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Uncommon Pineapple with Kevin Kuhlow
0 Playsin 6 hours
Phillip Ramsey and Kevin Kuhlow explore unconventional paths to wealth and success through captivating stories and entrepreneurial ventures. Kevin shares his transition from a corporate career at Wells Fargo to pioneering sustainable initiatives in Guatemala with 4Ocean and his current venture into pineapple leaf fiber textiles. The episode delves into resilience, seizing unexpected opportunities, and the challenges of navigating cultural shifts. Kevin's journey reflects the importance of embracing risk and being comfortable with discomfort, offering listeners insights into transforming personal and professional lives through uncommon choices.
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Transcript
Introduction to Uncommon Wealth Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Everyone dreams of living an uncommon life, and the best asset you have to achieve your dreams is you. Welcome to the Uncommon Wealth Podcast.
00:00:12
Speaker
We're going to introduce you to people who are living uncommonly. We're also going to give you some tools and strategies for building wealth and for pursuing an uncommon path that is uniquely right for you.
Meet Kevin Kulo and His Journey
00:00:27
Speaker
Hello and welcome everybody to another episode of the Uncommon Wealth Podcast where I'm your host, Philip Ramsey. Today we have a guest, not only any guest, a special guest, special guest in my heart, the person that has ah got me out of a lot of pickles. And when I say pickles, I mean on the football field. This used to be my favorite receiver.
00:00:45
Speaker
on the team would be on my left side all the time. And his favorite route to do was a comeback. Do you know what that is? You probably don't, but it was number five in our heart and our favorite one. Kevin Kulo, welcome to the show, my man. thank so Thanks for having me. I appreciate you.
00:01:03
Speaker
Absolutely. So we're going to get, we're going cover a lot, but we're going to end the plane, land the plane, and it's going to be pineapple leaf fiber. You got to be kidding me, right? No, we're not. Uh, we aren't kidding. And, uh, we're going to talk about the breadcrumbs that led Kevin Kulo down this route and where he's headed. And my whole point, and I've talked to Kevin about this before is, um, I want to encourage you to say like,
00:01:29
Speaker
at some point in this uncommon journey, you have to take a risk. And these risks are either going to be good or they're going to be bad, but they're going to continue down this path. And you really never know where they're going to end up. And I'm pretty sure when Kevin and I were in high school and I asked him what he wanted to do, he really didn't know he was going to be doing the pineapple leaf fiber.
00:01:51
Speaker
Okay. I don't think he would have said that. but yet he's doing that and doing it at an amazing level and he's not in kansas anymore he's not in the states oh no he married somebody in guatemala don't you know daniela they've been married for seven years and they are awesome i've got to have lunch with them here in the states was so fun i've met her we're going to talk a little about it i should stop talking because it's your show kevin culo what the heck my first question What do you think of when I say uncommon wealth? Like, how would you define uncommon wealth in your words?
00:02:28
Speaker
Not following the regular path, I would say. i would say i think that's a great definition. I think I should start every show with that. I i haven't. But i like moving forward, I think this is how we're going to start it. But okay, so in high school, what did you think you wanted to do?
00:02:46
Speaker
i I just knew that I wanted to retire it someday in the Caribbean. is Seriously. Yeah. i don't remember this. Yeah. i um Back in the day when you joined Facebook, I had all those 10 question questionnaires, you know, and actually my wife found it one day on the, on Facebook and 2010,
00:03:07
Speaker
I put, I want to retire in the Caribbean. here Really? Dang. That's a long time ago. You've been in Guatemala for eight years, married to Daniela for seven years. Correct. But okay, I want to go back because we we're not there yet. We're not quite there yet. Okay.
From Privileged Childhood to Professional Success
00:03:23
Speaker
Don't get excited on me. Okay, so let's talk about just your growing up and like your parents and then your your father tragically passed away. I want to hear how that just impacted you as an individual. I don't think I've ever really asked you that. So why wouldn't I do that while we're recording? You know, I don't know.
00:03:43
Speaker
Well, Philip, I would say i had probably one of the amazing childhoods, I would say, but I really didn't. I would say I always tell people this. My parents stacked the deck for me, gave me a Royal flush, but I drew three more cards. Mm-hmm.
00:04:03
Speaker
When I look back, some of those and you i discarded some of this part of three and grab three more. Okay. And i always tell people that like looking back, they really laid a good foundation in my life. I just didn't take advantage of it.
00:04:16
Speaker
I always wanted more. Yeah. So tell me why you think that was and what exactly like you mean? I don't know. Maybe cause I was a spoiled brat or something like that. i don't know. But, um,
00:04:30
Speaker
i I cherish it now. I try to, at least. And like you said, my dad passed away. That just crushed me. Sure. Yeah. Right. It's still hard today.
00:04:41
Speaker
Absolutely. Yeah. Absolutely. I remember, this is a fun story. We used to go to the Urban Dale Country Club and we would go swimming. Mario Sherada, Kevin Kulo and I, We never got kicked out. We should have, but we never did, uh, got kicked out there. And I just remember knowing like, dude, Kevin's a special guy and what he's going to do with his life is going to be pretty impactful. And that has been the case. So let's flash forward and you meet Daniela. Did you, where did you go to college?
