I recently had the privilege to interview Luke Bukoski, the Director of Digital Marketing for UNC Asheville (UNCA). Bukoski provided valuable insight into the field of marketing, which was drawn from his present position with UNCA, past and present experience as an entrepreneur, as well as his studies in the MBA program at Western Carolina University.
Wilson Love opened his store, The Practical Outdoorsman, at 327 New Leicester Highway in Asheville, North Carolina on June 1st, 2011, at age 58. In doing so, Love accomplished a lifelong goal to become an entrepreneur. Love explained, “I had always been an outdoorsman, and I always wanted to be an entrepreneur.” Along the path that led him to opening the store, Love raised a family while working multiple other jobs, to include service in the United States Air Force, selling insurance, driving a delivery truck, and working construction. For a long time Love liked the idea of being his own boss, but it was not until his wife made a suggestion that his business plan took shape.
Joe Grubba, owner of Factory Direct Trains in Arden, North Carolina, began his journey as an entrepreneur before he could drive a car. Originally a native of southern Florida, Grubba mowed lawns, sold lemonade and saved his money from a young age. Grubba studied business at Florida State University with the intent to become a stockbroker. However, a college internship in the field convinced Grubba that this was not the correct career choice for him.
Grubba is from a blue-collar family, where he learned to work in his father’s radiator shop as he grew up. Upon graduating from FSU, Grubba opened his own radiator shop in Fort Lauderdale at age 22, which he owned and operated for 14 years.
