An interview between the J Thomas Home Marketing Team and Zach Crouse
We’re lucky to have Zach Crouse, our marketing intern, here at J Thomas Home for the summer. Zach’s a senior at the University of Kansas and wrapping up an undergrad studying marketing at the University of Kansas School of Business. Zach is the Director of Apparel for the Men’s Lacrosse Team at KU and came to us after studying at the Istituto Lorenzo de’ Medici in Italy, focusing on luxury brands.
In this Interview, Zach shares why he wanted to work with genuine wood products as a culmination of his history in marketing and beyond, starting with his childhood when he worked with his dad in his dad’s home woodshop.
Okay, tell me. You chose a local woodworking shop all the way out in Olathe, Kansas. You have a great background—you could do many things. Why is this your marketing job of choice?
Yeah, I was really intrigued by the size and family aspect of the shop. That was really something that drew me in. I was excited to have the opportunity to work with everyone and directly with an owner.
How has your experience working here been?
It’s been really fun to do, especially with Josh. He does so many different things around the shop—the ordering, customer service—all this. Seeing what his workload is and how you manage it—that has been really fun to see.
What have you enjoyed the most?
When we first talked, I didn't really know what we were going to do, but helping to build a website has been really fun. It's been busy, too. It's something that I think will help me in the future, in my career, just kind of seeing what goes into a business, especially in an e-commerce space.
So yeah, that's a big reason. But another reason is from my childhood. I spent a lot of time woodworking with my dad when I was growing up, so having that chance to revisit that connection with woodworking has been really fun, too.
That's cool. What did you do with your dad?
We built some bunk beds in our basement, chairs—all that kind of stuff.
How old were you when you did those projects?
It was just kind of scattered around. This past year, we built a die table for our college house, which was really fun to do, just me and him. Then it turned into a family project—my sister painted the whole thing, so that was kind of fun, too.
That's so cute. Was it for your fraternity?
No, it's just for our house. I'm not in a fraternity. But yeah, it's got a big Jayhawk on top and some beer logos in the corner, so it's really cool.
What a fun project! People are so busy these days, so it’s less common, I think, for families to be able to coordinate doing something like that together. How old do you think you were when you first worked on a wood project with your dad? Has it truly been throughout your whole life?
Yeah, throughout my whole life. I got to kind of dip into everything and learn to be handy with stuff around the house.
I have some good memories of following my grandpa around the house doing stuff like that. I bet that was really special for you.
Yeah, it's been fun.
Let’s return to your entrepreneurial interests and how they led you here. Have you worked with entrepreneurs or done internships before?
Nope. I haven't done anything internship-wise before this, so this is my first marketing job. But I was fortunate enough to study abroad last summer in Italy, and I took some marketing classes there. I took a wine management or wine marketing class, which taught me about the wine and alcohol industry. Those were super hard classes. And then, on top of that, I took a luxury brand management class.
So, looking at what luxury Brands do to separate themselves from everything else in the design world. So, the business school experience has been really fun for me. There are a lot of great professors there who want you to succeed in different parts of marketing.
So, luxury brands and real wood shelving products. There is a connection there, too.
Yeah. I think having real wood definitely makes you feel more connected to the product. If you have a real wood product that I know came from a real tree, you can visit our shop, and you will see the actual wood getting loaded onto the palettes and stuff there in its raw form. So I think that's something that people could relate to, something just being like in their backyards is actually where your shelf comes from.
Absolutely, there are so many global eCommerce stores where you can get a shelf, but it's composite, and it's not this whole other thing that a real wood shelf is—a luxurious product, to be sure, but one that connects rather than disconnects. It brings out the sense of home or belonging in whatever space it’s in. The real-ness of the wood does something—and has a way of connecting us with ourselves and the people or places that are important to us. Like you with your dad.
Exactly.
We want to extend a big thank you to Zach for telling us your story and for working with us this summer! We’re so glad to have you on the team.