Ever wondered what it takes to spin your passions into gold? This episode, we crack open the playbooks of two Coachella Valley originals, Carlos Mercadio and Dale Myers. The pair, famed for their unique blend of vinyl records and skate culture at Dale's Records and Skate Shop, share the highs and lows of their entrepreneurial journey. From the disciplined backdrop of military life to the free-wheeling world of skating and music, their stories reveal the tenacity needed to carve out a niche in today’s business landscape.
You won’t want to miss the heartfelt advice from this duo on igniting your entrepreneurial fire while remaining adaptable. They reminisce on the days of setting up shop in Idyllwild's picturesque Village Lane and how a van turned mobile store defied conventional business models. Their experiences are a testament to the power of community support and the magic that happens when adaptability meets opportunity—especially during the unpredictability of a pandemic.
Finally, if you're itching to take that business leap but don't know where to start, Carlos and Dale don't hold back. They emphasize the monumental value of industry know-how, the importance of embracing challenges as stepping stones, and the art of crafting a personal brand that stands out. So, plug in and let the tales of these local business mavens guide you through the maze of entrepreneurship — it could be the pep talk you need to make that dream a reality.
Ever wondered what it takes to spin your passions into gold? This episode, we crack open the playbooks of two Coachella Valley originals, Carlos Mercadio and Dale Myers. The pair, famed for their unique blend of vinyl records and skate culture at Dale's Records and Skate Shop, share the highs and lows of their entrepreneurial journey. From the disciplined backdrop of military life to the free-wheeling world of skating and music, their stories reveal the tenacity needed to carve out a niche in today’s business landscape.
You won’t want to miss the heartfelt advice from this duo on igniting your entrepreneurial fire while remaining adaptable. They reminisce on the days of setting up shop in Idyllwild's picturesque Village Lane and how a van turned mobile store defied conventional business models. Their experiences are a testament to the power of community support and the magic that happens when adaptability meets opportunity—especially during the unpredictability of a pandemic.
Finally, if you're itching to take that business leap but don't know where to start, Carlos and Dale don't hold back. They emphasize the monumental value of industry know-how, the importance of embracing challenges as stepping stones, and the art of crafting a personal brand that stands out. So, plug in and let the tales of these local business mavens guide you through the maze of entrepreneurship — it could be the pep talk you need to make that dream a reality.
Welcome to CV Hustle, the podcast created to educate, inform and inspire entrepreneurship here in our Coachella Valley.
Speaker 2:Welcome everybody. I'm Robert Mraz.
Speaker 3:And I'm Fina Mraz.
Speaker 2:And this is CV Hustle, the podcast dedicated to educate, inform and inspire local entrepreneurship here in the Coachella Valley, and our goal on the show is to talk to the best and brightest entrepreneurs in every industry in the Coachella Valley. And today we've got a real special guest, don't we? We got the guy that's been feeding my vinyl addiction for years. So my wife's very happy to see the man that's been feeding my vinyl addiction for years. So my wife's very happy to see the man that's been taking all the money.
Speaker 3:But can I get a discount?
Speaker 2:today's guests are carlos mercadio and dale myers of dale's uh records and skate shop here in the cachella valley and you know we've been, we're real blessed to have you guys. Thanks for joining us yeah of course man.
Speaker 1:Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so tell us so you guys. You know we're a locally-based show here. Are you guys Coachella Valley natives? Did you migrate here? Tell us a little bit, I've been out here since 88, so long enough, 1980.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I was born in Mississippi. Oh really Wow. Moved to North Hollywood. Was out there for middle school.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 4:Yeah, been middle school out in there and then moved out here for high school. So I kind of went from. Mississippi, North Hollywood to here.
Speaker 2:So you've been around. Huh yeah, Mississippi, the South, huh, oh yeah.
Speaker 4:Pretty different too.
Speaker 2:I wouldn't put you in Mississippi.
Speaker 4:It's the gulf coast, you know. Okay, it's a friendly little beach town, okay I sounded better by the minute.
Speaker 1:He's been here all like his whole life, huh yeah I mean I you know I mean for the majority of so just 14 years of it was not spent here really Really Okay.
Speaker 2:So you're a native. Yeah, you went to high school here.
Speaker 4:I see Well, Palm Desert only had 11,000 people.
Speaker 2:Wow Okay.
Speaker 3:So you graduated from Palm Desert high school. And then what? What did you do after you graduated?
Speaker 4:Well, actually no. I took some time, hung out, figured out what I really wanted to to do, and then left for the Air Force and did that for a little bit, so you're a military guy too.
Speaker 2:Another thing we didn't know about.
Speaker 3:Hold on, I want to talk about. I'm very obsessed with planes and I'm scared of them. You were jumping out of planes.
Speaker 4:No, actually my job was to refill them. It was a fueling Air Force, you don't do too much.
Speaker 1:Really.
Speaker 3:That was never part of your training or anything like that no, not really.
Speaker 4:You gotta go to like. You gotta go be a. What do you call it? Go to school to learn to be a pilot. What do you call it? A pilot program? Oh, okay, that's for the people that spend money on so when, when you? What my knock. So when Air Force, air Force, air Force was where when and where it was California, no or no no, well, I went to Lackland, texas, which everybody goes there, and then there they sent me up to Alaska, the Fairbanks, that's when you went to Alaska.
Speaker 4:Yes, yes, which that was definitely a different part of the world so it's light year round, right or most of the time. I mean honestly my first day, my first week there. It was summer solstice so I literally my job. They were playing war games, which in war games you get 12-hour duties, so I got the late shift, but throughout the day I watched the sun literally just do a loop. Wow, it never dipped.
Speaker 4:And then from there it starts to dip a little bit more and more, but it was just so strange, like here, here's alaska look at that yeah, yeah, so it was. That's the best with your sleep, and it was well. We left here, I left here in july because I came home for leave and it was first triple digits, so we'll call it 100. So I left here. It was 100. I got there at the 60 degrees freezing oh yeah I'm the only guy to go, everybody else, what are you?
Speaker 3:doing it was, yeah, it was so crazy. But you know us desert rats, we get 70.
Speaker 4:We're like oh it's getting I know bouncy.
Speaker 1:I know I hated it the whole time.
Speaker 4:But by the time I left I ended up like, look at this, you guys got to see.
Speaker 1:Adele's picture too from this. Oh yeah.
Speaker 3:That's so much fun.
Speaker 1:It's just so funny what this is.
Speaker 3:So how long were you in the Air Force in Alaska?
Speaker 4:Almost two years. Ok, I only did two years in the whole Air Force, some older force I left early.
Speaker 3:You said, see you later I can't do this no more.
Speaker 4:Yeah, okay, military lifestyle.
Speaker 2:Taking orders. It was just not.
Speaker 4:I mean, that was like my whole thing Like I'm not that person, but growing up I always thought I was and it's kind of cool that I did it, because then I would always be like I don't know what that was about. Showed up, but not for me.
