W&E; Today provides retailers and manufacturers with education and ideas that provoke innovation in the Western and English markets.
Issue link: http://wetoday.epubxp.com/i/235944
Corral's well-appointed, multi-room showroom at the Denver Mart is a constant hub of activity, with Welch always the gracious host. Circle G economy line, frst in men's, and last year in ladies. "Tat was our next stop," Othell says, "to go for a more afordable product. Western boots aren't just for the hardcore cowboy and cowgirl. It's the girl who's never been on a ranch or has never been on a farm. It's another niche we're going for." Circle G skyrocketed, too. "Te economy line will be as successful as Corral has been," Othell says. But where does Corral go from here? "We've talked about that a lot; we talk about it a couple of times a week, as a matter of fact," Othell says. "We're pretty much at peak right now as far as production is concerned, so if we want to make more boots, we're going to have to open more factories." Don't count that possibility out. Othell doesn't know the word quit. Last year, while traveling in suburban Kansas City, he sufered a heart attack and was rushed into surgery. "I had to tell the nurse how to take of my boots," he says. "But before I was done, I had everyone in the E.R. in cowboy boots. You can't ever let up." And he was back at the Denver Market shortly afer his release. Tillmin knows that side of Othell all too well. "He's pretty intense to work for," Tillmin says. "Even when we are barbecuing at my ranch, he usually fnds a way to work in a little business — some new idea, something he's planning for the Corral sales team, market, employees or family. His way of relaxing used to be racing motorcycles or cars. Today it's skiing, snorkeling, scuba diving or riding his jet ski really fast. I don't know if he really understands what a vacation is." Johnny D. Boggs is a Santa Fe-based writer. His latest books are Greasy Grass: A Story of the Little Big Horn and Billy the Kid on Film, 1911-2012. JANUARY 2014 61