlife tours for the public and studied/documented native wildlife populations of Rocky Mountain Elk, Bighorn Sheep, and Salmon.
• In 2007, I moved back to Cleveland, Ohio to work as a Wildlife Specialist at Lake Erie Nature and Science Center. Here I continued my work with wildlife and conservation while performing wildlife rehabilitation, animal care and public education on native North American wildlife. After 5 years, I ventured back out west to Southern California to pursue an Environmental Scientist position with an environmental consulting firm.  It was my time in California which sparked my interest in the designs and fashion of things.
• A couple years later after moving back to Cleveland (again), I worked in Natural Resources as a wildlife technician and then in the Forestry Division as a Certified Arborist at the Cleveland Metroparks.  I started brainstorming how I can bring the Pacific Northwest and West Coast lifestyle and mash it up with Cleveland. We started providing outdoor services and selling clothing out of a garage and Jeep.  Each and every thing we do has a touch of West Coast, Pacific Northwest, and Northeast Ohio mixed into one.

Has it been a smooth road? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
We’re lucky that we have seen growth every year but it has not been a smooth road. We’ve run into our fair share of challenges as a small business startup who is working on creating a brand from nothing. One obstacle we run into is finding the right people for the right roles. It’s a crucial puzzle piece for a business that sometimes can be easier said than done.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?

• Our staff is very passionate about inspiring the Great Lakes region to increase their appreciation of the outdoors. This passion finds its way throughout every aspect of our brand between our clothing, merchandise, services and organic fertilizer.
  • Our clothing line is designed, produced and manufactured to hold up in all elements and to support our shoppers in their outdoor activities.
  • Our tree and landscaping services are carried out with an ethical and ecological base. All our employees have a secondary education in biological, horticultural, and arboricultural fields and hold multiple credentials/certifications in each.
  • Our organic fertilizer, Everbrew, is an Ohio Department of Agriculture – certified organic fertilizer/soil supplement. We founded and perfected the method of taking coffee and beer waste from local businesses and turning it into a high nutrient fertilizer.

Check us out online at everarbor.com, or at either of our Northeast Ohio stores in Tremont and Crocker Park. We’d love to talk more about our business, show off some of our awesome gear, and talk about how to Find Your Element and Step Outside!

#FindYourElement

#StepOutside

Contact information:

• Website: https://everarborco.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everarbor
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everarbor/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/everarborco?lang=en

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