Daily Inspiration: Meet Morgan Beams

Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan Beams.

Hi Morgan, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Nolan was born in Louisiana – a Bachelor of Studio Arts and started working for my own carpentry and art business out of college which was successful until COVID. When the pandemic hit I had to reassess what I was doing so I got a job up in Colorado.

Morgan is from Boston, Massachusetts, and moved out to Colorado for a nursing job in the neurology ICU. After nursing through the pandemic, she decided to take a break from the hospital and pack climbing chalk – where she met Nolan. Nolan and Morgan started working on Edge of the Wood full-time in October 2023.

Originally we just wanted to make some cool wood holds for our own home wall since we did not necessarily want to pay a lot for a bunch of plastic holds. We both live in Evergreen, where Morgan owns a home on the hill. We used the shed as a ‘workshop’ (it is still our workshop today) and, since we were both into art we experimented with wood burning the holds to add some flare and texture.

One thing led to another and all of a sudden we were getting an LLC and making a website. Without a shop to sell our things, we used Instagram to show our work and reached out to climbing gyms in Colorado and Utah to ask if we could set up a table in their lobby.

We ended up doing a two-week tour (thanks to Nolan’s 1971 camper) during Thanksgiving starting in Grand Junction then to St.George Utah, Moab, and Indian Creek, and had our final stop in Durango. Although we did not necessarily make the sales we were hoping for, we got a ton of feedback from climbers, got to climb in a ton of gyms, and got to explore with our two dogs.

Once we got back to Evergreen we wanted to kick things up a notch. Nolan started coming out of the workshop with a more refined product and we started making more sales. Our wood burning skills advanced just because of the time we were spending wood burning (ex. on Christmas, we did not have enough money to travel home so we just spent the week wood burning and making holds all week, all day and into the night. It was a ton of fun.

Finally, we saw a vacant shop in downtown Evergreen which was within walking distance of our house. We signed the lease at the start of March. While still making a point to go set up at various gyms in Colorado, we spent the rest of our time setting up shop. We officially opened for business on March 16th!

Looking forward, we are working on scaling our marketing and sales and spreading the word about our holds. We’re definitely learning as we go. One thing that’s been a huge help is our community, we are always re-energized by the excitement and the support that the people around us have for Edge of the Wood and it really has been fueling us to keep moving forward.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We have faced many struggles along the way… I think anyone starting their own business probably relates. At the same time, we have also experienced clear signs that we’re on the right track. It’s certainly not been a smooth road. We ran completely out of money, for one thing. We’re also in a relationship and the stress of financial insecurity and general uncertainty have led to more than a few fights/disagreements.

It’s also been pretty isolating, we’ve struggled with maintaining relationships with friends and family. Not everyone understands why we quit our jobs and gave up stable incomes to make wood climbing holds. We have been pushed to our emotional and physical limits in a lot of ways.

We have been told all of the reasons why we shouldn’t be doing what we’re doing and all the ways this would not work out. Yet at the end of the day, we both feel this is exactly the adventure we want to be on. Adventures truly start when things don’t go as planned, whether you’re out in the mountains climbing or starting a new business. If we felt the road was smooth… well where’s the adventure in that?

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Nolan is an excellent carpenter and also an artist. Thanks to his woodworking skills we are able to make really well-shaped and ergonomic climbing holds and add texture to the wood. His attention to detail (from the shaping to the sanding to the finishing of the holds) seems to set us apart from other companies doing similar things.

While most companies use CNC machines (computer generated) we make everything by hand and therefore can use all parts of the wood. He’s also very artistic and is able to use his art skills when wood-burning designs into the holds. Morgan comes from a different background with degrees in Economics and Psychology then a Masters in Nursing.

Although she never saw herself as an ‘artist’ Nolan insists that she is… and with that added confidence she has been able to add her unique style to wood-burned art and holds. Nursing for four years somehow gives her the agency and the confidence to reach out to gym owners and start a marketing campaign.

Morgan has always been a little stubborn, which actually comes in handy. When we first saw the shop for rent downtown, she slipped notes under the door until we could get a phone number to call to contact the landlord. Her nursing background has pushed her to emphasize the importance of community and health, and that’s why we want Edge of the Wood to be different from other businesses. Rather than focusing simply on profits, the focus has always been on the people.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Winston Churchill has been quoted saying “Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm”. Nolan and Morgan both agree with this definition. Ultimately we started Edge of the Wood because we love climbing and being outdoors.

Ultimately we truly believe functional art is the way we live. Creativity and individuality should be celebrated more often in our culture. Yes, it’s a relatively new market, one we see emerging as our longevity and need for connection increases.

We truly are passionate and enthusiastic about this business and being able to continue on our adventure without getting too caught up with critics or failures. Morgan’s grandfather who was in the Navy always said “99% of success is showing up”… and that is what we continue to do, simply show up. That’s generally the hardest part, then our passion and work show and we continue.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.edgeofthewoodcoop.com
• Instagram: @edge_ofthe_wood
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/edgeofthewood/