00:05:11
Speaker
how it I went to college for one year in Mount St. Clair and Clinton, Iowa on a soccer scholarship actually. huh And after one year, i didn't really, ah go to class.
00:05:25
Speaker
i I should say. sure And then I went to second year at Indian Hills community college that just like the basic, uh, um, classes. Yep. then my dad actually pulled me out and, you know, forced me to work with him in the real estate industry and 2000 and what would that be? 2002, 2003.
00:05:46
Speaker
Okay. So I got my and and ah real estate license, Didn't really, you know, what what's what's the word I'm looking for? ah But I just didn't, you know, grab onto it, right? Yeah, I didn't connect. was all around the Ozarks. He was building a really good foundation for himself in the Ozarks. He did a lot of real estate development in Johnston and West Des Moines.
00:06:11
Speaker
And then he really focused on the Ozarks. He did a bunch of projects in the Ozarks around 2005 to 2007. That's where i lived and the oars with him Really? And then I moved back to Iowa in 2007.
00:06:25
Speaker
Just had some odd end jobs, you know, really didn't like, I don't know. Nothing stuck. Yeah, nothing stuck. And... and When my dad passed away, my lifeline was gone, right?
00:06:36
Speaker
my My paycheck, right? your Safety net. Yep. And it really forced me to, okay, life is real. I have to support myself.
00:06:47
Speaker
I can't rely on my parents anymore. So my mom actually moved back to Iowa shortly after my dad passed away and got a job at Wells Fargo. okay And after a year or so at Wells Fargo, she's like, Kevin, I think you need like, ah you know, learn a little bit more about the corporate life, you know, get that foundation, you know.
00:07:08
Speaker
Right. And so I applied at Wells Fargo, just an entry level position. And within 12 to 18 months, I was at almost an executive level. You know, I really applied myself.
00:07:20
Speaker
Sure. That's the word I was looking for. I never applied myself. But with this job, I was like, this is it or I don't know what's going to happen. So I really like... First one there in the morning, last one to leave.
00:07:31
Speaker
ah When was lunch break, I didn't go out with the team. I walked around, introduced myself to higher level managers, started having lunches with them.
00:07:42
Speaker
yeah And they really saw like so my performance. my performance i was I was one of the best at what I did, which was handling all the loan documentation after the mortgage application was submitted.
00:07:56
Speaker
Sure. So getting getting them to the finish line. But super encouraging. yeah You applied yourself and you were getting traction. Like that's super encouraging because you really hadn't had that in ah in a corporate business setting. Exactly.
Life Changes and Moving to Guatemala
00:08:10
Speaker
but you did in the football field, which is funny because we're always trying to chase that, right? Like, i don't know.
00:08:16
Speaker
Exactly. um And I was one of the best and they saw that. And with those... not taking lunch breaks, introducing myself, putting myself out there, being comfortable while being uncomfortable. And and that's what I still apply that today.
00:08:34
Speaker
Exactly. ah You know, just I love being uncomfortable. I love trying to figure out my figure out the way to navigate through yeah tough decisions or tough moments in life. You know, yeah like I said, I, there's days where it's still hard. I don't want to get out of bed because my dad passed away. He was sure.
00:08:53
Speaker
You know, I really put that on my shoulders of the reason. I don't know why I do this, but you know, I've maybe it was the way I was living, You know, it I felt that's why he passed away. Maybe i know I had that guilt, but, um, you know, just power through it. You know, I just try to power through it and just remember what I've learned at Las Fargo. And I have a great, I have that great foundation, you know, being held accountable growing up. I was never held accountable.
00:09:25
Speaker
oh Um, and And Wells Fargo really, I always cherish those days in Wells Fargo. I met a lot of great people. I still talk to a lot of them today.
00:09:38
Speaker
They helped me out a lot during a tough time. um and And yeah, like Wells Fargo really gave me that foundation. you know and And I was with them for six years, a little over six years. And then...
00:09:53
Speaker
Okay. And then what? There you go. Four oceans? Well, during, during ah the last year or so, i met Daniela in Iowa. Is that true? Okay. I do know this story. Tell the listeners this, cause this is great.
00:10:08
Speaker
So I met Daniela in Iowa. She was here here. She was there in September 2017. She has a sister that lives in Casey, Iowa. Okay.
00:10:20
Speaker
Back in the day, Daniela came to Iowa to learn better English. So she was pretty much put on an Amish farm in the middle of nowhere. ah Speak English. that was say Thou was say no.
00:10:37
Speaker
And so she came back to Iowa in September of 2017 because she was put as the godmother of her sister's baby. Okay. It's a big deal. The Tinder app it was a success. to Tinder. But she was using Tinder for another reason.
00:10:57
Speaker
Oh. Meeting people. Sure. She didn't know the American culture of using Tinder. We don't use it we well we use it to meet people. but In a different way.
00:11:07
Speaker
In a different way. Right. Right. Um, she wouldn't let me kiss her. She barely let me hug her. And, and, uh, didn't really give her a good first impression that, that, that first night.
00:11:21
Speaker
So I wrote her and I said, Hey, I want to give me another opportunity. I want to take you out to nice places, you know, whatever. So I took her on three great dates And then we ended up having an argument on the last date.
00:11:36
Speaker
This was the first week of October of 2017. And then we stopped talking. What was the argument about? You know, the listeners are thinking, I just ask the questions that they're thinking.