Speaker 3:And you realized, did it because then I would always be wondering about sure I?
Speaker 4:showed up, but not for me, and you realize it pretty early. Huh, at least you didn't stay the whole time. That's the other thing I mean.
Speaker 3:If I would have stayed for 20 years, I could already been retired yeah, 10 years ago yeah you know it has its great advantages, but it just depends on what you really what you really want to do, you know and 20 want to do, you know.
Speaker 2:And 20 years goes by fast. You'll find out. Tell me about it. Flies man, Flies.
Speaker 4:Especially when you get older, right, oh yeah, but kids, it's always an option. Go Air Force. You don't do much, but you get a lot of it.
Speaker 2:You're going to be on the next campaign, so Carlos, what about you?
Speaker 1:Originally from Cathedral City, been there about my whole life. I moved up to Idyllwild for a couple of years and now living in Palm Desert.
Speaker 2:But been here my whole life, so you're a desert native.
Speaker 1:Desert native, yeah what?
Speaker 2:high school. You went to Cat City. High School, cat City.
Speaker 1:High School Graduated. Yeah, the cat.
Speaker 3:I got to do that for my dad, my dad lived in Cat City, across the street from the high school. Oh yeah, cool.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I liked growing up in Cat City. It was pretty mellow, pretty chill compared to other desert cities. I liked it a lot, and being close to Palm Springs as well was pretty cool. Yeah, and a lot of, I mean pretty rad. I liked it a lot.
Speaker 3:So then did you end up going to college or do anything? Or when did you start working right?
Speaker 1:I just started working right after high school and uh, just still skateboarding and stuff like that. Um just pretty much worked in restaurants, you know, bartending, serving and all that. I did open up a skate shop up in attawal.
Speaker 4:That's when I moved up there and um gave that a go and that was pretty cool that was the first time leaving the house too, right, oh yeah, that was my first time you know actually like leaving my parents house.
Speaker 1:I was 24 when I opened up the skate shop. Uh, yeah, when I left and it's pretty a lot of big steps. You know leaving. You know parents house, opening up a business and just like your savings going into that and giving it you know a shot which it went well. I wouldn't say it failed. I actually closed it down at a really good when I was getting traction, but I closed it down just because it was getting tough. Between you know my life down here in the desert and up there in attawal, you know how my because you were going back and forth a lot.
Speaker 1:Well, and my my family down here, my lady, my two little boys, you know, and there's a lot of that back and forth so and she has a good job down here.
Speaker 3:So I mean, it was a little bit a little bit too much, you know so how did you start the business? You found like just a little bit too much, you know. So how?
Speaker 1:did you start the business? You found like just a little spot or what what started that whole thing.
Speaker 2:I was hanging out a lot at Dell's. Yeah, we want to hear the origin story. Yeah, we're hanging out.
Speaker 1:I was hanging out at Dell's a lot about four years. I mean still hang out, you know.
Speaker 3:So that's how you met. You were a customer, yeah that's where I remember Dale.
Speaker 1:In the mall, yeah, in the mall.
Speaker 2:Oh okay, he was the commissioner of music at the record alley.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, oh that's that guy.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he always said that. He always said what was cool and what was the new stuff coming out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and it was cool. I remember I'm a little bit later too when he was doing the RTC vinyl and when Flat Black did it through that event street and ran into him there he had this, you know your shot popped up, dj scratching in the front.
Speaker 4:I remember it was pretty cool you ever see that he had a mobile record so I heard about it, I never you were up in yucca, weren't you? I was all around here yeah, okay it was.
Speaker 3:It was cool yeah oh my gosh, we got to come back to that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah definitely you're talking about hustle. I mean, yeah, it's about meeting people as well, it's super cool, uh.
Speaker 1:But then, yeah, I was hanging out at dell's. Then we have another friend named michael, who owns hunky dory records up in idelwald, comes down he says, hey, what's up? You guys, this spot opened up in front of ours. You know you should jump on it. Pretty cheap, small but cool, you know, and I will actually backtrack a little bit.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, the week before he came in with his husband. Yeah, yeah, and john he was talking about, there's a spot and I'm thinking about maybe doing a skate shop, and he kind of abandoned the idea within a week. And then michael showed back up and was basically told us a story and and it kind of ran it through his head and at the same time it's like all right, you know what? Reach out to michael, yeah, yeah, make sure it's not gonna go down.
Speaker 1:He's cool with it right, yeah I went home, looked at my money and stuff like that was pretty cool and I was like I'm probably able to do it. So how did?
Speaker 3:you know how to start a skate shop though, like did you just have all this like left over is that where dale comes in and kind of oh yeah honestly it was when I keep implanting that idea in my head and he's like just do it, you know.
Speaker 1:And I was like oh, just give it a go. I mean, there's a lot of and do it and honestly, I tried like I call, like I was calling distributors once I got my, I get and I'm getting my tax number, like all this stuff, and I was like whoa, I actually committed to it and it went really well. I got distributors pretty fast as well.
Speaker 3:It was a little bit tough at first, um, but yeah I mean, once you know how to do it with the first guy and the second guy, then it just becomes routine right, it just like jumped into it and it started going and I was like, oh man, this is pretty cool and yeah, up there, and I was a 10 feet by 15 feet shop pretty small, but I made it work and it was pretty cool and the whole little area that was there too.
Speaker 1:I don't know if you guys ever visited Idaho yeah, we were just there a couple weeks ago but pretty old town and where my shop was at it was made in the 1920s. Like right, when you walk down that little it's almost like an outdoor mall. It's not really big or anything, but a good couple shops. It almost outdoor mod. It's not really big or anything, but a good couple shops almost looks like a fairy tale where you're in a movie it looks so cool.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and they just walk down and used to be houses back then, but now they're all turned into shops and a pretty cool little spot and, uh, it went well.
Speaker 4:They have a garage back there, and then they put the team out for it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, it was, I guess, back then, like they were able to, where the shops were at like my shop used to be a garage, uh for like these old model t's that were kind of going through there if you guys ever go to I don't want to try to look, for it's called the village lane and it looks super cool and that's where the shop was. But yeah, michael, right in the center?
Speaker 3:okay, we'll check it out.
Speaker 1:We're there all the time, all the time, I think yeah, yeah, but just tried to start going and it was going pretty well. Just hitting up people Money-wise, I mean you have to like look at where your money's going. Really do your money works. For sure it's a flipping gig.
Speaker 4:Yeah definitely yeah, and you got to make sure you're doing it right.
Speaker 1:And what Dell taught me as well is always appeal to different crowds of people. So I had art supplies, records, a bunch of punk stickers, patches, and a bunch of skateboard supplies and stuff like that and clothing. That's where I learned from Dell, because Dell you go inside a shop. There's a little bit of everything for everybody, which is pretty cool.
Speaker 3:There is a lot. Yeah, it's pretty diverse.
Speaker 4:They get bored they leave.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they want to find new treasure.
