Bill Johnston
📍 Black Mountain, NC | Entrepreneur, founder and president of Recover Brands
📝 Editor’s Note
As members of the paper product industry, our household inspects Christmas Cards like Patrick Bateman inspects business cards. Paper weight, font, and color choices are all meticulously reviewed.
This year we started a new tradition with the Christmas cards we receive. My wife picked up this idea from a family friend. Instead of simply placing cards in a bowl, we are now using a 3 inch ring clip and a hole punch to put all the cards together. This makes it easy to flip through and also allows us to bring out the cards from each year on an on-going basis.
PS for those of you in Raleigh and Greensboro - make sure you stop by If Its Paper for all your last second gifting and holiday prep needs!
Without further ado….
Why Bill?
Bill came recommended by Mary Stuart*. I first met Bill several years ago when he lived with one of my closest friends in Charlotte. Bill is an outdoorsman and founder of a successful and environmentally sustainable company called Recover Brands
Follow Bill on Instagram @johnstonxbilly and @recoverbrands
*please let me know if you have someone in mind who would make a great profile.
Self-Description
Outgoing introvert who loves working hard, spending as much time as possible outside, and is always searching for a good cup of coffee.
Bills’ Recommendations
Written in his own words…
Content
I’ve been listening to the Founders Podcast a lot lately. I love history and reading biographies and autobiographies, and this podcast does an awesome job of sharing stories and lessons from leaders of the past and present. I find a lot of inspiration in these stories and it’s a great way to provoke ideas that apply to your own life.
Note - Bill recommends listening to episode #265 on Steve Jobs
Digital Tool
I've been using Pimsleur for language training. I travel to Central America a lot for work and this app is really useful right before a trip to help polish up the Spanish since it doesn't get a lot of practice otherwise. I like the app because it's designed to be used as a basic conversational tool, so if you're traveling to a country where you don't know the language, you can spend a few weeks on Pimsleur and at least get the basics down.
Well-Being
Get outside.
Even if you can only fit in a 30 minute run (or walk) being outside will do wonders for your well being and can be an incredible outlet. I’m an avid mountain biker and trail runner (road too) and that time outside is as important for me mentally as it is physically. Personally, I always like to have a few races on my calendar to train for throughout the year. I find the training to be therapeutic and it helps keep me disciplined in other areas of my life. For instance, if I have a marathon in 8 weeks, I know I have to get up early to get in long runs, which then translates to a more focus and productivity in my work and personal life.
Food and Drink
Black Mountain, North Carolina
I'll share some food and drink recs from my hometown of Black Mountain in case anyone is visiting the area. For a town of 8,000 people we have some world class stuff:
Dynamite Coffee: They found the beans.
Taco Billy: Best tacos around, breakfast and lunch.
Grange Foothills: I'd put this burger up against any burger in the game.
Cousins Cafe: Authentic Cuban food for breakfast and lunch.
Pure and Proper: Dinner date spot
The Bush: super vibey South African theme - I prefer to drink here, but the food is pretty good too
Music
While I'm on a roll of talking about my hometown, I'll go ahead and mention Floating Action. They have been one of my favorite bands for a long time and we've been lucky enough to have them play a couple shows at Recover. Lo-fi Carolina funk is how it's been described.. go ahead and give it a listen on Spotify, and better yet, buy an album!
Travel
Wrong Way Cabins and Campground
I love traveling but since I’m plugging WNC I’m going to keep my recommendation close to home. If you’re visiting the Asheville area, Wrong Way Cabins and Campground is an awesome place to stay. The property has 16 A-Frame cabins located alongside the French Broad river and is centrally located to enjoy everything Asheville has to offer. It’s also the perfect combination of outdoor and luxury so everyone can enjoy it.
Plug
I’m part owner of an outdoor furniture company called Blue Ridge Chair Works. All of our products are handmade in Western North Carolina and have a timeless look and feel. They are perfect for the backyard, beach, mountains, festival, or wherever you need to take a seat. I’m happy to offer a 20% discount to all Rambull readers, just code ‘Rambull’ at checkout - blueridgehair.com
Want to get in touch with Bill? Email him at bill@recoverbrands.com
P.S. make sure you check out Bill’s company recover brands. Bill’s company sources and produces environmentally and socially responsible custom apparel. If you have plans to create custom shirts for your business or project, consider using Bill’s company.