00:11:48
Speaker
Okay. Well, I think there was just a little bit too much liquid going down, you know? Okay. Yep. Yep. All right. Gotcha. Gotcha. um And then January of 2018, I just came back from Bali, Indonesia.
00:12:01
Speaker
I took a job promotion with Wells Fargo that I wasn't really happy with. And i was just like, what am I going to, i want to move to Thailand, you know, I'm just saying, I'm going to move to Thailand with buddies. yeah and it's gonna be great Yeah. And so one day I was laying in bed in January and and I wrote Danielle on WhatsApp and I said, I miss you.
00:12:21
Speaker
Okay. Immediately responded. I miss you too. Oh, little did I know. Well, the third, let's back up a little bit. The third date we were swinging in the hammock and the arm of her sister. Yep. I'm going to swing in and then we we're listening to music and she said, you know, we're going to get married, right?
00:12:43
Speaker
And I stopped the hammock. I stopped the hammock. I didn't say anything. i started swinging the hammock. Maybe, Okay. Yeah. She, when we stopped talking, she came back to Guatemala and she told one of her sisters, she said, I've met the love of my life, but we're not talking anymore.
00:13:03
Speaker
but so good So anyway, so she responded on WhatsApp. I miss you too. And she said, I'm moving to Puerto Barrios, the Caribbean side of Guatemala. Caribbean yeah where I've always wanted to go. Yeah. Right. This is my 10 year plan. This is this is my, yeah yeah yeah yes and i was like, well, I'm actually, I'm actually wanting to move to Thailand, but let's, let's keep talking. i want to come visit you in Guatemala.
00:13:32
Speaker
So March, not working with Las Fargo anymore. Okay. From March until June 4th of 2018, I've sold everything. i sold everything
00:13:46
Speaker
wrote Daniela and said, Hey, I'm going to come see you. I'm away to Thailand. Yep. Can you show me? She's like, yeah, yeah. She's like, can you show me around? And she's like, yeah, Tom went to Guatemala with two suitcases and two laptop bags.
00:14:04
Speaker
That's all of my life. Everything else sold went there for two weeks.
00:14:15
Speaker
I left a suitcase behind, went to Thailand for 45 days. Her nephew, which was 15, 14 15 at the time, passed away in a classroom in high school.
00:14:31
Speaker
Oh, wow. he had He was born with an enlarged heart. Okay. and Wow. But still. You were saying like, you know it was it was managed really well. I just don't know what happened.
00:14:41
Speaker
I remember when I was in Thailand, she like called me crying. and She's like, Chibeto. They call him Chibeto. She said, Chibeto is really sick. And I'm like, just give him some medicine. I don't know what he was sick with. She wasn't really explaining, right?
00:14:54
Speaker
Yeah. Then a week after he passed away in high school and his death. Wow. Wow. So I was in, i was like, ah my plan was to go back to Guatemala anyways for a wedding in August. I was invited to.
00:15:07
Speaker
So this was like July of 2018. And I've talked with my friends and i was like, Hey, I'm at this. I told her, I told him all about the Niela. And, and i was like, I gotta go, but give me an opportunity to come back. And cause we're going to live in a place and stuff like that.
00:15:23
Speaker
Right. Came back in August of 2018. I proposed to her in Lake Atatlan, Guatemala. And then September, October, November, December, January, for six months after we got married.
00:15:39
Speaker
Wow. What'd your mom think about this? Like, she got to be like, what just happened? She always knew I was crazy. like everyone think everyone knew I was a little bit crazy. Right?
00:15:49
Speaker
Yeah, that's great. But I think she also saw that i was actually like following my dreams for once, you know? Yeah, right. I was growing up, my dad and my mom would always call me the dreamer. Yeah. But just never applied myself to get to those dreams. Right. So I think everything just, those breadcrumbs, as you said. Yeah.
00:16:09
Speaker
I just kept following them and Well, breadcrumbs and also being comfortable being uncomfortable is a big deal. Like that's that's a really interesting kind of theme I'm hearing too through this. So you started working for Four Ocean, right? so Yeah. So I ah was living in Guatemala for about a year in the pool eating you know eating fresh fruit, drinking coconut water.
00:16:33
Speaker
And let's just talk about the culture quickly, because it's a whole different kind of culture. And that was something that I really took away from our lunch when I had with you and Daniela is like the culture is you're not in the Midwest anymore. no And like it's very quid pro quo in a lot of places in the world, but Guatemala especially. And so Daniela, like that's all she knows is this this Guatemala life and this quid pro quo, meaning Like I scratch your back and you're going to scratch my back. Like whether you like it or not, I give you a favor and I'm expecting a favor back to you. And I honestly will try to seek out favors in order to get that favor back from you when I need it.
00:17:15
Speaker
And so that was something I really keenly was aware of. The funny thing was like, I feel like that quid pro quo can really, You can use it for harm. Like you can use it and almost like it can be a coercion technique to really put people in a bad spot.
00:17:35
Speaker
Yeah, manipulate it. and And yet, Daniela and her family have not necessarily done that. They have done more serving. And because of that, they are looked highly upon on both sides of the spectrum, meaning standing upright political things, maybe even the other political side that's totally against each other. But I feel like, and this is maybe just me, and again, it was a two-hour lunch, so...