Speaker 1:They just go in there and look around just to get entertained for a little bit. That's what it feels like. It's a cool shop. But yeah, I just pretty much went for it and did it, thanks to Del as well. He inspired me a lot, del's a great friend of mine.
Speaker 2:What years were we talking when?
Speaker 1:you started, this was about 2020. So, like COVID, that was right yeah right, covid shut everything down.
Speaker 2:So did you open and they closed down?
Speaker 1:No, it wasn't anything already closed, so I went right in the midst of like everything closed and I arrived, or something like that.
Speaker 4:It wasn't even like starting to come back alive Wow.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but up in Ottawa it's like COVID didn't even hit. It was wild.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they didn't give a shit. Yeah, they didn't give a shit.
Speaker 1:Dude the mayor's a fucking dog like come on, this is true.
Speaker 2:I just learned that myself, yeah, so like yo and you know, it didn't matter.
Speaker 1:So everything was still up and flourishing up there like people, even living, leaving la down here just to get away from all the covidness as well, you know oh yeah, so they could be free in idaho.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, they're doing a pump.
Speaker 1:Desert, too, stay the same, it's same people figured it out yeah, alright, so let's let's jump back.
Speaker 3:So, after you left the Air Force, then what? What ended up? What was your next adventure?
Speaker 4:stayed at Record Alley for 20 years where I could retire.
Speaker 3:I mean so what you want to talk to him about the music. No, I mean so.
Speaker 2:I mean I know that what, what, what you want to talk to him about the music? No, I mean, so I mean I know that you started your your van there, so that was kind of your foot. So you came into the record alley and basically run the business right yeah.
Speaker 4:I mean being there 20 years. You start off as the guy being there, cashier, and then you start taking on responsibility. Then you start learning how things work Right yeah, you. And then you start taking on responsibility and then you start learning how things work Right. My goal at the shop was to make the shop better. They work this way. My biggest accomplishment was making that t-shirt wall all the way around.
Speaker 2:That was a huge ass t-shirt. I remember the t-shirt wall was legit.
Speaker 4:It was awesome. Once that was done I was like, all right, cool, Next project, right. But that's a funny thing too, because then I started putting in my head like, oh man, what am I doing? Like I mean, I've got nothing for myself. No offense against the record out there, Give me everything. It's great.
Speaker 3:Blah, blah, blah, absolutely.
Speaker 4:But like what do I have for myself? And started they put it in my head like I first wanted to do a t-shirt shop because I was really into that.
Speaker 3:It was easy. T-shirts.
Speaker 4:I got a million saints but like all over the place, just kind of, and then it flourished into like maybe t-shirts with records but not used. And then somehow, along the lines I came up with, just doing trying to build a shop. Was it worth it? Like the money just wasn't there. You got to do rent, you got to be, it just wasn't happening. And then, but buying a vehicle for the price of once a month's rent and throwing all your equipment in it and doing pop-ups everywhere, all I'm paying for is gas.
Speaker 2:Was that your original idea? Had you seen that somewhere else, or did you just come up with that on your own A buddy and I was talking about it.
Speaker 4:And the idea inside the van was my thought. I think what I had seen before was more of like an ice cream truck type situation.
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4:Like flips up and you got the food vendor throwing out stuff, blah, blah, blah. And I don't know what made me think. But maybe I saw like a clothing thing, like you need to do that with records, like this lady driving around in New York. I think she was doing it and she just had this no around in New York. I think she was doing it. She just had this no, it was plants. She had the whole thing decked out in plants. Somehow they stayed when she was driving. So you got a van and then you kind of that's your shop.
Speaker 1:You had a pretty rad setup too, you guys. I heard about his van.
Speaker 4:It was simple it had eight crates on one side and eight crates on the other. When the doors opened and back, those were the t-shirts and so I had a little selection of ucds but, it was. I mean pretty much. It was just whatever I could put in there to sell and try and make some money. Try and make it the next day okay.
Speaker 3:So then you. So where did you go, like when you, okay, I got it all set up, now what?
Speaker 4:What did you call it? I ended up at bars, like in the back of bars at.
Speaker 3:You didn't just say what hey, can I just hang out in the back? And they would be like sure.
Speaker 4:I don't know how we set up in the weird back end of their patio section, but their back door ended up in my back door of the the truck, so it was kind of like it's hanging out. Here's a score. Come on, you need that roller skates t-shirt. Come on, your buddy needs one too.
Speaker 3:Oh, that was the best. I like that.
Speaker 4:Pappy and Harriet's. I get to do that plenty of times oh, that's right super cool. I went to so many great shows with Pappy and Harriet's but I never but uh one of the best ones was this guy came in he was just, I gotta just impress my friends guy. You know that guy got out there. Yeah, who wants a shirt?
Speaker 3:that was actually really smart going to bars, because I will tell you when you're drinking how was desert days when you did?
Speaker 4:that, oh, desert days was great desert days. Um then another place.
Speaker 1:I didn't hardly see d-a-y-s or d-y-z yeah the one they had, that's a festival up in the, up in the high desert right uh, they did have it over there then. Uh, lake prayers too.
Speaker 4:They had it started in mecca, yeah, somewhere else, then up in joshua tree yeah, so tell me about that.
Speaker 3:Was that all?
Speaker 4:about. That is what Coachella used to be.
Speaker 3:Oh.
Speaker 1:It's pretty much a cool festival with cool rock and roll Indie really kind of.
Speaker 4:But yeah, yeah, with minus, like the dance counts, I guess, right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's more like, just imagine, like the lineup of 1999 Coachella.
Speaker 2:you know that old rock and roll, not old rock and roll, but the indie rock that's coming up, 90s stuff you haven't really heard of.
Speaker 3:yeah, it's exactly like that, yeah like yeah who was putting that together, though, if it wasn't?
Speaker 1:it was Golden Voice. It wasn't Golden, was it?
Speaker 3:Burning man nah, who was the?
Speaker 1:production. I forgot a moon moon block party or something like that huh and a moon block party or something like that it was a company out of LA.
Speaker 3:Somebody's got to pay these guys, right? Oh for sure.
Speaker 1:Look it up.
Speaker 4:Sorry no.
Speaker 1:I don't know.
Speaker 4:I wonder who does that?
Speaker 2:So you're going to festivals now in the van yeah, that one festival in the van and then making it big.
Speaker 4:I did a pop-up at the Ace. So you're going to festivals now in the van, yeah, that one festival in the van and then, um, making it big ace. I did a pop-up the ace. That was great, that helped me out a lot. Um, and then what had happened? I was on my way somewhere up the hill oh, that's hot, okay. Started up the hill to go up to the high desert and the transmission started leaking.
Speaker 1:That's a steep hill too.
Speaker 4:I had to get that towed back, me and my buddy. We cranked on it, got it fixed, got it running. Then the next weekend we were ready to roll, got it all ready to go. I had a show in Palm Springs at one of the hotels. Just going to roll up, saw some records, it started rolling. I got about three blocks in Palm Springs at one of the hotels Just going to roll up, Saw some records, sure, so I started rolling. I got about three blocks into it.
