Faces of Whipplewood 2

“Nothing is easy. You work hard.

You strive. Every day is going to be a challenge.”

Plumb Marketing

Lynndell Epp

FACES OF WHIPPLEWOOD

A Product of

Learn how how Plumb Marketing’s team worked hard, strove for success and turned daily challenges into winning solutions.

M

eet owner Lynndell Epp.

He’s 43, grew up on a

Nebraska farm, moved to

Colorado in 1991 to study biology and Biblical studies, then stumbled into a career in marketing that has evolved

from a basement mailing operation into a successful multi-pronged endeavor that

employs 18 people and is always looking for the next growth opportunity. A father of two who loves the outdoors, he also serves on the board of their school, Littleton Preparatory Charter.

And meet Shara Hubert, vice president

of sales and marketing. She’s 37, born and raised in Fort Collins, passionate

Lynndell Epp, President

about business since she was little. She worked her way through the hospitality and construction industries to find

a niche in business development. A

mother of two, the Highlands Ranch resident joined Lynndell’s team four years ago.

Plumb Marketing provides marketing,

printing, mailing, fulfillment and

market asset management services

from its sleek gray-and-orange office

and warehouse at 2820 S. Zuni St. in Englewood.

Its motto — “Straight to Sweet

Results” — promises “streamlined

solutions that go straight to the heart of Shara Hubert, Vice President of Sales and Marketing see PLUMB, p3

Text by Ann Macari Healey • Photos by Paul DiSalvo

2

The Plumb Marketing production crew kicks off the day with their “9 at 9” meeting. The crew meets for nine minutes to start the day at 9 a.m. to review the day’s objectives. From left: Rick Dublin, Gary Trujillo, Lynndell Epp, Kevin Rurup, Matt Thomas, Dan Shaver and Kathy Pino.

Plumb

prize — to really care for our customers ...

different businesses. So I think business just

We believe in marketing and we believe our

ended up being something I was interested

marketing can help make those businesses

the matter” while “sweetening your bottom

more extraordinary.”

in. It didn’t matter as much what the busi-

FROM PAGE 2

living on my own terms. And I didn’t really

line along the way.”

But for Epp, his wife Briana, general manager of business operations, Hubert and the rest of his team, the bottom line is really all about caring for the customer. And the strategy must work: The business celebrates the start of its 21st year in August 2017.

At Plumb, “there is this internal focus of ‘Hey, how can we care for one another?’ ” Lynndell says. “But, ultimately, without the

ness was as opposed to wanting to make a have a degree that lent itself well to a par-

Lynndell, you attended Colorado Christian College, pursuing a pre-med path

and considering dentistry, chiropractic or other health care fields. What happened

ticular kind of vocation. So that’s how it kind of started for me.

Why the move from Nebraska?

to lead you down another road?

That was very formative, obviously, Unless you’re going to become an MD and work at a hospital, you’re probably going to just own your own business. I thought that for four or five years of my life and

client there is no caring for one another.

several hundred thousand bucks and busi-

So we have to really have the eye on the

ness startup costs — I could do all kinds of

growing up on a farm, living in a very small town ... I graduated with 32 kids and I went to school with probably 28 of them from kindergarten on. So that’s a little weird, you see PLUMB, p4

3

Plumb FROM PAGE 3

know? I remember in the seventh grade: OK, I’m out of here. This is it. I’m not going to

farm; I am not going to live here. I want to

do something else. I think from that point on I was a “short-timer.”

What did you take with you from small-town life?

Growing up on a farm, you learn work

ethic ... I’m probably not very good at it any more, but I welded an entire trailer. When you grow up that way, you just learn how to do stuff, from learning how to work to

Kim Pheng Kor sets up the inserter to insert letters into envelopes.

raising crops. I raised cattle and that’s how I

paid for my school ... Over the years, I prob-

ably saved $10,000 or $15,000 from the time I was in the sixth grade. I started out with

4-H and I always showed cattle ... maybe through my sophomore year.

older than me — they’re twins. And then we

part. It was a way to give back and to help.

foster kids in the house from the time I was

... It’s good therapy — not to be distracted

had lots of foster kids growing up. We had in second grade up through my freshman or sophomore year in high school. It was

always a houseful. My parents just wanted Your family life was a bit unusual, wasn’t it?