00:18:02
Speaker
you know But I feel like they shoot right down the middle. Like both sides really speak highly, see highly of Daniela and her family, which was interesting. Now you're plugged into that. So you go down, you get married. And this is not your like Spanish.
00:18:18
Speaker
That's not the classes you took in in high school, right? Yeah. but Or we cheated through it.
Kevin's Environmental Mission with 4Ocean
00:18:23
Speaker
Like, let's be really honest. um And now you're married to somebody and your're you're rubbing shoulders with some interesting people.
00:18:32
Speaker
And that's just called Tuesday night at somebody's house. yeah Exactly. I love it. Okay. I just painted the picture. more I love going. But if there's any advice I can give anyone out there, when you travel, stay away from the five-star resorts, all inclusive, because you're just bringing your house to another country and you don't get to experience the culture. Yeah.
00:18:54
Speaker
What helped me was i was already traveling a lot in Asia previously to Guatemala, not in five-star resorts, Airbnbs in the middle of towns, forcing me to,
00:19:05
Speaker
Be in the culture. Yeah, exactly. So that really, to me, so it wasn't really a culture shock coming down to Guatemala. Okay. Yes. Environment's different.
00:19:17
Speaker
like English is the second language. Totally get it from the outside looking in totally get it. But for me, it was not a culture shock because like I said, I was traveling before. So coming down here, you know sitting in the pool, drinking fresh coconut for a month or a year,
00:19:33
Speaker
Living the retired life. i finally said, Daniela, this is super boring. I need to do something. Yeah. She was, she had a hotel business in Puerto Barrios, which is on the Caribbean side of Guatemala at the time. And I was helping her with that.
00:19:47
Speaker
But I was like, I'm really, i get antsy, you know, I i need to, I need to do something. So purpose here. During my time of living in Guatemala for a year, I noticed something, the lack of trash management, which forces a lot of the trash that's not handled responsibly being thrown into ravines and to rivers. And when it's rainy season, all of that trash gets flushed out and ends up on the ocean and the ocean brings it to the coastlines.
00:20:14
Speaker
And I told Daniela, like, has anyone ever came here to solve this problem? And she's like, no, but it's it's our dream for something like that to happen. Okay. And I was like, have you heard of Four Ocean? She's like, of course not. No. And I'm like...
00:20:30
Speaker
I just came back from Bali like ah yeah a year and a half ago and the algorithm in my phone yeah started pulling up 4ocean. 4ocean was born in Bali, but it's a US-based company in Florida.
00:20:44
Speaker
or I was like, huh, elections were coming up. So we we supported the local mayor to win and I was planting seeds. i was like, hey, if I get a company to come to Pert de Barrios to solve this issue. Can you support it?
00:20:55
Speaker
And 4ocean is not NGO. They're for profit. So they have funds to expand in other countries. So I knew that. right So I was acting like 4ocean was already in Guatemala. I was having all these meetings and stuff like that. And I was like... You were an unpaid employee, basically. Yeah. And it was like one of those things where you... If you think about something and then if you talk about it enough...
00:21:21
Speaker
That happens. Sure. So after elections in Guatemala, of June of 2019, I reached out to Four Ocean on Facebook and I said, Hey, I'm in Puerto Barrios. I'm an American. I live in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala. There's a huge trash issue here. Are you guys willing to expand operations? I'd love to support how you guys here to come see the issue. And they said, we will, they responded within a couple minutes.
00:21:47
Speaker
Two days later, i was on the phone with one of the directors for over an hour. wow And they said, we would love to come. We are looking to expand operations, but in Honduras, but we never came to Guatemala. The Rio Matagua is the last 25 kilometers before it enters the ocean is the border of Guatemala and Honduras.
00:22:08
Speaker
and okay the river forms in guatemala city inland so it's about a 400 kilometer river that winds in guatemala it ends up in the ocean and that's one of the most polluted rivers in the world and that's where a lot of the trash comes inland out into the ocean in the area of central america so they gave me all these guidelines that i would have to meet for them even come visit And I was like, this is too much work. Like, what am I getting myself into? yeah yeah
00:22:39
Speaker
But Daniela was like, let's do it. Let's just, let's just have a visit. You know, long story short, that was July of 2019, August 24th of 2019, a month after they came to visit for three days.
00:22:55
Speaker
Like, wow. They were trying to get in Honduras by talking to government officials. In Central America, corruption is a big thing. real It's real. yeah And things take time.
00:23:06
Speaker
We're from the private sector. i was like, I can get you up and going in matter of months. They go back to Florida, and I don't even hear from them for a few few days. And I was like, I reached out to them like, hey, thought the visit went well, whatever. like hey Yeah. Sorry about it. Sorry for the delay. We're just ah negotiating within the company to offer you the position of country manager and legal representative of Four Ocean in Guatemala.
00:23:32
Speaker
That is quickly. Daniela, this is getting too much because I know what's going to take. Yeah. Do all this work and i just want them to come. Yeah. Right. Daniela's like, please don't say no.
00:23:45
Speaker
you have to take the job. a local takes the job, the first wire transfer is gone. And I was like, ugh. So I reached back out to 4ocean and i was like, hey, is the offer still on the table? And they said, yes. What's what's your answer? And I was like, yes. wow so they we got the bank account entity open by October of 2019.