Speaker 4:The transmission just completely, just does a 180 inside the truck and falls out and completely, just weirded out. It was the weirdest thing. That was pretty much the end of the truck.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what year was that?
Speaker 4:That was maybe going into 2018. Oh, okay so 2017 is when I started. Yeah, that was like barely a year. That was a year, but it was a long year, right?
Speaker 1:so I was gonna say it was. It wasn't completely the end, because it lived at the mall for a while on the their parking structure just right there. It was like thrown up there.
Speaker 4:My buddy wanted to take it up to Yucca Valley and dig a hole and bury it and kind of make an Airbnb out of it for the hipsters.
Speaker 2:They don't rent anything.
Speaker 3:So you've been in the music industry for a long time. How do you think that came about? Were your parents musicians or anything, or what was?
Speaker 4:there I mean look at the draw. Like I mean, come on, you get a job at the record store and who's gonna leave that exactly. I mean, it wasn't like I planned it, but it was like once I left the air force like I could get a job. Yeah, it was almost like it was actually the only application I've ever did.
Speaker 3:I think you're kind of born with that because, like I don't know that I'd want to do that for 20 years but I don't love. Maybe I'm just not that big of a music lover Like my husband he would be.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that'd be like my dream job, right To sit there and be in a music store be in a music store as well, for what I mean.
Speaker 4:What and that's the best thing about having a independent business, you know, a mom and pop shop is they take care of people. Take care of you because they know what you're going through. They see you.
Speaker 2:It's not corporate like nope, don't care you know who was the owner jim, jim stevens and he had it for a long time, right, yeah, he had it in palm springs for a good while.
Speaker 3:And he's a native here.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, his dad was one of the first, actually, if not the first doctor in Palm Springs. Oh, something about that, don't get me wrong. Oh, very cool, but yeah, he's been here since like day one of like, yeah, early, early, early years, deep roots, yeah, deep roots, when there were only what Coachella Valley and you there's only three cities actually. I started probably in not even Indio yeah probably just well high school wise.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it was only yeah and then things just started slowing down at the mall is that right like? It's changed over. Well, I think the music store in general has changed.
Speaker 4:Internet came around yeah, mp3 in general has changed. Internet came around.
Speaker 2:Yeah, MP3s right, MP3s right, Music Napster and Apple comes in here, have a CD which is the same thing.
Speaker 4:You can download and burn yourself, which was no different, at least with cassettes, when you had cassettes and you were taping cassettes. When you dubbed a cassette, it did not sound good. No yeah, so no yeah. So you were forced to buy the product. So you live with a bad kind. When you have a CD, when CDs came, it's the same exact thing. Why do I need to buy a CD? I'll just dump it. Huh, the music industry just evolved.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Technology took over, right.
Speaker 3:But you wanted like him as a true fan. He wanted the inside of the album and when you open a CD and all of that.
Speaker 2:But I think was in stages right, because at first, when all the digital music came out, I was you know, I was broke, so I just wanted to get my hands on the free stuff right on the b3s and stuff like because I wanted to build my collection. Yeah, as we've gotten older, I think you you kind of hit it right on the nail by bringing the vinyl back right, because the vinyl started when did? When did you see the vinyl start to kind of creep back?
Speaker 3:because you're in the record alley.
Speaker 2:We're selling cds and then when we switched that vinyl.
Speaker 4:It was weird, I remember, because we did. We went from a small section of records to a larger section of records, back to a smaller section of records, and then whatever happened after I left, I honestly don't remember. I think it kind of stayed the same as it was, but it was growing as soon as cds started dying right because it was more, and I think it was because it was more physical, like a more like. Is that what you attribute?
Speaker 2:like the the vinyl craze to, because I know why I buy it, but I kind of want to hear a professional's opinion on it, because that's your, I think it is it's.
Speaker 4:It's something you can own, like this is mine. Boom, I own that right boom nobody else has that because you didn't put that many up. You know it's one of those things. It's a possession thing yeah, and I think with now too, I mean the, the generation doing it now I don't know what generation.
Speaker 2:We're in z or something I don't even know when the millennials are old. Now, man, the millennials are already crazy. Now yeah the.
Speaker 4:They're the Pokemon. They were taught to collect stuff oh, yeah, and so that's what they do. They collect stuff everywhere with everything shoes, freaking everything, everything they collect, and that's right you collect shoes.
Speaker 3:I collect records too. Yeah, records too.
Speaker 2:For me the record replaces the CDs now, because if Spotify drops an artist, I can't listen to that song anymore. That stuff is gone like you're at the you're at the mercy of these digital giants, right, and if they have a bad contract with somebody and they say, oh, we're not gonna pay you anymore, and like de la soul. How long did it take for us to get de la soul on digital?
Speaker 2:it took us 20 years so for me, the only owning the record is like going back to our roots and having a physical copy, a physical interpretation of music which I love, you know.
Speaker 4:So that's, that's my addiction. Yeah, it's like you. I mean you have your computer, you have your, you own it, but I mean you can't hold it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there's nothing no, you're not owning it yeah, they can, and what's your opinion?
Speaker 2:because you hear all these vinyl hits. Oh, it sounds better, it sounds better. What do you, what do you think of that like? What's your opinion? Because? I mean you're in the, yeah, you're in the. You would know. Because you're, I mean there's got to be some truth to it to me, I got bad ears anyways.
Speaker 4:I just ways, I just turn that baby up, but like I mean otherwise, why they've nailed some stuff on that like this.
Speaker 4:The highs are too high and there's stuff that are where the bases are too bassy and the lows are too low, like there's. There's that in this. But yeah, with cd you do lose a lot of that. There's a soul to it and it's just more of like a flat. There's no depth, it's like a CD. Unless you have a really good, complex something you're playing it out of. It's just, it's almost flat. But I think when you play a tape or record, it just has it's more full it's a bigger sound especially if you got a good little setup yeah, it really can, it really sounds, yeah, definitely the setup.
Speaker 1:Yeah, a good turntable good speakers definitely to upgrade my setup, well, actually start with prosley.
Speaker 4:So when you go better, you're like wow, that actually sounds great yeah, get what you pay for.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like in anything in the world right so you're in the van 2018, your van dies on.
Speaker 4:Now it dies on me. And then, um, so started to do a couple little pop-ups in between here and there, just kind of trying to keep the dream alive, and then just went and got a real job for a minute and then with that it kind of helped me build back up and started playing with the idea of, like, all right, where am I going to put the shop? What's the shop going to do? Oh yeah, because I had the house. I sold the house. So once I sold the house I had that little extra income. My whole goal was like boom, build a thing, said and done, got it, got it. Boom, build a thing, said and done, got it, got it. Well, during when COVID hit, I had the job that week actually, when everything shut down, I was going into Monday, tuesday.
