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Oct. 6, 1999
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YOUNG ENTREPRENEUR
SMALL BUSINESS
ASSOCIATION WINNER
photo by M. Washington
Geneva's Shear Perfection
Jo h n T r u jillo ’s p a s s io n fo r
kayaking is the driving force b e
hind his b u sin ess success. W hen
John started the C ascade A dven
ture C en ter in 1995, he had two
w hitew ater kayaks and the d is
tin c tio n o f b e in g o n e o f the
n a tio n ’s p rem ier kayakers. John
w on a silv e r m edal in the 1992
K ayak Slalom W orld C ham p io n
ships. He also w rites review s for
P addler M agazine and tests every
boat that com es out in the m arket
Jo h n ’s love o f the sport as w ell as
current public interest in kayaking
has m ade his busin ess one o f the
fastest grow ing paddle sport com
panies in the P acific N orthw est.
In less than fo u r years, T rujillo
has steered his en terp rise from a
sm all, w hitew ater kayaking school
to a fu ll-serv ice p addle sport es
tablishm ent w hich o ffers a fully-
equipped retail shop, raftin g trips
on th e D e s c h u te s R iv e r an d
w hitew ater/sea kayaking schools.
His m illio n -dollar business re
quires skill and know ledge o f the
sport because the sport changes
quickly. His sta ff also paddles
professionally. John loves w hat
he does because he is able to share
his enthusiasm for paddling with
other people. He teaches all young
e n tre p re n eu rs that passio n for
w hat you do in life leads to suc
cess.
M A K IN G P K O G R I SS
“T h ere’s been three progres
sions in my business. It started with
ju st m yself and two kayaks for the
school. From there, I brought on my
younger brother to help teach the
lessons. T hings got busy very
quickly.
The second progression was 1 Vi
years after teaching people, the cli
ents were ready to buy gear and
equipment. And so, we started to
sell the actual equipment and went
NW
into retail.
The third progression was get
ting on the Internet. We then put all
the products online which opened
up the geographical boundaries o f
where we could reach customers.
E-commerce is nothing new. It’s
been around a long time. It is ju st a
new medium in reaching customers
for the same sale like mail-order cata
logs. W e’ve been savvy with the
search engines and designing a
website that has a good navigation
component. So far, we have put
exactly zero dollars into marketing
our website to date. The premiere o f
our expanded website will be on
January 3rd and can be reached at
kayakusa.com .
\S I ( O M M I \
I
“ Surround yourself with advi
sors, people who have been there.
And, don’t miss deadlines and ap
pointm ents.”
N atural isn’t just your gas
company, we’re also your neighbor.
That helps us understand you and
your needs a little better. It has for
over 135 years. So whenever you need
us, from a fussy furnace to a softball
game, we’re always here at 220-2360.
NW N a tu ra l
www n w n a tu ra l com
We g r e w up here.
425 NE Hassalo, Portland. OR
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DENNY’S GREEN
TEAM RESTAURANTS
photo by M. Washington
N ike joins in w ith th e
P o rtla n d O bserver in
C elebrating th e many
Valuable
C o n trib u tio n s made
by M in o rity
businesses in our
G reat S ta te
MALL 205 • (503) 254-8460
10428 SE Stark, Portland, OR
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105 E Burnside R d . Gresham, OR
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3680 Market St N .E Salem, OR
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