00:24:09
Speaker
And operations were supposed to open around February or March-ish of 2020. Pandemic. Yep. Right. Guatemala closed. closed. Hard stop.
00:24:22
Speaker
For three or four, three months. Right. oh And we needed this one little piece registered of the entity for us to, we could have operated already after the country reopened.
00:24:34
Speaker
We wanted to to do things the right way. So we needed the company registered in the social security and health insurance platform here in Guatemala. So when people are immediately hired, they're covered by health insurance.
00:24:46
Speaker
Yep. So once those offices started opening, I was pounding on them. I'm like, Hey, let's go. what do you guys need? Yes. Uh, So that was May, June of 2020. Okay.
00:24:58
Speaker
okay August 24th of 2020, exactly one year to the day of their first visit, we opened our operations. Oh my goodness. Gotta love it. With and three locals that don't speak English. but I barely even speak a few words of Spanish.
00:25:18
Speaker
Yeah. And i'm the leader of this organization in Guatemala.
00:25:23
Speaker
i can't could just imagine how awesome that was so good ah amazing so from april so august 24th of 2020 to about november already had over 50 employees full-time wow i was doing all doing making some impact right like it was cleaning things up huge i don't think people people have seen videos i would say on the internet of countries having issues with trash on their coastlines and stuff like that, but it's different when you see it in person. There are some points on the beach, Philip. I'm not lying. i'm not over-exaggerating.
00:26:05
Speaker
The mounds of plastic were up to my hip. Unbelievable. Trash. From the distance, it looked like the beaches were covered in a layer of snow.
00:26:17
Speaker
That's how much trash was. That is tragic. Unbelievable. There was decades and decades of trash and no one was doing anything about it.
00:26:29
Speaker
That's like hard to process as an American. No, exactly. Wow. Like unbelievable. It was crazy. So from 2020 until about a year ago, we collected over 4 million pounds of trash and plastic from Guatemala's Caribbean coastlines.
00:26:49
Speaker
We recycled, upcycled, or disposed of everything responsibly. When I say everything, we collected TVs, bumpers of cars, refrigerators, computers, laptops,
00:27:02
Speaker
But the most crazy thing that I saw was the amount of shoes and sandals on the beach. We collected over 500,000 pounds of shoes, sandals, and Crocs.
00:27:15
Speaker
How is that possible, Kevin? It's one of those things where Guatemala and Central America have a lot of those pacas they call, which there are little stores of clothing and stuff like that, and they sell it really cheap.
00:27:28
Speaker
Yeah. it's just one of those things where people wear like one use, or if they don't sell it, they... throw up Throw it to the land the local dump, which most of the local dumps are by streams and rivers. Yeah, right. So it's free, free dumping.
00:27:46
Speaker
And especially when the rain comes, it cleans everything out. It goes away. you have to worry about it. But it goes on the beaches. That's where it ends up. Right. Wow. So I'm proud to say that not one pound went to a back to a dump or landfill.
00:28:00
Speaker
Not unfortunately. Where does it go? You ship it off? So no, everything was recycled or upcycled in country and everything that we couldn't recycle, like styrofoam, shoes, they're like, shoes are tough to recycle because they're made of a lot of different plastics. sure So there's a company, there's a local cement company in Guatemala City where we shipped everything to that used the waste for energy.
00:28:27
Speaker
Okay, burn it. And then, i mean, that's not like the goal of disposing of trash, burning it essentially. But a lot of their emissions were and got to do within like European and American standards. So they weren't like harming the environment as much as you would without those standards.
00:28:45
Speaker
So that's where it went. um And then everything left over after they burn everything, the ash, they mix it with their cement. And then... in then you know, make roads and stuff like that. So when, what would you say the beaches are like now in Guatemala?
00:28:59
Speaker
ah Pretty much pristine because okay. and the side Because when we first came, the conversations weren't around the problem. No one was talking about it. After four ocean came.
00:29:11
Speaker
Yeah. Right. After four ocean came, we really put a microscope, another lens on Guatemala. Guatemala is beautiful, but there's not a problem. There's an issue. Right. Right. So during that time, Honduras put a big, huge fine on Guatemala for Guatemala's fault of polluting their beaches. Because it started in Guatemala.
00:29:30
Speaker
Right. Brilliant. Okay. And then a lot of organizations in Guatemala, like Four Ocean, um and then alliances were formed, which we are still a part of today. We're still in those conversations. We were the pioneers of Guatemala, like a project like this, my wife and I.
00:29:46
Speaker
ah no one what No one ever did anything like we did. With World Ocean's help, it really raised you know our year our network of people.
00:29:56
Speaker
And Stanson, they like Daniela even more. like Right. They made your beaches perfect. Yeah. and So Ocean Cleanup came. They're a company. They're an NGO from Honduras, or Honduras, Netherlands. Okay.
00:30:11
Speaker
And they put like two huge barriers within the real Matagua to stop everything from flowing out to the ocean. So yeah they came, they invested millions of dollars in Guatemala for ocean did as well. So Guatemala is in good hands. For ocean closed their doors in Guatemala officially in March of 2025. Cause their stance doesn't be there forever. It's fixed the problem and then move on. Right. It's not a four forever project. I mean, brilliant fortune wouldn't be doing their job if it was a forever project. And then, Like I said, other organizations, and now everyone's talking about it. So it's on topic of conversation and the political aspect, like the political spectrum of Guatemala, as well as the private sector too.
