This week, we're joined by Justin Brands' dynamic sales duo: Michael Bachkanji from the West Coast and Andrew Pipkin from the East Coast. Get the scoop on the hottest style trends from both coasts and brace yourself for a barrage of their best dad jokes. It's style, it's humor, and it's a whole lot of fun – you won't want to miss this one!
Taylor McAdams: You're listening to the Kick Your Boots Up podcast where we swap stories of the West. Whether you're just waking up or getting in for the day, come on in and kick your boots up. Hey, everybody, thanks for listening to the Kick Your Boots Up podcast, we're here for another episode and boy are you in for a treat. But before we get started, you know, I've got to remind you please like, subscribe, share with all your friends, this is going to be an episode you don't want to miss out on Plus, there's going to be some high-quality content. So just disclaimer there. But before we get started, I've got to tell you a little bit about these guys here. You know, it's not very often that we get to do a lot of internal tooting our own horns here at Dustin. And we have two of Justin's finest and I say fineness loosely, loosely. These guys are, they come highly recommended to be humor. And the cool thing about them is they're in completely opposite parts of the United States. We have Andrew Pipkin to my right, and he's actually in Georgia, Florida covers those territory. So thank you for being here. Andrew, thank you for having us, we'll get to know a little bit more about him in a second. Also, we have Michael bacaan G, who covers three states, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. Thank you so much, Michael, for being here, that we're gonna get to share their different insights on what it's like in the different parts of the United States. I mean, Florida, for crying out loud, Oregon, there's a lot to talk about there. So we're just gonna dive right on in and I'm gonna ask you first Michael, you originally started as with an accounting numbers degree? So how does that translate to what you do now? I mean, I know sales is all numbers. But like, tell us about that. Yeah,
Michael Bachkanji: I mean, went to University of Oregon, or got my Bachelor's in economics and minored in business. And really, it's just a really a kickstart into the world of business and being a sales rep, you are your own business owner, almost. I mean, you're running your territories, to the best of your ability and, and trying to dive into the numbers and see what's working and seeing what's not working. And so it translates pretty well, it does. But it's just a little bit more fun than my economics classes.
Taylor McAdams: So definitely ended you I'm going to ask the kanji, did you have a hard time spelling your name when you were a child?
Andrew Pipkin: No, no, no, that one came pretty easy. For me. I was pretty intelligent as a kid. Not sure what happened. But you know, first day of the first day of class was always interesting. You know, I'm at the top of the list be a CH always at the top of the list for the chart of attendance charts. So the teacher was always they'd say, Michael, and they say, and I would just stop in there, here. I'm here. And they would always enter that kind of start there.
Taylor McAdams: Well, okay, so you have a daughter. Now you have two two daughters.
Michael Bachkanji: Just one daughter and one son.
Taylor McAdams: Okay. Okay, so now you have to start you have to teach them
Michael Bachkanji: just how I planned it.
Taylor McAdams: How to say and spell the last name. Do you have any tips? They're like, what are you going to do? What's your game plan?
Andrew Pipkin: Man? I don't know. Maybe just scramble it all up and try to make them figure it out. You know, baptism by fire? Yeah, they definitely respond well to food. They're very food motivated. So dogs? Yeah, very similar to dogs. So I think we'll start you know, somewhere with treats. And we'll go from there.
Taylor McAdams: Okay, yeah, that's good. Some Cheerios that works. Andrew, how about you? I mean, something that you guys don't know out there is not only easy, is he a sales rep. But your degree was in architecture masters at that. So you had a plan you were going to build buildings construct, you know, structures. And then tell us your story. Like how did you get adjusted and selling boots? And how does that translate like as designing and selling boots? Very similar to that?
