LimeCuda just celebrated our 10 year anniversary, read more and see some interesting stats.

I watched the founding of LimeCuda 10 years ago from afar. I was working at a CPA firm in Macon, GA when Blake and a friend from College, founded LimeCuda as part of a business plan class / competition. Blake has a great history of the LimeCuda biz plan competition win here.

Blake and I met during our early high school (translate: awkward) years and became close friends. We worked building Mountain Laurel Railings and doing construction / renovation in Murphy, NC.

My Early Years

In 2010 I started doing "web design" by helping my then girlfriend (now wife) with a website for her photography business. The coolest thing I had done was click "Publish" on my new Macbook's iWeb. The whole world could now see something I had created.

I had seen the work Blake was doing but didn't realize there was overlap with what I was doing. He started with a focus on "SEO" and those letters meant nothing to me. When he realized my interest in the web, he pushed me to check out this WordPress thing. I did and it became a slowly building love.

I Was A Little Naive

After doing a few projects, I naively thought "I can do this" and went full-time, self-employed at the end of 2011. I was mistaken.

As a newlywed trying to support a family in an industry and skill with which I had little experience, I floundered. I made a couple hundred dollars a month while cutting my teeth at a theme shop, web customization shop, a marketing agency, and finally a large plugin / enterprise agency.

It was a long, hard battle that we like to refer to as my "college" years for this industry. It was a real school of hard knocks as I learned what it meant to not only do the work we do but also manage clients, proposals, contracts, cash-flow - everything, on my own.

Joining LimeCuda

Throughout this time, Blake and I always stayed in touch and worked together on many projects. I was a contractor and LimeCuda was one of my freelance clients.

Blake and I have known each other since we were 14. We started working for his dad early on and had a very independent work ethic at that time. We've always had an ability to lean into each other and naturally push each other up and along whenever needed.

We already talked like an old, married couple with the best sort of open communication, and frank crotchety banter. So, we had the discussion in 2016 and decided to get hitched as partners in business.

Pushing the LimeCuda brand forward had already been my priority for a while. All my relationships and work became LimeCuda's. Our mutual interests and skills complemented so well, I knew it was the best decision for me even before I became an owner / partner.

What We've Learned

Personally, and with LimeCuda, the last 10 years have brought some hard times as well as profitable times. We've been able to watch companies rise and fall around us and learn from those experiences.

There have been several decisions that I think have been critical to our survival:

It would be naive to believe there aren't many more lessons to be learned. But, I'm excited about the next 10 years and what the new decade has in store - good or bad.