Pineapple Fiber Project: A New Sustainable Venture
00:30:51
Speaker
ah So like I said, the problem is getting solved, maybe a little slower than most people want, but at least they're talking about it now. Right. The beaches are better. yeah Also too, I thought... um you know, we're talking about breadcrumbs at the beginning of this podcast. And I thought what you were going to say is, you know, I know a company it's called Tuna Skin. They use recycled plastic in order to make their fabric. And, and like they make shirts out of their, like, it's, it's very interesting, but that's not what happened to you. So let's talk about how in the world you get into pineapple fiber?
00:31:26
Speaker
Right. So four ocean really opened my mind to sustainability. Hmm. ah social impact, you know doing the right thing. Daniella had this pineapple fiber idea back long before I met her.
00:31:43
Speaker
And she saw it in a newsletter. She was working in export and import at the time for one of the biggest companies that export vegetables. And she gets all these newsletters every week of companies in the import and export business. She came across a newsletter of Pinatex, which is a so ah Spanish ah it's ah it's a company located in Spain.
00:32:05
Speaker
where they make ah their handbags and purses out of vegan leather. And yeah part of the vegan leather is made from pineapple fiber from the long leaf of the pineapple plant from the Philippines.
00:32:19
Speaker
yeah So she's like, why can't we do that in Guatemala at the time? We have huge pineapple plantations. So she took it upon herself to buy this little machine to extract pineapple fiber from the leaf.
00:32:32
Speaker
And then when I came, i know i saw that machine. So it was always in the back of my head. She mentioned it on one of our first dates back in Iowa when I met her about pineapple fiber. And 4ocean came and kind of put that project, pushed aside that project for Daniela. and during the time of 4ocean, I was like, hey, do you want to do something about that machine that's sitting in our house?
00:32:55
Speaker
ah And so we... partnered with someone in the four ocean company that was making the bracelets out of the plastic that we were collecting. Yep.
00:33:08
Speaker
ah To fund operations. That's where, how four ocean was ran on the products that they make from the plastic that they collect. And also they partner with big companies to offset their plastic footprints. So,
00:33:21
Speaker
We teamed up with a guy there, like he's a scientist and we sent him some pineapple fiber and he was like, what is this? This is great. we can You can like make yarn and fabric out of this. And we're like, really?
00:33:33
Speaker
So we sent them some samples. We started using that small machine, meet just me and Daniela. And so this is what the raw pineapple fiber looks like from the long loose.
00:33:45
Speaker
Wow. It looks like, I would say, unshampooed blonde hair. For the people who's not seeing this. just like your Sure, sure, sure. blonde hair. But it's very soft feeling. It's not like a rough feeling. Yeah, yeah. And it's not the the green part out of the pineapple. It's the part that connects the pineapple to the pineapple bush, right? Right. The the leaf.
00:34:04
Speaker
The big leaves. Yep. So once the individual from Four Ocean gave us the green light, like, hey, you can do something with this. So we started working with him, sending more samples. They were doing lab tests. He was working at a a textile company in North Carolina at the time.
00:34:25
Speaker
He left 4Ocean to work with ah with them. And 4Ocean was announcing they were closing in Guatemala. Everything was just lining up because i was diving headfirst. Headfirst in the Yeah, right. With this pineapple project.
00:34:42
Speaker
Like you do. Wells Fargo, 4Ocean, now pineapple fiber. yeah Who would have thought, right? Go on. would have? So... I told Danielle, I'm like, I can't spend any more time with 4Ocean if we really want to go all in on this. Like, let's let's do it.
00:34:59
Speaker
4Ocean, it was this perfect timing. um So it's been about a year now, full-time working with this project. So we take this and we turn it into this, um which yarn, pineapple fiber blended with cotton.
00:35:18
Speaker
for for apparel for whatever want there it is yeah wow it's soft too huh super soft blends very well with cotton you have to do a big chemical process not big chemical process but you have to soften this up a little bit yeah for it to blend with cotton essentially yeah and guatemala is a huge textile country huge perfect so we Talked with everyone, owners of all the mills and stuff like that. And like, what you're doing is impossible. you it can't be done. Hold my beer.
00:35:52
Speaker
And we found one company that wanted to do samples with us or for us. And so that's who helped us make the yarn. And then a lot of Koreans, and ah there's a lot of Koreans in Guatemala ah that make fabric and textile for the textile industry.
00:36:12
Speaker
And so we partnered with them to make the fabric. And next week, we'll have our first shirts. And we're also making, we're also making those like those linen style pants that you see on the beaches and stuff like that. yeah' We're making that too. When do, how do I get that? How do i get my hands on that? I want to buy it. got you. got you. Okay. Yes. How would the listeners though? Like it's website that you can go get. So we're not going to be selling garments. We're going to be selling selling yarn or fabric to brands. Right. Okay. Or designers. Okay.
00:36:47
Speaker
So we're making those garments just to show that what can be done with it. So, okay. So listeners, you can't get it. Just the uncommon, the uncommon, we'll do an update, an update podcast. one Yeah, that's right. we partner Partner with polo or something. So there's, there's a spot here that I kind of want to emphasize. And at one point, at some point,
00:37:08
Speaker
the The machine that you had in your house for those years wasn't going to cut the mustard of what you actually needed to do. Like you start seeing like industrial level kind of things. I can only imagine what that costs. It's probably not $7. Okay. So...