Andrew Pipkin: Yeah. So I started I had an undergraduate degree in architecture at University of Florida. Worked gators, right? Oh, yeah, go Gators baby. Worked in Dallas for a couple years at architecture firm and then went down to Texas a&m for my master's, where I also did a focus in historic preservation. Within that, unfortunately, the housing market crash happened I had a really good close friend of mine from University of Florida. That was actually a Tony Lama rip quarter. Shout out earlier, kind of give him a shout out. He was working in territory in Florida, Georgia for Tony Lama at the time and told me there's an opportunity to interview for a sales trainee position. At Justin. I kind of looked at as a once a lifetime opportunity. And here I am. 12 years later.
Taylor McAdams: Oh, yeah. And you're killing it. It's been fun. And since you mentioned Florida, Georgia, and you say it just like that, I've got to ask the most iconic question ever. Have you ever met Florida Georgia Line?
Andrew Pipkin: I've never met. I've been at the bar from the Georgia Bar or bam, I guess. Was it Bay, Milan, maybe to Georgia, for Georgia.
Taylor McAdams: Shane, if you're listening, I hope he's crossed the line. Went into the process. For sure. Okay, so to have a little bit of fun to get to know you guys a little bit better. I've got to ask. If we were going to have a movie about your life, Justin's going to produce it. What actors would play you and would you be the main character? Would you be a supporting character of your life? What's the outlook we're going to take care?
Andrew Pipkin: I mean, it's Gotta be the main character, but I'm thinking something like, Oh, I think Zach Galifianakis. Yeah. Well, Ferrell? Yeah. I mean, it's just it's gonna be a comedy for sure. The two of you both who's who's who? Oh, um, Will Ferrell or John C. Reilly there. Yes. Yeah. I mean, especially like stepbrother, shaken bake all day long. All day. Yeah.
Taylor McAdams: The tuxedos I know, we were joking a little bit after or before the podcast. But really, you guys were considering expensing tuxedos just for this podcast. And I want to say I appreciate that a lot. I really need this excitement from the podcast. So thank you for that. Absolutely.
Andrew Pipkin: Got the interview. We had to come do the interview saying yeah, then we went out you know, it's just just a nerve getting to us the spotlight. Oh, it's bright. Yeah, it's bright. That's why we don't want to steal your shine to you. Thank you make the show you are the show.
Taylor McAdams: So it's yours. Whatever, whatever. Whatever.
Andrew Pipkin: We don't want our stars to rise too fast.
Michael Bachkanji: Plus, my bag was already 52 pounds. And so I had I was the guy on zipping the calendar and pulling stuff out. Yeah, that's so embarrassing. It is but you know at 7am Portland, Oregon, I don't really care.
Taylor McAdams: You know, most girls have that problem. We have jewelry. We have boots, we have all the things but what's your deal? What what's so heavy in your suitcase? Are you bootlegging some alcohol across the line or what?
Andrew Pipkin: Couple pair of boots? Mostly, mostly just all the dress clothes. You know, you have to dress for success every day and have a different outfit. So I think that's what took up most of the weight.
Taylor McAdams: Yeah, that's fair, gradually so. Yeah. Okay, so you guys are a fun group. And I know your guys's celebrity lookalikes are the stars in your movies have a lot of fun together and they listen to music. There's a lot of car karaoke and stuff. So what is your favorite pumpup song? I'm gonna ask you first- Michael, what’s your go to pumpup song.
Michael Bachkanji: I mean, I have a lot of songs. I love music, but I'd say “Blow” by Chris Stapleton and Bruno Mars. Okay, that will get you pumped up. Listen to that right now and tell me that you're not pumped up.
Taylor McAdams: Holy cow. That's a good one. I didn't even think about that.
Andrew Pipkin: It's hard. It's hard to think of one but
Taylor McAdams: “Blow”, Okay.
Andrew Pipkin: It's Tootsie Roll by 16 Homeboys. I mean, it's.
Michael Bachkanji: He's throwing it back.
Taylor McAdams: My next question is for you guys, though, right? You have to put on a performance of your pump-up song. So give us a little line from below.
Michael Bachkanji: Give you a line from Blow? Oh, gosh, I can't do it. I can't do it.