Speaker 4:Wednesday, Thursday at work and then have Friday, Saturday, Sunday at the shop.
Speaker 3:So my new schedule was At what shop?
Speaker 4:At my new shop. When I opened my store, oh, so you had it.
Speaker 3:So my new schedule was at my new shop when I opened my store, so I had.
Speaker 4:I had a job at the ACE doing doing engineering at the ACE.
Speaker 2:And so I was going to split my time and have a weekend. But COVID said no you ain't got this job. Covid had different plans.
Speaker 4:COVID was like no, you need to start now.
Speaker 3:COVID is pushing, pushing you in the right direction which is funny.
Speaker 4:I mean like sorry for those who didn't have a good time with COVID, but holy crap, I love COVID. Wow, so much positive stuff came out. So busy like that time, not the yeah, not the disease, but during that time, the time period of COVID, the face mask era yeah, um not to the same date.
Speaker 1:It was such a great time it was.
Speaker 4:It was a moment of freedom like the. The corporate stores were shut down. It was kind of like we had like the little people again like that's what kind of helped me evolve. It's like the mall wasn't open. Where's people gonna go? I mean, I was selling guitar strings because guitar center wasn't open.
Speaker 2:Wow, so you just stepped in and filled the void right.
Speaker 4:Yeah, just completely filling the void and that's kind of what it's always been. It's like that was the whole reason I was well, putting the store in Palm Desert was a whole other thing. I wasn't about to do that. I was going to go to the beach. I was out of here.
Speaker 3:Okay, to the beach. I was out of here, okay. So let's tell everybody the story, because you know that that was the building that I first rented my second showroom, in which one, the one- you're in when? No, you're in a.
Speaker 1:I was in building b, oh no okay, yeah, we went, we rented that sucker out.
Speaker 3:That was my first big showroom and then I bust through the wind, the doors and I rented out C.
Speaker 2:And that's where.
Speaker 3:Jason is now. And then Jerry had your place. He was like the best neighbor in the world.
Speaker 4:He's just the sweetheart and so then we moved out.
Speaker 3:We bought our building in 2018. That's why we were like out and we told Jerry hey, we're out of here. So Jerry's like, I want your spot and my son wants this spot. So that's why suite a became available yeah, oh, that's funny.
Speaker 4:Yeah, isn't that great it's all the universe.
Speaker 1:That's pretty wild. And those times like lined up like that's old school desert right there. We're so still so small and we all, it's all connected somehow you never told him that that was our old place.
Speaker 2:No, it's still on there in my records. We talk about music. That's what I want to talk about. I don't want to talk about.
Speaker 3:It's kind of cool.
Speaker 2:It is cool, it's kind of cool.
Speaker 4:It is an intertwining between us. That's how we all are people in the dead. We're literally one big family. We are because somehow we know each other five people down yeah they all know you directly.
Speaker 3:I can probably within five people know you oh, yeah, separation, as they say exactly and your fireplace tile came from my shop so there's a direct no, there's a for sure collection, right, I think you drove through it and put some space it's all good. I saw it the other day.
Speaker 1:I was like, oh, that's okay it's funny how it's a fireplace right there too did the fireplace ever work I don't think I think it was a
Speaker 3:house before yeah, we think that building was a house. Yes, no, no, not on the roof, but on the roof you can kind of see a better perspective of how. Anyway, well, my place had a freaking fireplace in it also. Yeah, in the back I saw that.
Speaker 4:I saw that isn't that crazy.
Speaker 2:It's an old settlers house it's got that garage in the back.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so I mean the building next to it was used to be a hotel, the Body Dally people right?
Speaker 3:Oh no, you told me Not in the back but the Body.
Speaker 4:Dally, people had the garage, but the people not the.
Speaker 1:Frontier building but the one on the other side.
Speaker 3:That used to be a hotel and I've heard you've had a couple run-ins with her. Is that correct? Can you tell me a little bit more about that, Dale?
Speaker 4:I think it's kind of calmed down a lot more, since all the blame's been put on Bruce Well, that's not a name. There's another individual that helps rent one of the spots. Yeah, he was in my shop today yeah, yeah, oh yeah, that guy he's something else, isn't he yeah?
Speaker 2:he's a funny.
Speaker 3:I told him he had to come on the show.
Speaker 2:That's next season next season?
Speaker 3:yeah, next season, okay, so then you get the spot where you're at now yes, covid middle, covid middle, covid well actually, when I signed the lease, they're like, yeah, shut down.
Speaker 4:Like I just signed the lease, they're like great yeah, which was kind of like a relief, because in a weird way it was like okay, like three or four months, we'll be back to life again, like that was like and everybody thought that everybody two weeks and really sit down okay, I can take a little bit more time, kind of spend some time on decking out the way I want, sure so.
Speaker 4:I kind of did that, took my time because you were waiting for when can you open? When can you open? I didn't care as long what was going on. You're aware you could die doing this.
Speaker 3:But I like your signage, it's just easy. Dale's records it's just easy, to the point. You know what's going on. You know what you sell.
Speaker 4:I mean, I kind of did it because you see that when you're going through every place, you see bar, you'll see gas, you'll see gas, you'll see. That's what I'm looking.
Speaker 1:Tattoo that's what I'm looking for yeah, yeah, something so simple, literally that's what.
Speaker 2:I'm looking for let's go there's no, there's no miscommunicating that straight to the point well, jerry did the same thing.
Speaker 4:He pulled his sign down and put framing and whatever whatever he's doing, which simplifies it.
Speaker 2:And then now.
Speaker 1:Jason wants to do the same.
Speaker 2:Haircuts Make it simple, man Straight, to the point.
Speaker 4:Straight to the point, and if you're doing advertisement, just make it easy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's true. There's a big point for you right there, Especially if you're driving by you know you're not going to read a sign, or anything, just haircuts.
Speaker 4:You're not trying to read Billy Bob's giant, giant record store for 45.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no man you're not reading all that, ain't nobody gonna have time to stop and write that?
Speaker 3:So I have a question. So were you, did you end up? Did you ever work for Dale's or like how did whatever?
Speaker 1:No, honestly, I just went over there and was helping him out.
Speaker 4:Yeah, he showed up in the weird phases of where that wasn't even open.
Speaker 3:When you closed down your place in Idlewild, did you then give them your stuff that you had left over?
Speaker 4:for the senior board stuff. No, it was completely reversed.
Speaker 3:Okay, so how did that happen? He?
Speaker 4:was at the shop maybe three, no, about four months before the whole situation with Michael, and hey, there's a spot. My husband blah, blah, blah, and so he. So it was COVID COVID all the way we were in. Covid forever, forever.
Speaker 3:so it was COVID COVID all the way we were in COVID for forever, so like that was the more thick of it where it's like are we ever coming out?