I have sisters that are six or seven years

to help people. They saw a need out there. I think they were just called to do that ... The kids we took in — they came from some

very interesting circumstances for the most

We had a farm and it was kind of out there by stuff. Nature does a lot ... and learning a little bit about how to work and how to

do things at a young age can help you your whole life.

How did you get started

with your first business?

To pay my way through college — and to

live — I painted houses. I had an uncle who did that and so I worked for him. I rented

a house from a guy. He had a really small

mailing operation in his basement. He would go to Arizona, sometimes for a few weeks

in the winter, here and there. I would handle all the operation for him. I would go to his

house and take care of some of his weekly clients. So I learned a little bit about that

mailing business through that experience.

Then my uncle introduced me to another

guy who had a very similar operation. He Marie Vigil completes inserting, sealing and metering a run of invoices for a client. see PLUMB, p5

4

I started reading. I probably have a master’s degree, if not better, in marketing just from what I’ve taught myself. There is so much good material out there from very smart

marketers, people who have done it for their own companies, people that sell that kind

of product and service. I’ve been to a lot of

marketing seminars, and as I was looking at

what people were using us for, it was mostly marketing, about 70 percent.

There’s so much more to marketing than

coming up with the tactile delivery method.

Presenting the marketing to the person — whether it’s web marketing, face-to-face

marketing, handing out fliers or direct mail —are all just tactics to get the message to Gonzalo Garcia-Betran works on an ecommerce product fulfillment project.

someone. The real challenge becomes figur-

Plumb

the right time is to present that information.

FROM PAGE 4

How did your business evolve from a basement operation?

was a little younger, a little more with it ... He had his operation in his basement, too. He wanted to move back to California and he

was interested in selling the company. I said, ‘Well, I’m interested in buying the company.

I’ll come work for you for three months. If

I see there are customers, that I can make

money at it, that I can figure out how to do

it, then we’ll come up with some kind of arrangement and I’ll buy it from you.’

We were strictly a mailing service — peo-

ple would bring stuff in and we would mail

it out. Letters, postcards, communications, marketing, whatever. Some billing, some

correspondence ... all large-volume business mail for the most part.

With mailing comes the next evolution —

printing. ‘Can you just handle that printing for us?’ customers would ask. ‘Well, sure,

So that’s what we did. I bought the

company from him and I moved it into a

1,400-square-foot office warehouse. That

was in ’96. Maybe three years later, we took

the space next to us and doubled our space

to 2,800 square feet. In 2003, we moved into a new 11,000-square-foot building, which we ended up purchasing. And in 2016 we moved here to 23,000 square feet. We’ve

we can handle the printing.’ So we used a

moves.

I encourage our marketing clients to focus more attention on the prospect persona

and the messaging that will resonate before

deciding how they are going to get the mes-

sage in front of the prospect. That makes for far more successful marketing efforts.

An acquisition back in 2010 got us into

fulfillment. Now we’re doing direct mail,

printing, product fulfillment and creating

websites for larger companies to house and manage all their marketing collateral.

The marketing collateral stores help man-

lot of vendors — and we still do. But having

agers, staff and outside partners procure

much time. You couldn’t be competitive on

need them. They can log into their store

internally. I didn’t want to become a tradi-

their trade show. They can get customized

available — so much of what we do is mail

items we may be storing for them in our

vendors handle printing inevitably took too

the marketing items they need, when they

price. Finally, we had to bring some of that

to customize and order 100 brochures for

tional printer because there is plenty of that

business cards, promotional items or any

and variable and digital printing.

warehouse. We house products here. When

acquired a couple of companies along the way, which has precipitated some of the

ing out what the prospect wants and when

they order them, we pack and ship them out

From there, I probably got sidetracked

with boredom and really got into marketing.

see PLUMB, p6

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Plumb FROM PAGE 5

or we print them on demand as needed ...