Taylor McAdams: You're afraid your wife's gonna see this and embarrassed.
Michael Bachkanji: She's definitely gonna see this. She's already told me she's gonna see this. She will watch it over and over. My daughter will probably mention it. Yeah, so I'll just try to keep it at least embarrassing.
Taylor McAdams: The role model status. How about you? Are you gonna give it a try?
Andrew Pipkin: Yeah, “Cotton candy. Sweet as gold. Let me see that Tootsie Roll.”
Taylor McAdams: I like it.
Michael Bachkanji: I mean, if you can't do you can't get pumped up to that thing. I don't know what to tell you a better man than me.
Taylor McAdams: I appreciate that, guys. Yeah, thank you for that. And I've got to get a little bit serious because I'm genuinely curious. And I think that people are out there too. A lot of people in sales got to start somewhere. And I asked you a little bit about how you got started. But what do you think was like, the biggest thing you learned when you first got started? As sales reps? You started traveling and your territories? You're going on eight years here?
Michael Bachkanji: 12 years?
Taylor McAdams: 12 years here. Okay, so you've got some experience both of you do very similar timelines. What's your best what's the one thing that you can throw us down with some wisdom on like you learned this You rose above? It can be embarrassing. That's okay.
Andrew Pipkin: So when I was I did about four months of training in the office, not good travel some reps. For that time period, Lynn Laski which is one of the great Justin reps. I did a lot of work with him that some of the horse shows and in Oklahoma, and the best advice he ever gave me was selling is a lot like shaving a little bit every day or else you turn into a bomb, so it was kind of one of those like he really made the point is not a lot. Don't go, you know you have to go work a lot but a little bit every day.
Michael Bachkanji: That’s a Laskiism right there.
Taylor McAdams: Exactly. I like it. No, that's that's very solid advice. Especially I think of like our young Owen Walker. That's really only been a sales rep for six months. Truly. I know a lot of you guys love to give him a hard time and some hazing and we'll talk about that in a little bit. But that's like, I think I've heard you say something very similar to him in the past so that's really good.
Andrew Pipkin: Can he shave though? Was he older Matthews growing facial hair yet or not?
Michael Bachkanji: I don't think so.
Andrew Pipkin: I don't think so. It's baby face on.
Taylor McAdams: Yeah, bless his heart,
Michael Bachkanji: Bless his heart. You know, I'd say you just you really just learn as you go and you you learn from your mistakes just like your life. That's just how it works. You know, and I went out kind of the same deal was out just traveling with manager at the time doing some training and visiting some small accounts in California and you know, we had gone in the office we had gone through the kind of our our line release and how we're going to present the whole line release and I you know, I practice it and got it down. And then we visited a feed store The small feed store in California and you know, I'm trying to show them the whole line, but I'm showing, you know, I'm trying to get them to buy fashion boots, and I'm showing this higher end stuff. But I wasn't considering the fact that you need to know your audience and where I am. And I was like, so you don't think you can, you know, sell this fashion boot? And of course, she's like, No, look around, we just need to good, waterproof, you know, Muck boot. And I said, Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. And so, you know, I learned pretty quick just to know your audience and, and that that really paid off for me.
Taylor McAdams: So talk about humble beginnings, right? Like that was a humbling moment. You're like, “Oh, crap! okay, I'll figure that out.” Well, that's kind of fun to see me accounts that are coming in here and you're getting to meet with them, you'll have you'll go from full on work product only because they want to, they want something that works that's waterproof, that will get the job done to some that gets to have a little bit more fun, all the flexibility. So what's it like doing that, like the diversity there, you have to kind of be well versed in both areas, right? Yeah.
