WACO, Texas – The nation’s hippest western store now has a location in Waco.
Many people know that Tecovas sells quality products at affordable prices.
But do you know what almost makes it a cult favorite?
Debra Hezel came to Waco from Italy, Texas to launch her favorite western store for a reason.
“What is so special about Tecova boots? Handmade quality and personal care, â€she explained.
In just a few short years, Tecovas has grown from nowhere to a national and then global reputation for its quality products and prices that have made other retailers jealous.
The idea came to founder Paul Hedrick while he was working on Wall Street.
“I was the guy who started showing up at the office with my ostrich boots on,†Tecovas said.
Back then, these items were sold at prices only a Wall Street banker could afford. Hedrick saw a way to bring western clothing back to the masses.
“And the only way to do that was to take a lot of the system out,†Hedrick said, referring to the so-called distributors or middlemen.
Hedrick left Wall Street and went straight to a shoemaker in Leon, Mexico, and signed him up to make his product, which he would sell directly to consumers on the Internet.
“Some people didn’t think it would work, but I knew it would work. In the first year we had sold boots to all states across the country,†Hedrick told KSAT some time ago.
Later he started to open stores. At that time, customers wanted more than cheap online boots. Hedrick supplied these items to his stores and began to expand
“They’ve started to grow, I think we’ll be 19 stores there, I think Waco, especially with tourism and the type of our surrounding customer base, fits their target audience perfectly,†said Jed Cole, president of Brazos River Capital.
With the help of the hundreds of thousands of tourists who come to Magnolia’s silos, Tecovas gets more word of mouth publicity, while strategically choosing a renovated old building on a corner of Waco, a place Texans shy away from. not to surrender if they can. avoid Dallas traffic.
“It’s a lot easier to drive this way than it is to drive through Dallas. We plan to come here regularly,†Hezel said.
If you haven’t heard of Tecovas, you’re missing out on a Texas success story of a hometown man who quit his job on Wall Street to sell affordable cowboy boots.
Its inspiring story has helped fuel the growth of the western clothing store which is also on-trend with urban cowboys and real ranchers.
“I’m amazed the style is so beautiful. I mean we’ve been living here for 4 years and Washington Avenue has changed so much,†said Kate Cockle of Waco.
Cockle and his friends lined up to become the very first customers of Waco’s very first Tecovas store.
They had no idea the store might never have existed, except for a man with a vision and Tecova’s CEO on Speed ​​Dial.
Jed Cole is the man behind the renovation of the old 4C-s College building into a law firm on the second floor and the space that would become Tecovas on the first.
The president of Brazos River Capital has made historic preservation part of Brazos’ business plan, serving the community … and profitability.
“Paul Hedrick and I used to work together so we had lunch in Austin. He was talking about the store expansion and we set up this design company that we hired to design the building was actually the same design to design their stores elsewhere. And so it was an easy way to start the conversation about a Waco store, “recalls Cole.
Cole had done the math already, friends had often watched him walk into a restaurant, watch him and casually announce the cost per square foot of operating the place.
Brazos had purchased the old “Scott Building”, which housed the 4Cs and for a time the Waco Police Department in order to restore it.
Cole thought Tecova’s would be a good choice, so he gave Waco a hard sell, citing the so-called “Magnolia effect” and the benefits of having his product in front of the hundreds of thousands of tourists here every year.
Free advertising, just from a good product placement
“For the first time, from what I can remember, downtown Waco, a national retailer, planning their flag here, putting us on the same rung as places like downtown Dallas and River Oaks, Houston, â€Cole said.
Because when was the last time you heard your downtown area called upscale?
You might call the resulting deal a “win, win, win” for Tecovas, a win for Brazos Capital, and a win for Waco.
He says what separates some towns from the rest of the pack are the efforts to sell the place to outsiders.
“I think we’re really excited as more and more people are connecting with interested people. I can speak on behalf of our city staff, from Miami to Bradley for everyone in the inspection and planning department. It has been a team effort, making the district restoration happen so I would invite others interested in moving their business to open their arms to the staff here, â€Cole said.
Proving it again, word of mouth provides the best and cheapest advertising.
Cockle said he first heard about Tecovas from a friend who saw him on Instagram.
A post on the Internet or a TV ad, after all, these are conversation starters.
When we embrace a brand or a city, we say that the opportunities here benefit us all.
It’s not just a “win-win” but a win, win, win, win, win, win (you get the idea).