We did an acquisition that kind of got us

into that, as well as product fulfillment, like mini-Amazon — so if you have products

you want to sell online, you can store your products here. Orders come in daily; we ship them out.

From there, I always have done a little

marketing consulting. But when Shara

came on that helped propel us to do more.

Is there a philosophy

behind good growth?

Kathy Pino packs orders for an ecommerce product fulfillment customer.

I think over the last multiple years we’ve

Shara: It’s important to be visible — I

also been good at taking doses of our own

am out in the community a lot. But my real

medicine. We rebranded the company.

cally, the areas of sales and marketing in

learning what we’re really good at in spaces

something that can help a company grow?

gotten better at telling our story to our cli-

passion is around strategy and, specifi-

We’ve gone through these processes of

a business: How do you functionally build

and also what we’re not good at. We’ve

ent base and our prospective client base.

We’re really good at executing marketing — I wanted to be able to work with a team

whether it’s sending a mail piece out, a print

who really wanted to grow. One of the

piece out, getting your product in the hands

been working with this team and knowing

so you can communicate with your client

horizon and the next move. We really do

done in a more effective and more efficient

and create a really cool company along

ing times, but it’s been fun to watch the

things that has been so fun for me has

of the consumers, or providing you a plan

we’re looking at the next business on the

base. We can help you get your marketing

want to make an impact on the community

way ... We’ve had some definitive challeng-

the way.

evolution.

Like anything else in business, when

you’re acquiring companies and rebranding companies there’s a lot of moving

parts and pieces. That’s the fun part ... But

pieces you’re dealing with, you realize how hard change can be for your people.

6

... Through the years I have developed an enormous passion for entrepreneurship. I

think it’s one of the hardest jobs out there. A large percentage of our economies is fueled by entrepreneurs. They take the leap that

many others will not in starting and grow-

ing a business, and it’s not an easy road ...

But they support jobs and they support our communities. It’s something I’m very passionate about — being able to hone in on

things like a company’s vision and developing processes in business. It’s so important

to focus on strategies to grow and continually learn how to get better, because at the end of the day, you don’t know what you don’t know.

Lynndell: I have put everything back in

Lynndell: But, if we’re not growing we are

this business for the most part. I just don’t

grow and move and change, that’s what I’m

to grow, you’ve got to invest in that, and it

dying. I can’t sit still for very long. I want to all about.

that also inherently means change. And

the more people you have, and the more

passionate about seeing businesses grow

Shara: Coming from a background out

of the restaurant industry and moving into sales positions early on, I became very

know any other way to do it. If you want

takes people and resources to make that

happen. I think that’s the only way you get better.

see PLUMB, p7

Plumb FROM PAGE 6

How would you describe the company’s culture?

Lynndell: We have a couple things in our

vision statement: We really care about our team members and we want to operate in

such a way that we think about our team in

all the decisions that we make. In addition to that, we also are thinking about the success of our clients. And we want all of our clients to be more successful with the marketing that we help them execute.

Gary Trujillo trims and scores a printed document.

So there is this internal focus of ‘Hey, how

can we care for one another?’ But, ulti-

mately, without the client there is no caring for one another. So we have to really have

sequently allows us to all get involved and come up with better solutions rather than thinking we each have to figure it out.

the eye on the prize — to really care for our customers ... We believe in marketing and we believe our marketing can help make those businesses more extraordinary.

Lynndell: That’s been a big change over

the years. We’ve really built a management team. It used to be more or less just me

... but now we’re developing a culture of We want to work with visionary compa-

nies as well ... somebody who has an eye on

encouraging people to be autonomous and allowing people to make decisions.

evolving ... not just doing things the same

old way. We know we will find more success with that mindset in a potential client.

And I rarely say ‘I.’ At least I try not to.

be the most important position on the field.

But, quite honestly, you’re only as good as the rest of the people with you.

How do you achieve the best work?

going to be better than one. So that con-

I’ve played guitar since I was in third

grade. I’m not doing anything with that now.