Speaker 4:so, like, his was a little bit more nerve-wracking because it was like okay, we've already done this for six months, how long else? Yeah? So mine was just push through, push through so yeah, anyway, so he was hanging out at my shop learning bits and pieces, just kind of filling in the blanks. I mean, I was just there hanging out at my shop learning bits and pieces, just kind of filling in the blanks.
Speaker 1:I mean I was just there hanging out learning stuff like organizing records. Yeah, it's funny because a lot of people were coming through like hey, are you hiring, are you hiring? I was kind of the only one that came by and like, do you need some help?
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And it just helped out and organized records sweep and pry stuff. That how I learned about a lot about our records and the numbers and all that type of stuff which is pretty cool so is there a big skateboarding industry here in our desert? I definitely. I'd say I feel like it was a lot bigger when I was like at my prime of skateboarding, uh, but right now I feel like it's still a pretty big scene, but I feel like it's way more mellow.
Speaker 3:I don't know, maybe the Maybe the kids are mainly at the skate parks. They're playing video games.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's bigger because you have more generation skateboarding.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and if you look at it now, dad skateboarding yeah.
Speaker 4:I'm still trying to skate. But there's, you know what? Salvo was just on the news the other day. He's like past his 60s. I mean, yeah, those are, those are the people we're looking at. When did we stop? When did we stop right?
Speaker 1:also, let's say, the parent wasn't into skateboarding, but like, for example uh, what year was it? Skateboarding became an olympic sport? The ones that they held in Japan. So now it's an Olympic sport. So now, parents are like oh it's an Olympic sport Like I'm going to put my kid into some skateboarding classes, or just let him skate.
Speaker 3:Really, you know you can become good. I had no idea. Not like snowboarding, skateboarding.
Speaker 4:Skateboarding up there like it.
Speaker 2:You know you could be an olympian if anything, so it's pretty cool. Man states is not the best. Oh no, it's jam. This is really what happens. You know, we release things into the world and they get better at it yeah, that's the best part.
Speaker 4:Here's the structure run with it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know so was the skate uh portion of the of the business always a part of your plan.
Speaker 4:So I know you were known for music. You're the guy that would show up with all the music, and here's, here's another tip Don't do, don't try and do something you don't know anything about.
Speaker 3:Right, Like I did, Like I mean there was a huge gap that I didn't skate because you know life you know life?
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, and that's how you do it. You were doing a lot of skating in the military right?
Speaker 4:Well, actually no, there was a little DIYs on base.
Speaker 2:Really yeah.
Speaker 4:No, I actually two o'clock in the morning in Alaska, it's right outside, let's go skate Took advantage of that. I remember that was that, literally. We were at the post office in North Pole, alaska. It was a town right outside my base and we were skating the post office and we looked at the thing.
Speaker 3:It's 2 o'clock in the morning. Yeah, you lose track of time.
Speaker 2:I gotta work in 4 hours.
Speaker 1:I gotta stay up.
Speaker 4:That's wild, but anyway yes, you can join the military and still skate. All right, anyway, but no, skateboarding wasn't part of it, it was I took it on because there was nobody local doing it.
Speaker 2:Ah, you saw the need.
Speaker 4:There's a need, there was a need. I tried to convince a couple people maybe to open a shop next to me, but then I researched it, research, research. A couple people maybe to open a shop next to me, but then I researched it, research, research, pretty easy. It's pretty easy. I mean I didn't start with a escape side. I started with about a grand oh wow, and just built it from there. Wow, there you go. Not minimal investment, and it was it. It's easy to do as long as you pay attention to what people are asking you for, and I think that's knowing your customer.
Speaker 1:You can't really force stuff on people when they already know what they want. People get pretty specific with their skateboard setups.
Speaker 3:I always think of the guys that were on Shark Tank that have those odd-shaped wheels.
Speaker 1:Oh, I've seen those. You've seen those. Were they shark wheels, something like that? Yeah, yeah, those, they were saying that they're sharp wheels, something like that they were like squares yeah, yeah, I've never seen those. It's supposed to be like super smooth, yeah, but they actually when they they?
Speaker 4:yeah, I think I know what you're talking about yeah, yeah, they look funky, yeah, especially when they roll yeah, yeah, I wasn't sure because you saw the wheels right, yeah, yeah I didn't see that shark tank version, but I think I know what you're talking about. Oh, yeah, okay.
Speaker 2:So skateboarding comes in just because of the need in the community, right, because you saw that people were not getting what they wanted, right?
Speaker 4:Not that they wanted, but like, come on, like you have to go to the mall to get a board or order it online. Or Yucca Valley, I board or order online, or yucca valley, I think yucca valley, yucca valley, wow closest.
Speaker 3:Yucca valley is great. I have got all kinds of cool stuff.
Speaker 2:That's a long way to drive to get a skateboard.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I mean especially for a place like as it is. I mean like yeah, there's a lot of kids here. Yeah, I mean, the malls are selling it left, right and center. You got your mall kids with decks all day long. But what happened when they couldn't go to the mall? Get their board at the mall? They discovered, you know. Oh, it's a real skate shop independent skate shop are you gonna put?
Speaker 2:skateboards well, there are these kind of out there on the.
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's just Dale's Records well, I have the skate shop on the side in Records oh, do you okay, yeah yeah, by the mural I have another funny question to ask.
Speaker 3:So you have chains on your doors. Was that for decoration or for need?
Speaker 4:yes, it's a chain link fence. Oh yes, and honestly it's, it's a deterrent.
Speaker 3:You know, it's not the you can and you want to get things on it, oh yeah it kind of looks cool too, yeah, that sounds nice.
Speaker 4:It does suck because a lot of people can't notice the big open sign flashing going you're open. They think you're closed because there's a chain link fence across.
Speaker 1:No.
Speaker 4:Kind of a buzz so it kind of backfires that way. But when the door is open they get it, but no, it's a total deterrent.
Speaker 3:I mean smash and grabs, total deterrent, like I mean smashing, grabs are actual thing and if it's just with beer, you're right. At least that's what it was. My day records and skateboards are expensive yeah, no, yeah and they're not heavy.
Speaker 2:So you can, you can run out, okay, you just brought up a good point.
Speaker 3:So then, how do you base the sell of your records? Like, based on the popularity, based on, like, how do you price them? Yeah, I'm not asking about your margins or anything like that.
Speaker 4:There's not a whole lot of markup. There's more markup in skateboarding than there is in records, and there's not a whole lot of markup in skateboarding. It's a volume business. Exactly. If I could sell five degrees of that price, at least I'm getting like, if I'm spending, it's almost like a three. What is that? A third of what I get? So if I'm I'm buying something for 20, selling it for 30, yeah, so it's very similar in that proportion.
Speaker 2:So well, people go to your shop because you're kind of like the proprietor of music too, like you've got cool stuff in there. That's why I like going you know why there?
Speaker 4:because you got good taste right? I mean, people ask for it, people so you tell me and I listen.
