How many times have you come across the proverb that if you love what you do, you will be rewarded? Unfortunately, not many of us have the opportunity to turn the things we are passionate about into moneymakers.
Now there’s one Chicago-based company that was created because of one man’s love for adventure. It’s called Red Frog Events, and it’s making big leaps across the recreational industry pond.
Racing for Success
Joe Reynolds’ love for adventure has led him to many countries around the world. One day, an idea came to him: why not turn his love for adventure into his day job.
Reynolds had no prior experience in event production. What he had was his experience running a house-painting company and his knowledge for how to create events that would allow the masses to compete with one another in a fun and memorable way.
3K and 5K races have become common events in the country in the past few years. Joe Reynolds knew that people were getting bored with them. He understood that the best way to attract paying customers would be to introduce new twists and turns into the old form. Thus, the Amazing Race-like Great Urban Race was born. This timed metropolitan running event included a scavenger hunt; teams must solve clues and complete tasks along the way.
A Small Starting Capital
As Red Frog Events has demonstrated, you don’t need to have millions of capital in order to launch and grow a business. When the Great Urban Race was launched in 2007 in Chicago, Joe Reynolds had only $5,000 for initial investment. Combining his passion with hard work and healthy doses of creativity has helped Joe Reynolds expand his events to 20 cities by 2008.
Over the years, Reynolds, with the help of his brother-in-law Ryan Kunkel who joined the company in 2009, has added several more events. Currently, the company is offering Great Urban Race, Warrior Dash, Beach Dash, and Firefly Music Festival. Red Frog Events are so popular an event could draw much as 25,000 participants. Warrior Dash is currently the most popular event. This 5K race features obstacles that include a rock wall, log-filled ponds, mud pit, and a tunnel of flames. This race alone has drawn 600,000 participants in 35 cities across the country in 2011. The company has also expanded to international locations.
Many organizations have also recognized Red Frog’s success. Red Frog has been named the 2011 US Chamber of Commerce Dream Big Small Business of the Year Award, the 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For, and the 2011 Chicago Innovation Award Winner. Projected income this year is $85 million.
Great Working Environment
In 2009, Reynolds changed the company name from Great Race to Red Frog, after the Red Frog Beach in Panama. Since the company was growing beyond Great Race, a new name was needed, and Reynolds though the quirky beach name perfectly captured the quirky, adventurous spirit of his company.
Joe Reynolds understands that by creating a great place to work, they can easily attract great people, and great people are what constitute a great company. Red Frog maintains a fun and laid-back environment in their offices.
Lessons from Red Frog’s Success
Passion alone won’t guarantee you success. Other ingredients are needed. The Joe Reynolds success story can give us an idea about what might be needed to grow our own businesses.
- Creativity. Once Reynolds found his target market, he thought of ways to make his races more appealing. He didn’t settle with what already worked. He made leaps and jumps to ensure every race experience is unique memorable.
- Market Planning. Race locations have to be easily accessible from major population centers. Red Frog has to plan each race for every geographic location well ahead of time.
- Create Great Experience. The Red Frog brand has always been associated with fun and high-camaraderie vibe. Joe Reynolds makes sure this is consistently experienced by all people, whether they’re competitors, spectators, or company employees.
- Hiring the Right People. Before applicants are hired, Red Frog requires that they undergo a 4-month internship.
- Leveraging Electronic Media. Red Frog uses Facebook, Twitter, etc to spread news about an upcoming event.
As Reynolds said, if you are passionate about your business, you will see lots of amazing opportunities.