Michael Bachkanji: You got to wear a lot of different hats. We like to say, yep, there are a lot of different boots, we should say. Yeah. Yeah, it's just you know, there are so many different accounts. It's it is very diverse, like you said, and, you know, when you run around in your territory for long enough, you get to understand where people are and what kind of accounts you're visiting. So, you know, you can kind of model your, your, your attire or, or the assortment that you're going to bring into the store that day, you can just model around who they are. So specify, specify it to that account. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. It's something it's really just takes time to pick that up, you know, being in the field constantly doing that you get the personalities of the counselor working with the customers. And, you know, like Michael said, knowing that audience and knowing it inside now, on both sides of the aisle.
Taylor McAdams: Yeah, that's a big part of it. For sure. I think you guys both do that really well in your each respective areas. So I've got to ask you then a little bit about the trends in your areas. So obviously, very different. Florida is probably traditionally as they say stereotypical, sunny, warm. There's a lot of retirees a lot of vacationers tourists in the whole state as a whole. And then same with you, Oregon, Washington, Alaska area, very different. So let's talk about that style trends. What do you guys see differently from each other? We'll start with you, Andrew,
Andrew Pipkin: Soon, Florida, Florida, Georgia is generally probably four to five years behind. So your Texas, Oklahoma style trends. So you know, the broad square toe took a while to really take hold and get out in that area. I'll see now it's there. We're seeing a bit more round-toe, but your round-toe product is still kind of a constant. East Coast look, overall, but a lot of us just work boots. Probably the biggest misconceptions of Florida, in general, is because of the retirees because of the beach, you're not selling a lot of boots. Well, many boots are being sold in Florida because you know, pretty much outside the coastal areas. Everything inside everybody's one industry coming in the street down there a lot of agriculture. I mean, at one point, it was the thing you had the largest herd of mama cows in the country in Florida, which is thick for as long as export at one point was beef cattle. Me see I was gonna say oranges, I would exporters obviously are a big one. But beef cattle as well. It's kind of an understated industry that people don't really necessarily know about. or associate with Florida.
Taylor McAdams: That's a cool, fun fact, too.
Michael Bachkanji: That is a good fun fact. And yeah, I mean, actually, similarly, Oregon, Washington tends to be about five years behind the trends of the core market, Texas. So that's interesting. I learned that I didn't expect that. But you know, Oregon, Washington, very diverse. And it's, it's really split right down the Cascade Mountain Range. So the west side of the state, you have your big cities, the Seattle, the Portland, Eugene, and you know, that's a lot of fashion. And you know, you'll have your your summer rodeo fans that are dressing up that don't normally wear boots all year long. But When summer comes around, and all the concerts and the rodeos start coming around, they're getting into their cowboy cowgirl boots, and then, you know, kind of on the reverse side of that is the the east side of the state and states and that's very core market cowboy. It's almost you know, you're in the Tri Cities, Washington and its pickup trucks and square toes. And it makes me feel like I'm back home in Fort Worth. So yeah, very diverse. And I have to carry a lot of different bags and be ready for everything.
Taylor McAdams: Yeah, yeah, you guys really do. And that's actually I really didn't realize that because, yeah, there's the stereotypes, but you guys are kind of one in the same. We're Texas in the city, let's just say the center of the United States. Let's just say that because we'll include the northern states as well. They kind of do kind of run the show at different times of the year. And well thank you guys for sharing a little bit about your lives and what you get to do in your day to day and I feel like you guys are too fun of people to let a moment Go to weigh. So I feel like this is a perfect opportunity to play a game with you guys if you're down. Luckily, disclaimer, I gave him a little bit of prep and you'll guys will understand why in a second. But basically what we're going to do is we're going to play a game, and they're going to try not to laugh. I am going to try not to laugh, although I feel like I can already lose right now. I gotta give a shout out to coach says jokes and Logan Lyle, this is this is a segment where we're gonna say some dad jokes. Try not to laugh and have a lot of fun with it. If we end up laughing That's okay, too. So, I don't know who wants to go first. Are you are you Michael, do you want to go first?