00:37:26
Speaker
So what was that conversation like with you and Daniela of like, all right, like if we have to go all in, this is what it's going to cost. And like, now we're really in this like uncomfortable zone, like, and I'm comfortable being uncomfortable, but like, this is really, this is unnerving. Right. So what was that conversation like? And it sounds like with you and Daniela, she would be like, yeah, just do it.
00:37:49
Speaker
right You are exactly right. She's like, babe, what's the problem? Yeah. let's Why wouldn't we do this? And I'm like, I'm like, do we want a new car? Do we want to start building our future home? Yes. well like yes right talking about putting Talking about me being selfish, putting those dreams aside, right? Right.
00:38:14
Speaker
But we're using this as an avenue to get to those- It's the best investment. It's the best investment. like It's just almost like a slingshot. You're pulling that further back. to shoot it further. And if I'm in the slingshot and she's letting it, and I'm flying through the- 100%, 100%.
00:38:30
Speaker
one hundred percent one hundred percent And like, that's what I think is so interesting. And that's why i think it's so fun to be able to be in the position that I'm in. Cause every day I get to see people who invest in themselves. And a lot of other financial advisors are like, oh, don't do that. Like, give me your money and let me put it in jail into some kind of account that you can't access till you're 60. But in the meantime, hate your life. And I'm the guy who's like, oh, my gosh, what can we invest in to actually live life and and create a life that you want to live? And so to be able to unpack this story is like such a perfect Uncommon Wealth highlight. You could be the poster child. And pineapple fiber could be the the the cape, if you will. um So, okay. So you guys have this decision. You're making it. At what point in the process, so you've made the investment of this big material. At what point was there like a ah hiccup where you're like, oh, no.
00:39:26
Speaker
ah when When the machine came without directions. but but but ah he yeah that's When the machine came and we saw the electrical boxes opened and nothing inside.
00:39:44
Speaker
oh Kevin. how ah How big are these machines? I they're probably like the size of a car, would you say? So it's it's a line. So there's three different ones, but the line is about...
00:39:57
Speaker
20 yards. Okay. Holy cow. So you, you can't have 15 yards. You got to go buy a place or you have to go lease a spot for it. Ooh.
00:40:08
Speaker
Luckily, Daniela knows a lot of people. if So we're releasing the place from one of her cousins. Oh, perfect. Okay. So you get these things. You have to now put electrical in them.
00:40:19
Speaker
So China back. We called China back. Uh, ah yeah ah So how do you use it? And they sent us like this little video on WhatsApp.
00:40:32
Speaker
And they said, great you see how they put it together? That's how you put it together.
00:40:39
Speaker
Just the things you assume that later on, you're like, wow, like that was we were way off. We were light. So fast forward. So a month ago, they finally sent us the directions and how to set up everything.
00:40:52
Speaker
So you're telling me they had the instructions, they just never sent them to you? Or maybe they?
00:40:58
Speaker
So good. I'm glad we could laugh about So talk about the hiccup you're asking about. Yeah, that's a hiccup. It was like right when we're unloading it. And I'm like, okay, where's the instructions and everything? The China people aren't responding to us.
00:41:14
Speaker
and And it's like, Daniela, what did you get us into? Like it's all her fault now. Yeah, of course. Of course. um That's how a good marriage works. but We were blessed with the local electrician in the, in the in the village where we have our facility and,
00:41:31
Speaker
Within like a day or two, he had it all hooked up for us. and law That's cool because like you said, there has been pineapple fiber material out there, but it's mainly for like that faux leather stuff. throw leather But it's an Asian asian dominated market with yeah other natural fibers other than cotton. there's There's banana leaf fiber, banana fiber,
00:41:53
Speaker
yeah You can make faux leather from orange peels. like There's crazy companies out there that are doing crazy things. But like I said, Guatemala is a huge textile country, and we're positioned very well here. Now that we can show what we can do, the shipping to get from Europe has shrunk because they get all their – Material from Asia. So it has to go around. Yeah.
00:42:22
Speaker
And we're in Guatemala where, where we have a great relationship. Guatemala has great relationship with the U S as far as textiles are concerned. And, you know, Europe is becoming a big player ah
Future of Pineapple Fiber and Kevin's Reflections
00:42:34
Speaker
as far as, uh,
00:42:36
Speaker
needing to use recycled material and other sustainable friendly material in their clothing because they've passed a huge law over the last eight to 10 months where big brands can no longer throw away their unused clothes, which I saw on the beaches of Guatemala, where not only is shoes and sandals we collected, we collected over 150,000 pounds of clothes, of clothes.
00:42:59
Speaker
hundred fifty thousand pounds of clothes Unbelievable. So this that's, Forocia really pushed to get this project going for us because it opened my eyes to sustain sustainability, creating jobs. We hire mainly women ah with our pineapple leaf fiber project in areas where, you know, jobs aren't abundant.
00:43:22
Speaker
Sure. And a lot of these... Single moms need jobs to support their family. yeah And also in the environment impact that we're having with our project, all the pineapple plantations right now, after the life cycle of the plant, it's about two to three years. It produces about two to three pineapples in its lifetime. And then they have to put new plants in the ground. And what they do is they spray a bunch of chemicals and burn everything.
