Today we’d like to introduce you to Frank Ledwell.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Ha! Great question. I suppose it all started during the summer of 1999 while working in Estes Park, Colorado between my Junior and Senior years in college. At the time I enjoyed being outdoors but didn’t consider myself to be an “outdoors” type person. However, after spending that summer working in the mountains and enjoying the fresh mountain air while on a hike, mountain bike ride, or rock climb my love for the outdoors began.
Once I graduated from college, I had a decision to make. Move back to Houston (I graduated from Texas Tech University in Lubbock) or move to Denver to pursue a job more related to my Economics degree. In the end, I chose to move back to Houston to be close to my parents as my Father had recently been diagnosed with lung disease and I felt I needed to be home. When I moved back to Houston, my career began in Oil & Gas Accounting and while my corporate career was a good one, I knew it wasn’t what I wanted long term. So, in 2005 a friend and I decided to put our emerging passion for the outdoors to use and we decided to launch a fully-digital magazine focused on Jeeps and outdoors recreation. Despite not having any experience with publishing, we successfully launched the magazine and it quickly became apparent I wanted to transition my career from the corporate scene to publishing.
In 2013, I took the experiences I had gained from launching a digital publication on the side of my day job and launched OutdoorX4 Magazine, a print magazine focused on the overland adventure lifestyle. Essentially the magazine would have a focus of using vehicles as a tool to get out and enjoy all forms of outdoors recreation as well as vehicle-based adventure. The print magazine launched in January 2014 and now, halfway through our fourth year of publication, I’m now fully transitioned into a career I not only love but has proven successful with the magazine being available at all major book retailers in the U.S., Canada and select retailers internationally as well as a digital edition of the magazine viewable on any device equipped with a web browser.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Starting a business from the ground up is never easy but when doing so with no outside funding, it’s a huge challenge. When I launched OutodorX4 Magazine I was entering a business that has evolved and where print media has been on the down side for years. However, I also knew the demographic I reach is a bit of an anomaly in that our readers have a preference for something tangible they can hold given that most of our readers work day job where they sit in front of a computer or some sort of device and travel to get away from technology. So, while it was a leap of faith (and a lot of support and encouragement from my lovely wife, Andrea) I successfully launched OutdoorX4 and we have continued to see strong growth in the print realm when many other print publications are struggling to survive.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with OutdoorX4 Magazine – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
OutdoorX4 Magazine is a print magazine focused on the overland adventure lifestyle. Essentially, the magazine focuses on the utility of vehicles, whether four-wheel or two-wheel, as a tool to get out and enjoy the natural world and all forms of outdoors recreation. OutdoorX4 is essentially a hybrid publication that has brought the outdoors recreation market together with the vehicle-based market segments with the commonality of recreation responsibly outdoors.
My staff, which includes three full-time and over twenty contract employees, is what makes OutdoorX4 so special. Each member of our team is passionate about what we do and their passion is apparent in each issue of the magazine you see. Our editorial is also created to engage a broad readership and while the magazine is essentially a niche publication, the fact we have such a broad range of editorial makes us unique in a market segment where there’s very little competition.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m always looking for ways to not only grow our company but also stay ahead of the curve in this market space. I’m not naive to the direction the print industry has been and where it’s going. Learning to evolve our content to reach a broad demographic who not only prefers print but also engages actively with technology is key as I look forward over the next 3-5 years. My goal is to be just as relevant then as we are now while still creating an engaging product that interests people in stepping out their front door to explore.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.outdoorx4.com
- Phone: 832.280.7950
- Email: inquiry@outdoorx4.com
- Instagram: @outdoorx4
- Facebook: @outdoorx4
- Twitter: @outdoorx4
Image Credit:
Stan Wright, Andrea Ledwell and Randy Langstraat
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