Speaker 4:I mean the probably about 75 of what I carry, I listen to and I know, but 35 to 40 is from the people telling me like or you, hey, listen to this, oh, that's right, I'll get that, yeah. Or it's just this kid asking for this. This kid asking, and it's just like, okay, there's something about this, I gotta get it. You know, like I've never heard. What is that with the red? I can't even think of his name. Half the stuff I sell consistently taylor, swift.
Speaker 3:I've never listened to taylor swift right it goes.
Speaker 4:And you would think why are you selling Taylor Swift to this shop? You'd be surprised at the people that actually like Taylor Swift. You've got a guy buying Slayer and Taylor Swift.
Speaker 2:Maybe he has a TV show.
Speaker 4:Not that it happens every day, but there's a lot of little kids that grow up and start learning other music too, and that's kind of where it comes in. What do you know? First, most of these people grew up on Beatles, which is your grandfather's music now.
Speaker 4:His dad's your great-grandfather, you don't know. The Beatles, it's like Frank Sinatra. I mean, as much as they're great it is, it's likeanks of Nacho Daniel. I mean as much as they're great it is. It's like I don't want to hear that, right, you know, it's like I want to hear this, this and I'm out of tune and I have to like, pay attention, like, okay, this things, like okay, this guy's hot this week.
Speaker 2:Okay, get this this. Why is it dying on? Oh, all right, he's been. What do you call it? Doing some anti-semitic stuff.
Speaker 3:Well, let me ask you this, is there anything you won't carry? You know what I mean, because I mean I sell tile for a living right. So I have vendors coming in to try to sell me things all the time and I'm like, sorry, I don't want that there's certain things that I won't carry there's one thing I won't care, I won't do it is.
Speaker 4:We'll talk about it later. Okay, but unless people ask for it, I'll order it. Blah, blah. They're like dismiss, like I cannot sorry that guy's voice. The music's great, but like I sell the crap out of it. So of course I'm gonna carry it right like, just because I hate it doesn't mean it's not good. It's good for what it is.
Speaker 2:If I were to shut up, it'd be awesome. It was an instrumental. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 4:But that's funny, because the way I started appreciating the Smiths music-wise was through Mod, modest mouse, when the guitarist did an album with them, yeah. And then you start listening Like, damn, that is good. Yeah, oh nice, shut up, guys, shut up Ruining the song.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but.
Speaker 4:I mean. So there's. There's certain things that you won't, just because you're that hard at it, but there's certain things that you do just because it's still a business.
Speaker 2:It's still a business man. It's not your hobby man, it's not my favorite, but I'll do it for you.
Speaker 4:I'll do that for you.
Speaker 1:Just one time. That's pretty cool because you could go up to Dell and order some vinyl. You can't do that at a corporation or at the law or something you know.
Speaker 4:I mean that's when the kids started asking for that group, the Garden. Oh yeah, they heard of the Garden, see yeah. They had no clue how, and then I listened to it. Badass, but it's like that's in the link, but you don't hear about it anywhere.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's in the link, but you don't hear about it anywhere. Yeah, nobody, you don't talk about it's not on mtv, it's not on spotify top five or anything within this portion of this youth culture, that's the shit.
Speaker 3:Guess what bobby's gonna listen to tonight all? Right drive home you know what, though it's so funny? He burns music out like he'll. He likes a song. He'll listen to it all day long for like two weeks, and I'm like jesus I'm the same are you yeah?
Speaker 4:I am oh my god it's more than three, three times in a row. It's shorter than two minutes.
Speaker 1:Well, it's funny, because me it's like not just one song, it's a couple songs I'm like really liking at the moment, right now, so I have those on repeat and then I burn myself up and I find like something else and I put that it's pretty funny yeah wow, we'll put it on repeat when we go home, definitely check it out.
Speaker 4:But yeah, no, I'm always still building, like that's something you're always doing. You're still learning gotta evolve right evolving learning?
Speaker 2:right yeah, because your shop has evolved since the first time I've been in there.
Speaker 4:You have, you have some art now I picked up some art that you've always got something cool, little things that I didn't haven't seen before, and I'm like, hey, that's pretty cool, I need to add that to my collection you know, some of my favorite times growing up was hanging out in the mall, and in the mall back in the day you had different shops, sure, and that was one of the fun things was going looking at all this different stuff and like you had the bookstore, you had natural wonders, you had this, you had that. So you get all these different places where you go, touch and just, it wasn't just a record store, yeah, just this.
Speaker 4:It was like you get yeah, you get all of it in and with it, and that's kind of how the story is just like I can't, yeah it's, I can't it's a little bit of this, a little bit of that like remember this.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, go when you leave here, go look up that you should have like a portion that's the disney store in your shop. I haven't seen that.
Speaker 2:I got rid of most of that yeah, the taylor smooth section, right for the preteen girls, you know the disney store at the mall.
Speaker 4:That's right that's where that is. Yeah, you know, they got free rent. They did. They got free rent because that was a pool store. That is they put it in there to pull people into the mall. That is wild that. And warner brothers, yeah, that, that's what I was told I'm courting so we're getting up against time here, so we always ask our entrepreneurs.
Speaker 2:A couple standard questions, because our audience is listening and it's for people coming up. Maybe somebody's thinking about. You know a youngster thinking about want to be the next dale, you know so what? Is the best business advice you've got gotten over the years in terms of research know what you're, know what you're trying to do and know it well.
Speaker 4:Know your industry, right. If it's you're trying to do, and know it well. Know your industry, right? Yeah, know that. If it's trying to sell mugs, know what your mug's made out of and why people don't like it and why they like it.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 4:Just because you like it doesn't mean it's the best.
Speaker 1:Right, especially with today, I mean you can just Google anything or YouTube and just get all this information, just to learn some stuff and just go at it, you know yeah just get all this information just to learn some stuff and just go at it.
Speaker 4:You know, yeah, and and know that you're going to and I don't want to call it failing, but you're, you're gonna you're not going to succeed oh, without all the time, and that's okay, and that's that's where you learn, it's part of it and especially with the truck, I learned when, when that, completely, when that wasn't anymore. I learned I know not to do this. I know how to order this and I know not to do this. I know how to order this and I know not to do this. There was a lot of things I took out of that when I built the shop. I'm not touching that.
Speaker 3:Right, you know that I already did wrong.
Speaker 4:I wasted money over here. Why did I do that?
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 4:Or just the way I handled business. I mean just not so worried about having to have it right then and there Next week will come, same people will be here, it'll be okay, and I mean, yeah, just if you really want it. Yeah, people will support you.
Speaker 4:And that's the thing if you have people supporting you, your friends, I mean, that's basically how I mean 20 years at a record store. I got lucky because people already knew me for that. So, if I could say anything, build a, build a face. There's a know your product and build your face with, like Carlos, going into what he was doing. He was at the shop. People knew him from my shop a little bit more than they already knew him already. Then people already know him from his shop, but he's been out of it for a while Now. He's been out of it for a while now. He's doing pop-ups. Yeah, like staying, staying with the people. Hey, remember me, I'm still out here. Yeah, hey, you're that guy.