I played in a church band for 15 years, but I

retired. I always wanted to grow up and be a

rock star — all I ended up doing was playing in church.

So I just fiddle around now. I have a cheap

guitar that sits up in the living room. I’ll play

help you accomplish your goals? How can

cal. My kids are in musicals — they do lots

you’re trying to accomplish? How can we we help you develop your plan?

When you’re not working ...

Lynndell: I like the outdoors, mountain

biking, skiing, hiking, four-wheeling. I just love the outdoors. I did a fair amount of

road biking this summer. We went camping a bunch. We took a nice, long road trip.

Shara: Collaboratively, five minds are

and that was absolutely cool.

Also, by focusing on the client: What is it

It’s like being on a football team. You’re one guy. I might be the quarterback — it might

Idaho and we camped in all those places —

it every now and then. We’re all very musi-

of shows. Briana has done a lot of performing so she helped the kids get into it. We’re all into some kind of athletics as well.

We have pretty diverse interests — none

of us are honed into one thing. I think none of my family is extremely excellent at one

thing, but we enjoy a lot of things and we can pretty much get along in any circle.

We went to Wyoming and Yellowstone and

Grand Teton. We went up to Glacier National Park. We have family up in Washington and

see PLUMB, p8

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The entire staff gets together for a group photo in the conference room of Plumb Marketing, 2820 S. Zuni St., Englewood.

Plumb FROM PAGE 7

Shara: I’m actively involved

in the community with a cou-

ple of things. I run a network-

problems and I get to another level — whether it is a sales

problems that you didn’t know

Plumb Marketing first began working with WhippleWood CPAs in 2011. The marketing firm has since become a favorite of Kim Esely, WhippleWood’s director of client services.

juggle myriad elements to ensure financial efficiency — including several reviews throughout the year — and, most importantly, they are always looking to the future.

So the only thing I know is

“I just think they’re great,” Esely says.

‘We try to be proactive with people in their business transactions so when they’re planning for five years, 10 years, exit planning or retirement,” the structures are in place, Esely says. “You have to plan far in advance.”

level or an organizational level — there’s a whole new set of would happen.

ing organization here in town, an executive connections group that’s based around the game of golf called Corporate Tee Box. That takes some time on the weekends. I also sit on a non-profit board for Veteran’s Passport to Hope.

Between that and the kids it keeps me occupied!

that when we get to where we want to go ... there are

going to be a whole bunch of problems that were solved,

but I’m going to have a whole bunch of new problems.

(Laughs.) It’s never perfect. It never works out the way you

thought it would. We’re not a Looking back and looking forward ...

Facebook IPO. Everything we ever achieve or accomplish is going to be through hard

work. I don’t foresee us doing Lynndell: I can remember,

out of college when I first

started, that if I just make $36,000 a year then I am

some kind of home run: “Oh, my gosh, we’ve made it and now we’ve got 100 million bucks.”

going to be loaded. It never works out the way that you think it’s going to. The one thing that I’ve realized is that when I’ve overcome one set of

8

A TRUSTED RELATIONSHIP

I think we’re going to have

measured success throughout time. And I think that’s the way it is for most people.

Plumb owner Lynndell Epp thinks the same of WhippleWood.

“WhippleWood has helped our company get to the next level in terms of financial organization and reporting,” Epp said. “We view them as a trusted advisor who we can count on to provide us advice and direction on financial matters from taxes to acquisitions.”

The firm provides a range of services to Plumb Marketing that go beyond the usual ones provided by accounting firms.

Plumb is a somewhat cyclical company in terms of projects and business, Esely notes. It’s also continually updating or incorporating new equipment for its various endeavors. And it also has acquired a number of businesses over the years.

That means Esely and her staff

WhippleWood also works with the company to maximize processes and procedures for employees, she adds.

But, for Esely, the partnership is more than just about business.

It’s really a family-like collaboration of care.

“We really want to work with them — and their advisers and their bankers and their business consultants,” she says. “We just all have to work together and . . . we want to be part of this trusted relationship.”

They are.

Said Epp: “We have incredible confidence in our partnership.”