Michael Bachkanji: Yeah, I mean, I actually this is I saw this in the news. Just yesterday. There was this actress and she just stabbed her husband. And I can't remember name. Reese Reese something
Andrew Pipkin: Reese Witherspoon?
Michael Bachkanji: No, no with a knife.
Taylor McAdams: I'm already laughing
Michael Bachkanji: cricket. I shouldn't have told him before we did this. Should have left it up to surprise.
Taylor McAdams: Okay, Andrew, what do you got?
Andrew Pipkin: What did Tony Hawk say to the pair of Justin’s?
Taylor McAdams: Oh, that's a new one and a custom one to throw Justin in there.
Michael Bachkanji: That's a custom. That's a Pipkin custom. Let's hear it.
Andrew Pipkin: Are you gonna skate? We're just going to boot skate.
Michael Bachkanji: That's I'll just give him a round of applause for creativity there.
Taylor McAdams: That was like Well, how about you? What's next?
Michael Bachkanji: Why did the cowboy adopt a wiener dog?
Taylor McAdams: Oh, I know this one. I'm not gonna tell you.
Andrew Pipkin: He wanted to get along little doggy
Michael Bachkanji: I'm out I'm telling you about. She even knew it and she laughs
Taylor McAdams: I did I love weener dogs. I have one instant I knew it. I knew we were on the same Brainwave.
Michael Bachkanji: Absolutely.
Taylor McAdams: Hey, Andrew, what's next?
Andrew Pipkin: I was prepping for a customer meeting the other day and was wondering why I kept hearing music coming from my printer. Turns out my line sheets were jamming.
Taylor McAdams: Ooh, it's good. That is really good. These are customs. These are original. I don't think you're gonna find these on Chat GPT or Google either you know tailored towards what's changed in b2b sales. You really don't know.
Andrew Pipkin: I'd kind of know but not so. Okay. Okay. Why did the golfer bring two pairs of pants?
Michael Bachkanji:Ooh I don’t know
Andrew Pipkin: In case you got a hole in one
Taylor McAdams: Okay, that one gets it to there we go. I'm gonna jump in here because I feel like I can't let this opportunity go on Miss. Okay, what do you call a cow with no legs?
Michael Bachkanji: I can't I can't say I know it.
Taylor McAdams: Ground beef. Sorry, it's a different button. Yeah. There we go.
Michael Bachkanji: mama cow.
Taylor McAdams: Yeah, that's true. Like how Pipkins mama cow mama cows. Even better. Yeah, that's right. Okay, what do you do? Do you ever do another one?
Andrew Pipkin: Was your turn Michael?
Michael Bachkanji: I just said my last one so
Taylor McAdams: Wait, did you run out?
Andrew Pipkin: I'll just freestyle off the dome here I'm sorry. Do you know how much Canadians love their Justin's? Enough to break the ice
Michael Bachkanji: that's all they talk a “bout”
Taylor McAdams: I'm so sorry.
Michael Bachkanji: There you go. There was some credit.
Taylor McAdams: That was good. And since you've on your on the boot theme, we'll do one more bonus because I just can't help myself the cheesiness Okay, so guys why did the cowboy take his boots off before going to bed?
Michael Bachkanji: I don't know.
Taylor McAdams: Because he wanted to give his soul some time off. You guys get it?
Michael Bachkanji: We talk about souls every day. Yeah.
Taylor McAdams: You guys have been troopers. I really appreciate you taking the time to be on the Kick Your Boots Up podcast to have some fun with us and to share your stories too. I'm sure there's a lot of people out there that have questions. So those of you that do if you have questions about what it's like being a sales rep what they get to do anything about that feel free to comment below. We read the comments we take into consideration what you want to see we're so excited for the next episode. So stay tuned. And thank you again for watching the Kick Your Boots Up podcast. Thanks for joining us on Kick Your Boots Up. I'm your host, Taylor McAdams, and we can't wait to share the next story of the West. Until then, feel free to like, subscribe, and leave us a review. Follow us on social media at Justin Boots to keep up with our next episode.