Episode Two: Look Ma, I’m on TV

What is winning $75,000 and being featured on a reality television series like? For Coty Skinner, that dream became a reality in March of 2019 when his company, ARganic Woodworking, LLC, was chosen as one of the six contestants for the Hulu series, “Small Business Revolution,” sponsored by the highly respected marketing firm, Deluxe.

Coty hadn’t always dreamed of being a maker, though. Upon graduation from a high school in central Arkansas, Coty enlisted with the United States Army. After serving in the Army for ten years, Coty pursued a career in HVAC, and then felt God calling him into ministry. After having two daughters of their own, ages 5 and 13, Coty and his wife began a new challenging and impactful ministry of their own: fostering.

Being a foster parent is full of challenges and hurdles, and very quickly Coty realized a glaring obstacle: the family dining table was too small. Remembering his own teenage years and the impact conversations made at the family table had on him, he realized he needed to build a table with enough room for his family and the children they fostered. Driven by a passion for ministering to others and making sure everyone has a seat at the table, ARganic Woodworking was born. Working out of his garage, for every three tables Coty made, he donated one to a foster family in need of a bigger table. As his business has grown, Coty wants to move from making tables to creating livelihoods for teens aging out of the foster system by teaching them a trade.

“The more you do, the more you learn it.”

ARganic Woodworking became Coty’s full-time business this year, and several of his projects garnered local attention, specifically tables he made for a local coffee shop and creperie, Savor + Sip. His wife encouraged him to apply for the Small Business Revolution, a Hulu series sponsored by Deluxe with hosts Amanda Brinkman and Ty Pennington. Applying on the last day, with very little optimism that his company would be chosen, ARganic Woodworking was selected as one of six winners on the show.

Coty’s story and business are inspiring, humbling, and reminds us that no matter where you are in your making journey, in this community, you always have a seat at the table.

Thank you for listening to Week 2! If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a rating and review!

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Social Media

Ben- https://www.instagram.com/myerswoodshop/

https://www.facebook.com/MyersWoodshop/

https://www.myerswoodshop.com

Coty- https://www.instagram.com/arganic_woodwork/

https://www.facebook.com/arganicwoodwork/

Brian- https://www.instagram.com/fierysquirrelart/

https://www.facebook.com/fierysquirrelart/)

Also, check out Coty’s Wish List items from the Small Business Revolution show, and any other tools we mentioned today!

The Saw Stop: Commercial 5HP Saw Stop

https://amzn.to/2Gy4Ob0

Powermatic Drum Sander:

https://amzn.to/2ICSMRr

Grizzly:

https://amzn.to/2IQRwcH

Grizzly 17 Band Saw

https://amzn.to/2GtuSUR

Bosch Miter Saw Glide and Rolling Stand

https://amzn.to/2GsMZua

https://amzn.to/2GtrtFD

KPEX from Festool

https://amzn.to/2GyF2nh

Dewalt Flex-Volt Miter Saw

https://amzn.to/2GzvnfZ

Shop-Vac

https://amzn.to/2ICbTLi

Festool CT-36 Auto-Clean

https://amzn.to/2VltvB0

Shapeoko CNC

http://bit.ly/shapeoko