Meet Caroline and Chris Tucker | Business Owners of Caroline’s Custom Impressions and One Dapper Gent

We had the good fortune of connecting with Caroline and Chris Tucker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Caroline and Chris, is there a quote or affirmation that’s meaningful to you?
“If people aren’t laughing at your dreams, then you’re not dreaming big enough.” I love this quote because I’ve seen that “you must be crazy” look in friends’, family’s, strangers’ eyes so many times when we talked about starting a business, quitting our office jobs, buying rental properties, or building a custom house. People would tell us “that’s going to be really hard” as if it was supposed to be some kind of deterrent. I guess I’m fortunate that Chris and I both have always had a sense of wanting more for ourselves and our life together. We’re always looking to take that next step, whether it’s growing the business, looking for our next investment, working toward early retirement, or planning a new adventure. We’ve had some big dreams, but we’ve also worked hard to achieve them. I don’t think we’ll ever stop having dreams in our heads to work toward!

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

We own two engraving businesses – Caroline’s Custom Impressions (CMT Impressions) and One Dapper Gent. Both sell engraved gift items. CMT Impressions focuses more on weddings and other special occasions. One Dapper Gent focuses on more luxury/stylish items for men. We’re a small husband and wife owned business that works from our home in Gilbert. We love that we get to bring people’s visions to life for their loved ones. We get to be a part of people’s life stories through creating mementos for weddings, graduations, anniversaries, memorials, and more.

The ideas to start the business was sparked when we were planning our own wedding, shopping for gifts for our wedding party We hadn’t planned for it to become a full-time job. It was just a side hustle for spending money, travel, etc. For two years, I came home from my 9-5 job and worked on the business. I didn’t plan for it to take over my full-time job, but as the business continued to grow, I simply didn’t have time to do both anymore. I made the decision to quit my job and fully dedicate my energy to the business. With full time effort, the business continued to grow and Chris quit his office job six months later.

It is probably the hardest thing we’ve ever done. Running any business is so much more than just interacting with customers, taking and processing orders. Product development and marketing is extremely tedious and time consuming. The market is constantly changing, so we constantly have to adapt with it. Then there’s all the “administrative duties” (bookkeeping, etc). There’s really no such thing as a day off. With everything being online, we’re able to connect with customers 24/7/365 from anywhere in the world. Like any job, there are days where you just don’t feel like doing it. There are days we experience failure. There are days business is so slow we start to worry about our long-term success. Those are the times we really have to talk ourselves into preserving, not giving up, continuing to grind. Our success rides fully on how much effort we put in. We depend solely on ourselves, so we have to put in the work even on the days when we don’t want to.

At the end of the day, I just want to be viewed as someone who is genuine, someone who keeps her word, who treats people kindly, who is willing to lend a helping hand, someone who inspires others to work hard and achieve their dreams. I want that to come through in the pieces I create for customers and the way I operate my business.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

Admittedly, we don’t go out to restaurants and big events a whole lot, but we do have some favorite local spots. We enjoy taking visitors to Queen Creek Olive Mill. They have such a quaint, cozy outdoor space and so many yummy foods, beverages, and desserts. Not to mention all the other neat items they sell. I also really love the Coffee Shop in Agritopia as well as Garage East. They have kind of a small town feel in the middle of a big city. I also really love good Mexican food. Two of my favorites are La Parilla Suiza and Moreno’s Mexican Grill.

One of the things I love most about living in Arizona is how different it can be by just driving a few hours. I’m not a big foodie or great at planning to attend events, but I do love the natural beauty our state has to offer. In the valley, I’d say take a hike in the Superstition Mountains, kayak on Salt River or a local lake. Take a short drive to Sedona and explore some hikes like Devil’s Bridge, the Subway tunnel, Oak Creek Canyon, or Slide Rock. Visit the Mogollon Rim and enjoy the incredible views. I also love Inner Basin in Flagstaff in the fall when all the aspen trees have amazing golden leaves. Of course, the Grand Canyon is amazing too. I really suggest hiking or rafting it to fully appreciate it.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
To our friends, Kerry and Jason (also business owners) who spent so much time talking to us about growing a business, encouraging us to go all in, and mentoring us along the way.

Website: etsy.com/shop/cmtimpressions

Instagram: cmtimpressions_

Other: One Dapper Gent: etsy.com/shop/onedappergent onedapgent.com Instagram: one_dappergent