Speaker 4:So it's, it's yeah, building your brand to building your brand, but just kind of not over building it. I guess you would say okay, yeah, like putting yourself out there too much, you kind of kill yourself yeah, you know you can people, if you're doing the same pop-up every week you become, then you become the white socks at the swap meet.
Speaker 3:That's what I was saying, yeah what are you?
Speaker 2:gonna buy from that they're everywhere, carlos you got any advice for our listeners out there.
Speaker 1:You've been through, yeah, just go for it it's okay to fell or even back out when it's not going so well and give it a go. You know, sometime again, sometime later. Uh, consistent, uh, consistency as well, like just being consistent. I mean, yeah, you can do a business, but if you're not consistent, it's not going to go anywhere. You need to keep doing it and uh, yeah, that's pretty much it mentors having mentors help.
Speaker 4:Yeah right, I've helped you, but I've had mine. Like oh, definitely yeah jim's helping out a lot. Uh, rick old sports fever definitely he's still around. He's just that kind of like every once in a while he'll throw it at you.
Speaker 1:That's a really good one definitely I got that inspiration in that drug thanks to doll. I mean, he said like, for example, with this, you know, and he's all dude like no, you're with this you know, and he's like oh, dude, like no, your mentor's already been through it.
Speaker 4:Yeah, they already know what's going to happen. They see you worried, like you got this. You're all right because you got this, this and this. How?
Speaker 2:do you know it's like did that.
Speaker 4:Right, it's already there and there's people that want to help.
Speaker 2:Yeah, ask for it. Swallow your pride a little bit.
Speaker 4:And it's not that you're swallowing your pride, it's you're learning from somebody. Take that knowledge that they're trying to give you, right, you know.
Speaker 2:It's an easy thing to do, man. It's just ask for help when you need it. Oh yeah, you know that's some pretty good advice from guys that have been through it.
Speaker 1:Another last question what's the worst advice you've gotten in business over the years and I'm sure you've gotten bad advice, because I have definitely gotten some bad advice- yeah, go ahead I was like I feel like I feel like I haven't been in the game long enough to actually know that, like, some of these games are really bad advice, because it's been about what four years, four or five years since I've been trying to just keep this going. So, yeah, I mean, uh, but I haven't haven't gotten anything bad. Honestly with you, it's always been good. All the support that I got from my friends and family it's always been good. Nobody's ever told me something so bad. I guess just me um, I don't know, probably just me being at the shop just keeping it super stocked at all times, because it was hard with me, especially being up there then like doing the shop just keeping it super stocked at all times, cause it was, it was hard with me, especially being up there. They were like doing the shop and buying too much inventory, yeah, and.
Speaker 1:Hey, but I don't know. I'll say not so far no bad advice yet but let us know when you get some Definitely.
Speaker 4:The one I've learned with my business and maybe, maybe it'll get better in time is not to do pre-orders. No pre-orders With companies, with people. If you're asking me for it, yes, I'll do pre-orders, but if a company airs our new line I've done it so many times people don't care until it's out. You sit on it and that's not even what they want.
Speaker 1:So it's a guessing game.
Speaker 4:Right. It goes back to like if somebody's telling you to buy something, make sure it's what your people want.
Speaker 1:Right, and that's like step back, don't let them. This is good to hear, yeah because, uh, I just did a pre-order, for it's funny because, yeah, it was a south shore distribution. They're coming out with this uh, texas chainsawacre boards like limited edition, so I was like, oh, that probably will sell. So I did a pre-order. It doesn't come out until August, though, so it's like have some time time to cancel. Yeah, yeah time to cancel.
Speaker 4:I mean I got a pre-order, the Pokemon boards that came out oh, dude, yeah, those sold like crazy. That was a year out of the pre-order. Yes, I will do that.
Speaker 3:Pokemon's got a soft spot.
Speaker 4:Pre-order, but make that judgment. Okay, yeah, freaking Pokemon, come on, even if the kid skating's not going to buy it, the kid that loves Pokemon's going to buy it.
Speaker 1:Dude Pokemon oversells. It's a sell-sell.
Speaker 4:Trying to guess between this geeky shirt and this geeky shirt. Give me five of those, three of those. Why don't I want stripes? Wait, just the kid goes, get the dinky stripes. You know, I want that one. All right, I'll get that one. There's usually a reason the company's trying to make you pre-order it in the first place well, I mean, I get that because they want to know where what they're trying to put out yeah, like all right, we're going to need this. This is this, but this, but like yeah a lot of it.
Speaker 4:I mean most of that's like two, three years ahead of itself. Yeah, you never know Like you could change in a year. Yeah, Right.
Speaker 3:Things change all the time. Yeah, all the time.
Speaker 2:Well, that's really good stuff on this podcast. Where can our audience kind of check you guys out?
Speaker 3:I know.
Speaker 2:Carlos, you have, you gotta change it. We're just wrapping up, so we gotta get there we gotta get there, okay. So where, where can our audience check you guys out? I know, carlos, you have a pop-up coming up.
Speaker 1:Yes, skateboarding pop-ups just setting up at different skate parks throughout the valley and whenever people invite me to do pop-ups. But 760 skate pop-up on instagram spell it out, oh yeah, the number, seven, the number seven, then s-i-x-t-y 760, then underscore skate, then underscore pop-up yeah, so everybody go check that out if you're skating this is the guy you want to contact and then Dale what you got to promote.
Speaker 2:Where can we find you? We're going to audience.
Speaker 4:Check you out at the record store. Dale's Records skate shop on the Instagram. Me and the wife we've got a new little thrift store. We opened up Thrift Store Junkie.
Speaker 2:Where's that at?
Speaker 4:That's actually right next to my wife's shop Peach Whiskers. It's a vintage store, okay, so you're in my shop. Yes, if you keep going straight past where the lock shop is and there's the little bar, she's right after Nemo's and in between Mike's Smoke Shop, the vintage shop that's Jen.
Speaker 2:I went 111 people you can't miss it so you learn something new every day, and then for the thrift store donations, always taking donations.
Speaker 4:Right now we're in the process of making a non-profit you know, get back to the years we want to start trying to do like bring it back. Palm Desert used to do bands in the park, playing in the park. We want to start trying to do like bring it back. Palm Desert used to do bands in the park that's right playing in the park. We want to try and bring that back. So trying to get more activities for the kids, that's super cool good, we need nothing to do on here.
Speaker 3:We need skateboard and music and music in the park.
Speaker 2:Well, I appreciate you guys coming in.
Speaker 3:thank you so much.
Speaker 2:Thank you, you guys gave us a lot of good information. You guys are legends in the Coachella Valley.
Speaker 4:We appreciate you coming on. Thank you for having us no seriously.
Speaker 3:Thank you guys, it was awesome.
Speaker 2:So if you found value in this conversation, go ahead and check us out, like and subscribe We'll see you next time.
Speaker 3:Bye-bye.