"Under-promise and over-deliver."
Josh Bremmerer is an innate navigator, an experienced leader in the boating industry with over a decade of experience in management and company development and a lifelong passion for boating. As the manager of Glacier Ski Shop, Josh grew the small Shop into a nationally recognized business and increased profits by 400%. With that background, it’s no wonder Josh started his own business in the boating industry: Komodo Covers.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Josh Bremmerer: My name is Josh Bremmerer, and I am the CEO of a marine accessories company, Komodo Covers. I grew up on a lake just south of Bellingham, WA, and I come from a family of boaters. We have always had a boat, and for as long as I can remember, it was always difficult to tie up, maintain and keep the boats clean. So about nine years ago, we came up with a concept for a boat cover that could actually keep a boat clean and dry.
About two years ago, the time felt right, so we took the next step forward and started developing the “Komodo Cover.” The concept is simple—to keep the Humidity under the boat cover low, preventing mold growth and corrosion. Fortunately, with the use of modern technology, it has evolved to encompass more than just that.
2020 and 2021 threw a lot of curve balls into business on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past couple years, how can businesses thrive in 2022? What lessons have you learned?
Josh Bremmerer: It’s been a crazy few years, and unfortunately, the problems and delays don’t seem to be over quite yet. The main lesson I have learned is that everything is still possible if you add a 10-week buffer. This length of time seems to be the standard delay for a covid shutdown or a part shortage. Now that I know this, I can start on projects earlier, and once the initial 10-week waiting period is over, everything seems to flow pretty smoothly.
The pandemic seems to keep on disrupting the economy, what should businesses focus on in 2022? What advice would you share?
Josh Bremmerer: Extend your timelines and communicate with your customers: Under-promise and over-deliver.
How has the pandemic changed your industry and how have you adapted?
Josh Bremmerer: Demand is up while availability is down. We are a relatively new company, so we were able to evolve during the pandemic. I will say we are looking forward to a less active economic climate. It would be great if everything became more stable rather than always having high highs and extremely low lows.
What advice do you wish you received when the pandemic started and what do you intend on improving in 2022?
Josh Bremmerer:
It would have been nice to know how long it would last. For 2022, we diversified our manufacturing locations, preventing us from having full stops due to covid shutdowns.
Online business surged higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for 2022?
Josh Bremmerer: I am not sure we will ever resume full in-person meetings. Komodo runs a hybrid meeting system that has worked well for us. All of our meetings are in person and on google meet. Regardless of covid, it lets everyone attend every meeting and gives us the ability to look through our agenda seamlessly. A top tip for any admins—turn off all the person microphones and remind everyone to mute their computers.
How many hours a day do you spend in front of a screen?
Josh Bremmerer: I spend about 6hrs of the day on my screens, split between my phone and my workstation.
The majority of executives use stories to persuade and communicate in the workplace. Can you share with our readers examples of how you implement that in your business to communicate effectively with your team?
Josh Bremmerer: There is nothing quite like a great analogy. I like to use cooking analogies, with my history as a chef. The Team seems to relate to the difference between searing and baking. This came from how to evenly distribute heat when making hardware for prototype units. Searing is heating one side of your food while baking is slowly cooking the food all the way through at lower temperatures.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as the real challenge right now?
Josh Bremmerer: Revenue, because of the extension of timelines and parts shortage, the time between order completion and product arrival has extended, while the operational cost has stayed the same. Money and time are one and the same, so as the timeline increases, it makes the products more expensive to develop.
In 2022, what are you most interested in learning about? Crypto, NFTs, online marketing, or any other skill sets? Please share your motivations.
Josh Bremmerer: Textile Manufacturing so I can optimize the manufacturing process for Komodo.
A record 4.4 million Americans left their jobs in September in 2021, accelerating a trend that has become known as the Great Resignation. 47% of people plan to leave their job during 2022. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. Do you think leaders see the data and think “that’s not me – I’m not that boss they don’t want to work for? What changes do you think need to happen?
Josh Bremmerer: There are two main kinds of leaders—those who view their teams as roles filled, and others who view their teams as people they are developing into roles and trying to empower them to grow within the company. The disposable employee company is prevalent in corporate culture right now. I also think those leaders know what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. I can imagine it’s fairly easy to justify when they are sitting on their Yacht.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Josh Bremmerer: I would like to see the future. Can you imagine thinking about a decision and being able to see the exact outcome?
What does “success” in 2022 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Josh Bremmerer: Success in 2022 is getting our product out in the market. Happy customers who feel like our products are a great value. Employees who are happy and feel well compensated. For me personally, a step closer to a chalet in the French Alps. It has been a dream of mine since my wife and I worked in a chalet for a ski season 10 years ago, and fell in love with the European ski culture.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Josh Bremmerer for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Josh Bremmerer or his company, you can do it through his – Instagram
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