From Selling Surfboards To Hosting Winery Tours
Tyler Tomblin was tired. Tired of staring at a screen all day. Tired of sitting for hours at a time. Tired of his eyesight getting worse.
While he appreciated the creativity involved in being an Art Director at UC Santa Barbara, he didn’t enjoy being stuck inside an antiseptic office just minutes away from the beach.
There was sun to feel on his face, ocean air to breathe, new people to meet, adventures to be had, laughs to share.
Then one day in 2000 Tyler bumped into Eric John Reynolds on State Street in downtown Santa Barbara. They knew each other in the early 1990s in Isla Vista, the location of UCSB. At that time Eric owned Java Jones Coffee while Tyler managed the Isla Vista Surf Shop. Each morning before work Tyler would grab a mocha or latte, and eventually the two of them developed a friendship.
Eric discovered that his new friend was also an artist and designer, and over the years he hired Tyler to design many advertisements, logos, brochures, and even Eric’s first website.
That day on State Street Eric told Tyler about his new venture called Stagecoach Wine Tours. He confessed that he needed help – a lot of help. He launched the business with his wife, but things became tough to manage after they divorced.
“Tyler, could you drive the tour van for me one day a week?”, Eric asked. Driving the van meant giving wine tours.
One day led to two. Two days led to three. Tyler was back in his element: Being outside, meeting new people, building connections with his infectious personality, having a great time by showing others a great time.
By 2004 Tyler was a main tour host for Stagecoach. And in 2010 he became an official partner and bought into the business, which has become one of California’s leading wine tour companies.
--------------------------------------------------
Society puts people into categories, ascribing personality traits and professional potential based on one’s current job title. How could someone with a background in art and surfing – two traditionally outsider pursuits – successfully transition to the sophisticated wine industry? Especially someone with zero wine industry experience.
But Tyler’s not your average guy – not by a long shot. Passion and personality can’t be measured on a resume. Neither can curiosity, a thirst for knowledge, and natural business instincts, which first manifested when he managed the surf shop.
“The owner was selling candy, cheap sunglasses and cheesy shirts”, Tyler says. “The place was more like a beach shop at a tourist destination than a dedicated place for hardcore surfers. I told him that the surfers at UCSB will be here for four years, so we need to appeal to them. Otherwise they’ll shop elsewhere.”
The owner saw the light and let Tyler revamp the business. He re-merchandised the entire store, replacing general consumer products with a focused selection of top-of-the-line surfboards, accessories, sunglasses, and apparel. He drew people in by taping the day’s faxed surf report on the front door each morning (this was pre-internet, remember). He played surf videos on mounted TVs all day – locals gathered to watch them together, transforming the shop into a true communal spot for surfers. Revenue grew to an average of $50,000 a month, with inventory increasing from $30,000 to $500,000.
Where did Tyler gain that entrepreneurial acumen? “I guess I just have the gift of gab,” Tyler says, finishing the sentence with his endearing, unmistakable chuckle. “I love interacting with people, I’m curious about their lives. But the real reason why I succeeded is because I grew up in Laguna Beach, which has a major surf culture. My friends and I, if we weren’t at the beach, we’d be hanging out at the surf shop. Just through exposure I learned what it takes to create a thriving surf business.”
Even though Tyler knew little about varietals, appellations and tannins, those business lessons applied to the wine industry. It turns out that selling wetsuits and being an excellent wine tour host have a lot in common. That is, if you have the right personality.
--------------------------------------------------
Stagecoach has done well, in part, because their tours include smaller, boutique wineries. “It’s more intimate than what’s offered by our competitors”, Tyler says. “We want people to feel like they're part of our family. We're not selling transportation, we’re selling experiences.”
Those experiences include tours of wineries in Santa Barbara’s wine country and the Santa Ynez Valley. Throughout the years Tyler’s formed close friendships with winemakers. He’s swapped stories and created bonds with thousands of customers. He’s harvested grapes and made wine. He can talk to you all day (or all night) about the science behind specific tasting notes. And through it all, he’s been keenly aware of how forces out of his control altered his career path.
“I was making good money at the university,” Tyler says. “I had insurance and a pension. But I just hated being in an office, and the idea of being a graphic designer for the rest of my life didn’t excite me. Yet I admit I would’ve stayed until I retired because that's what people do at universities. Then out of the blue I get the offer from Eric. Bam – everything’s different.”
Pop culture also played a role in Tyler’s success. As with most businesses, Stagecoach endured some lean years in the beginning. Then in 2004 the film Sideways sparked a huge boom for the local wine industry. Wine tasting blossomed from a niche activity for connoisseurs to a trendy activity for the masses. Stagecoach took off. “When business became hot I realized, I can do this, I can really make a good living at this”, Tyler says. “And I’ve never had to work in an office again.”