00:43:48
Speaker
So our project we offer those small growers a cleaning service where we go in ah take the plant itself, bring it back to our facility, do what we can extract the fiber and everything left over. We, we partner with the local compost partner to, to convert all of our waste into natural fertilizer for those growers to rejuvenate their soil because they burn everything so much. So our project is not just about producing this and this it's checking a lot of boxes. It's environment impact, social impact, empowering women,
00:44:25
Speaker
Wow. and it And checks a lot of boxes off where a lot of these brands, you know, sustainability you know, not ah only in the conversation, but they're starting to make some, you know, decisions.
00:44:37
Speaker
Yeah. Natural fiber. Right. So. From the pools of Urbandale, Iowa. but From the pools of Urbandale, Iowa to the plantation, pineapple plantations. Jeez. Okay, so what do you see the future at? Because I see it pretty bright.
00:44:50
Speaker
Yeah, so the future so with this, this is endless right now. So we're like I said, we're making garments. Next month or two months, we're going to start making bedsheets and pillowcases to give to those brands that are you know and that yeah in that aspect of the textile industry.
00:45:07
Speaker
The future is bright. Opportunity is endless. I invite you to come to Guatemala and see what we're doing because I'll take you to the pineapple plantations. It's as far as the eye can see. on There's fiber everywhere. And you just cha-ching, cha-ching. Well, not yet.
00:45:26
Speaker
Not yet. Soon, hopefully. How many employees do you employ currently? So right now we just have four. Okay. Um, we're looking for brands to partner with us to scale. yeah Yeah. So probably in the future, we'll probably have 15 to 20, maybe more.
00:45:44
Speaker
that's great. Yeah. everything's just starting to, that the the momentum is just piggybacking off of it. Danielle has to be happy as a client. She has to be so happy. Yeah, she is. I mean, this is finally like a dream come true for her too.
00:45:58
Speaker
Yeah. She can't believe it. And we're using the fiber that we had no idea what to do with. Like it was super dirty and we're making fabric out of it. So the quality is only going to get better. Like a gringo and a, and a Guatemalan trying to put, put, put close together using. Yeah. And you just got something, what yesterday where they said like, one of the things we started dealing with, with fibers and stuff. How do you dye it? Does it dye the same way as cotton does? And like, there's questions there. yeah, It's not like every day it's like everything's smooth sailing, but you seem like you got a pretty big positive, you know, bumped yesterday when they said, oh, it's dying exactly how we want to die. You don't to change the dye chemicals or whatever, which is huge. It's just another thing of like, okay, like this is going forward. Yeah. A lot of people that were saying was impossible in the beginning are now calling us back. Yeah.
00:46:55
Speaker
Right. And like, so just kind of move this back financially, because I think that this is interesting point is, yeah, you probably could have been buying a car or focusing on your dream home.
00:47:06
Speaker
But I would challenge that thought of saying, like, I bet you you'll get the exact stuff that you want in a very similar timeframe than if you were to just save that money. Because things are going in such a traction way or such such a positive way that I feel like at the end of it, you get your house, you get your car, and you get a textile company. What are we doing? You know? What a great investment.
00:47:31
Speaker
Gotta love it. I encourage everyone out there, with like you just said, like yes, it's scary. but I've never been more happy in my life. Oh, it's so good. It's like where you can truly live. And like, I'm just going to say this on record. I was going to say it off record, but here we go. Like, dude, your dad would be so proud of you, man. Like, I just think it's so cool just to see how, again, you were dealt a royal flush. And you threw through three of the cards back and you got a debt, you know, and then but you've kept it kept in the game. And ah like you are you're almost learning how to to play poker instead of getting the hand. You learn how to play poker. And honestly, i would say that that would make your dad the proudest. that makes Does that make that make sense? so yeah And there's there's definitely people watching over us. Daniela's dad passed away back in 2002. Oh, wow. So there's some things happening up there that are watching over us right now that I've always, i have faith.
00:48:32
Speaker
I just never really expressed that I've had faith. There's something there, man. Because a lot of this stuff that's happened from last year until now just really doesn't make sense. You can't make it up. Yeah, you can't make it up. And there has to be somebody who's looking out for you. So anyway, dude, Kevin Kulo, thank you so, so much for being on the show. Thank you for kind of unpacking the way that God has kind of led those breadcrumbs for you. And like, good job just picking them up and just going to the next one. um And I'm super excited to see what the Lord has for you and your company and Daniela. um And so for our listeners, if this is encouraging to you, my challenge to you per Kevin is be comfortable being uncomfortable. And know that there's something that big is going to happen. Even when things don't go your way, you're going to learn from them and you're going to take that knowledge and it's going to produce something pretty positive. So I'm not saying that you can't fail, but even those failures can be really positive in your growth. and where you know ultimately we're all kind of going which is like the as as good as a perfect self as we can be but it takes some challenges it takes some trials and those are the things that i think has probably made me who i've been the most it hasn't been the good days it's been the things that have been pretty hard that have gone through so kevin thank you so much for being on the show uh you've been listening to the uncommon wolf podcast until next time thanks philip you're welcome be comfortable being uncomfortable thanks for listening
00:49:55
Speaker
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