Tommy Matthews & Westward Environmental
I recently had the chance to sit down with Tommy Mathews, the President and founder of Westward Environmental. Throughout our conversation, Tommy shared his history of entrepreneurship and leadership, details about founding his company, obstacles he has faced along the way, and advice he would give to aspiring entrepreneurs.
I began the interview by asking Tommy what inspired him to found his own company and be an entrepreneur. He explained that his entrepreneurial spirit started when he was just a kid. When he was only 9 years old he “went around the neighborhood doing chores and mowing to make money.” This allowed him to see the value of hard work and advocating for himself from an early age. This, combined with the collapse of the oil and energy sector shortly after getting his degree in geology, led Tommy to start his own business when he was only 22. He founded his current firm, Westward Environmental, in 1996 after working for a major corporation for a couple of years, and he has been successfully running it ever since.
Having been president of a company for so long, I wanted to ask Tommy about the key skills he uses in running a business. He explained that “listening is the biggest skill.” It is always important to understand other people and their points rather than blindly communicating your own. Even if you disagree with them, by understanding what they are saying and where they are coming from, you can gain knowledge and walk away from the conversation with new ideas. Another skill that Tommy has found is necessary is the ability to “multiply the people you work with.” There must be a form of synergy built upon trust and respect that helps every person involved in a project or organization grow and become better. The more you can work together even with disagreements, the better your work will become.
I then asked Tommy about the major challenges and obstacles he has faced while running his company and what he has done to overcome them. He explained that when starting a business, “finances are the obvious hurdle.” While it is necessary to have a paycheck and make a living when founding a company, it is also important to not lose track of building the wealth and success of the business at the same time. Tommy explained that in order to overcome this you need to keep a good balance in your life. There are many sacrifices you have to make, but ultimately if the scale is tilted to one side for too long the business won’t be sustainable with your personal life.
Since Tommy graduated from Boerne High School and now runs his business here, I asked him what being in a local community like Boerne has meant to him. Tommy said that it “means the world” to him. He always wanted to come back and have his family here, so when he got the chance he took it. One thing Tommy believes in full heartedly is investing in the local community. His mother was associated with different school boards and committees for 19 years, and now Tommy is big on giving back and being involved in the community. This plays a part in his hiring process, as about one-third of his employees are graduates of Boerne High Schools. He wants to show that this is a great place to be, and that it will continue to become even better as more good people make their way here.
After hearing about his company and experiences, I asked Tommy to share any advice he would give to aspiring entrepreneurs starting their own businesses. Tommy said that entrepreneurs need to be realistic with their expectations and effort they are putting in. When you are trying to build momentum early on, there is an infinite amount of effort you can put in, and many people get discouraged. While it takes a lot of energy—physical, emotional, and mental—it is important to keep going and build what you are passionate about. Tommy also believes that if you want to be successful, you can’t plan to fail. There should be no plan B, as you need to commit to whatever degree necessary to be successful. Obstacles and hard times will get in your way, but if you prepare for and work through them you will ultimately be better off.
Finally, I asked Tommy, from an investors viewpoint, what he looks for in startups and their leaders before making an investment. Tommy explained that he looks for a few specific character traits— respectful, hardworking, and honest. These come in a variety of different ways, including being humble enough to admit when they don’t know the answer to a question. Tommy explained that it is ok not to know the answer to everything, but you need to be able to admit that you don’t know and commit to finding an answer. Tommy also looks to see if they have a vision and plan for the company while also knowing the market they are attempting to break into. However, for Tommy, character trumps everything else when looking to make an investment as it isn’t something you can directly teach. I thoroughly enjoyed sitting down with Tommy Mathews and discussing his entrepreneurship journey as the founder of Westward Environmental. I’m looking forward to staying in touch and watching the impact Tommy continues to make on his community.
The Family of Hillingdon Ranch
This week I sat down with the family of Hillingdon Ranch in Comfort, Texas. I met with Misty, Grant, Robin, and Carol Giles on their beautiful property consisting of 13,000 acres in the Texas Hill Country. This ranch has been in the family for more than 130 years and has never been owned or managed by anyone outside of the family. In 1885 Alfred Giles partnered with his brother-in-law and began purchasing the land the family now calls home. This ranch is one of the few left that is still managed solely by the family that built it. Hillingdon Ranch is named after Alfred’s native hometown in England. They are a breeding stock, cattle, sheep, and goat operation who have bred their herds to be perfectly suited for the conditions on the property.
I first asked the Giles family what they hope to see in the agriculture industry in this area. Robin states that the family’s goal is to preserve what they have. He talks about how at one point everyone made a living doing what this family does but now there are very few families like them left. “We like our way of life, and we wanna preserve it, we think it’s the best place in the world,” Robin stated. Preservation – of this lifestyle and of the property – is of the utmost importance for the Giles family so that generations to follow can continue to live this life that the family has worked hard for. Grant talks about fragmentation in the Hill Country and how it is accelerating. His primary goal is to make as many small decisions to keep what they have intact. He mentions what it takes to keep that intact such as good family dynamics, good communication, and land that’s producing revenue. “There’s thousands of things to think about and consider to keep that in general goal a reality,” he states. With all of the 13,000 acres being owned by family members alone, they work with all different types of goals that these family members have. Grant hopes to see less pavement and less development, which can be a challenge as the family continues growing: “There’s 10 mailboxes at the end of the road, and when I was growing up there were 2.”
