We’re looking forward to introducing you to Parker Alexander. Check out our conversation below.
Parker, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: Would YOU hire you? Why or why not?
I would definitely hire me because i’m everything an employer is looking for. I care, thats the first thing I look for when I hire people. As a business owner, you care deeply about your business, so you want the people around you to care as well. I take great pride in everything I do, I try really hard, because I care. From my work, to my health, my relationships, my faith, and my desire to be the best at whatever I”m doing because I care. I have never applied for a job that I didn’t get. I have learned great analytical skills, critical thinking, creativity, and i’m the type of person who will figure it out. I like to optimize everything about my work and my life, continually finding ways to save time, save money, simplify tasks, and be more efficient. This is the kind of employee I look for, and it’s the kind of employee that I am. I work for myself, but I also have many clients that I make custom hats for, some huge companies, and hundreds of others, so essentially they hire me to design and produce hats for them, almost as if I work for them, because I am working to deliver them a world class product. I am very prompt, I respond quickly, and I offer the best experience possible because I care. This is business, and a little effort goes a long way.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Parker Alexander. I am the Founder, CEO, and Designer of my premium hat company “The Heartbeat Brand”. I am a creative, I love building and making things come to life, this is my joy. I started The Heartbeat Brand with the intention of creating some of the most premium logo-wear headwear around. Not only do we make some of the nicest hats in the world, we have trademarked logos with meaning. We like to ask “What Makes Your Heart Beat?” If you love it or care about it, we have a logo for it. All our logos have a custom EKG design on the left and right of a variety of things people love. Golf Heartbeat, Pickleball Heartbeat, Mountains Heartbeat, Fishing Heartbeat, States, and more. We are putting passion into fashion, allowing you to wear a design that means something to you. These are premium designer hats at an affordable price. We add beautiful photos under the bill that correspond to logo, and also use unique materials like cork, corduroy, hemp, and water resistant fabrics. Fashion is one of my many passions, and it shows in our over 500 hat styles.
At The Heartbeat Brand, we’re building a community united by shared interests and passions, by offering meaningful logo-wear hats that inspire individuals to live with passion, follow their dreams, and express what makes their heart beat.
We are a purpose driven premium hat brand. “One Dream. One Heartbeat. United. Bound by Passion. United by Heart.” Be a part of something bigger. Unity.
The Heartbeat Brand is passionate about giving back. Giving is part of our founding principals. We aspire to do good in the world, supporting communities both local and abroad. We are committed to providing aid and support to those in need whenever possible. Solving problems, and promoting positivity will remain our driving force. All while spreading passion and love for all things good. “What makes your heart beat?”
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
I learned many valuable lessons about life and work from my amazing parents. I was raised in South Lake Tahoe with my two brothers, and we had the most amazing childhood in the mountains. My parents really knew how to parent. We were raised to be polite, hard working, responsible, and to always have fun. They thought us the value of effort, putting your best foot forward, and to always try your best. We had chores for as long as I can remember, and were paid weekly to learn how to work for our money. My dad was an engineer, so he was always being handy and doing things around the house, so he thought us how to do all things home improvement and the value of hard work. We would mow the lawn, help with landscaping, shovel the snow, fix things and more, it was fun, and we were learning. My mom taught us how to keep the house tidy, how to get around in the kitchen, how to shop, and how to grow up to be well rounded men. I give all the thanks to my parents for raising me so well, and they are my best friends still today.
Is there something you miss that no one else knows about?
The one thing I miss most that no one knows about is playing sports. I grew up an athlete, and played high level sports through high school. I dreamed of being a pro athlete since I was very young. I played on many championship soccer and baseball teams, and then picked up most other sports: Ice Hockey, Volleyball, Tennis, Golf, Skiing, Basketball, Football, etc… I never chose one sport to pursue, so my dream of going pro quickly faded away. I love all sports, and still do, but i’m sad I didn’t pick, because thats one dream I can never get back. Now i’m 40, and run my company full time so sadly I don’t have time to play sports as much as I’d still like. My buddies still try to get me to come back and play ice hockey, as I was the leading goal scorer in every league I ever played in, oh man I miss hockey. Fortunately Pickleball has come around, and I do get to play Pickleball a few times a week, so that has become my new favorite sport. There is still a small chance I could play senior pro Pickleball down the line, I can definitely hang! I also play Padel every chance I get, it’s so much fun! Sports were my first passion, and will always hold a special place in my heart. Now I dream of using The Heartbeat Brand to get me back into sports one way or another. I think I could be designing hats for major sports teams in the near future. My designs are fresh and unique, time will tell. We do design hats for one minor league hockey team, and several Pro Pickleball teams, so we’re chipping away. My love for hats started when I first played T-Ball and I’ve worn a hat every day since. It’s only fitting it comes full circle and I design hats for all the sports I love and adore.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
I think many smart people are getting it totally wrong in the way they use their money and influence. There are many smart people who are billionaires and it shocks me how much is still wrong in the world. I understand not everyone wants to make the world a better place, but I sure do. What is wealth if you don’t use some of it to make a major positive impact in the world? With all this wealth there is no way we should have people living on the streets, veterans suffering, people starving or without clean water, and so much more. We can definitely do better as a society, help each other, and create a better life for everyone. We are a small company, and we will donate over $50,000 this year to help those in need, to support non profits, to help fundraisers for good, etc. This is my heart, I dream to give, and giving is what we already do. I understand many of these smart wealthy people do indeed give, but we can do much better, and if I have anything to do with it, we will do better. The Heartbeat Brand is on a mission to make a positive impact in the world, and that will never change. “Passion, Unity, Purpose”
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
The last few years I basically skip to work every day. The term “work” doesn’t really define what I do now. I just call it “life”. This is my life and it’s built on my mission to do good, so it’s fun and I truly enjoy it. I wake up excited to work every single day, i’m a bit of a workaholic, but I absolutely love what I do. Thats the dream right? “If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life” thats how I see my life. I am very blessed to have gotten to this point, but it wasn’t always this way. When I first started The Heartbeat Brand in 2017, we set up our vendor tent at events everywhere within 100 miles and that felt like work much more than being full time remote on my laptop today. We would sell from our tent over 100 days a year, and it was pretty grueling. I still loved that I was chasing my passion and building a brand, so it was lots of fun, but it was the necessary grind that needed to be done to get to where we are today. I still grind every day, but now it’s almost all digital. I do shoot all our product photography and design all our marketing assets. I wear a lot of hats at The Heartbeat Brand as we operate as a small 3 person team. It doesn’t take a ton of people to build a scaling brand, you just have to love what you do, and be willing to put in the work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.theheartbeatbrand.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theheartbeatbrand/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parkeralexandertahoe/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheHeartbeatBrand?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@theheartbeatbrand