I followed this by asking them what is the biggest issue they face ranching in this area. Carol jumped right in on this question with the issue of water “always being an issue in ranching.” Robin informed me that almost all the water they use comes directly from the property. They have their own springs and a few wells but often don’t use the wells much. He continues on the issue of water, by sharing the fact that with the continued development in the area, it will become an even bigger issue. “It doesn’t take much water to run livestock, a lot of the water is in tanks, creeks, and springs. Water we have saved here on the property, that’s nobody else’s water, it’s our water,” he said. Grant chimed in with the fact they don’t rely much at all on well water. “Luckily we don’t depend on that many wells. They are going to be depleted based on the amount of the development that’s happening around us,” he stated. They are aware that eventually, they might have to drill more and deeper wells, but right now can rely on water that falls on the property and comes out in formations that are already there.
I asked them with development in the area being in full swing, if they have been contacted by developers wanting to purchase their land. “Almost every day,” Robin laughed. The family has become blase to the developers’ attempts to buy acreage from them. Robin mentions how they will see helicopters fly over, not knowing who it is and by the next week they are getting several requests to sell their land. Robin mentions how someone can say, “Well look at how much money you can get if you sold.” He said his response is, “Well if I had the money, I’d buy what I have.” Grant goes on to mention how there have been some families who were able to purchase land near them that want to take part in the lifestyle that the Giles family has enjoyed and continues to enjoy. Grant and his family hope to encourage those around them to take part and build something their families can enjoy for many generations. “The family wants to hold the Ranch together, therein the Ranch holds the family together,” Robin stated.
I then asked about the business side of the ranch and “Krazy Goat Socks.” Grant informed that “Krazy Goat Socks” is not their business, but they participate to a small degree in the company. The owners of “Krazy Goat Socks” are family friends of the Giles. Through their Angora goat herd, they supply the raw material, Mohair, to the business. They have had some ideas on other ways to bring more revenue to the ranch, but knowing that doing so will take away from what they love doing and the lifestyle they live. “What we like to do is be out on the land, figuring out the best way to use the land, to preserve it, and produce profit,” Robin states.
The family has worked hard on breeding their herds to have the traits they want and need. They aren’t able to bring in outside blood to the herd because they would not have those traits. Herds out on Hillingdon Ranch have become quite unique due to this process. Due to the breeding in this manner, the herds don’t take as much and they can exist with little outside expense and management. By doing this the hope is that the herds become more profitable.
I was curious about the challenges Hillingdon Ranch has faced in its 130 years of operation. The first challenge Robin mentioned was how during the Depression taxes were raised to 150 dollars in 1931. At that time they only had saved up 75 dollars and weren’t sure where the other 75 was going to come from. He mentions how deer have been a challenge for the ranch. Axis deer are so well suited for this area that they breed like wildfire and managing that has not always been easy. “Some days you have way, way too many, and some days you can’t even find one because they don’t have a home range,” Robin stated on the issue of Axis on their land. Hunting has been one way the family has managed this challenge, and this management started during the Depression when three Osage Indians from Oklahoma paid Robin’s father to come hunt for one afternoon on their land. Since then, hunting has been an integral part of income for the ranch. They have become accustomed to challenges or problems, “Oh well, it’s our problem, we’ll work on it,” is a common phrase of the family. Grant mentions how there is always something they can work on. The weather was another challenge the family faces on the ranch. Carol talks about how if there is too much rain, it washes out the water gaps, and how what they had planned to work on that day changes in an instant to fix those water gaps. Grant mentions the challenge of transferring land to the next generations, “We have become very good friends with our legal advice, they’ve become like family,” he stated.
I asked the family what makes not only Hillingdon Ranch unique but also the area they are located in. Carol didn’t even hesitate to say the fact that the families are stable in that area. “You are in an old German community where there are more people that want to keep their places together,” she stated. Grant believes that the more conservative values in the area have an impact on the uniqueness. “If something is too expensive, we don’t need it,” Robin added. Grant adds that part of the uniqueness is the amount of upkeep it takes and the amount of responsibility it requires which gives them purpose; “it’s worthwhile,” he said. Hillingdon Ranch and the family that calls it home are what we need more of today. From sunrise to sunset and all hours in between this family lives and breathes ranching. It is an admirable lifestyle that I believe more people should take part in. Ranching is a choice, it’s special to the people who do it and even more special to families who are raised in it. I urge everyone to thank those who do what most can’t or won’t. In a world of fast-growing technology, we forget to appreciate where we started and I am no different. Sitting down with this family reminded me of why I got into agriculture and I can only hope that in the future I can leave something like Hillingdon for future generations.
Robin talks about how children are coming back to the area, to land their families own, trying to relive what Hillingdon Ranch is doing and how that adds a special touch to the Hill Country. “There’s something about this country, that even people who can live anywhere, they wanna live here,” he said. The beauty of the terrain and the climate makes this area special to everyone. “We feel wealthy with what we have,” Grant said.
Hillingdon Ranch and the family that calls it home are what we need more of today. From sunrise to sunset and all hours in between this family lives and breathes ranching. It is an admirable lifestyle that I believe more people should take part in. Ranching is a choice, it’s special to the people who do it and even more special to families who are raised in it. I urge everyone to thank those who do what most can’t or won’t. In a world of fast-growing technology, we forget to appreciate where we started and I am no different. Sitting down with this family reminded me of why I got into agriculture and I can only hope that in the future I can leave something like Hillingdon for future generations.
