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Pumpkin Farmer Grows Money Too

By Paul Seaburn

Last year, when YoungBiz first talked to Tim Thorpe, a ‘trep who raises pumpkins in Lafayette, NY, he was having a problem with the name of his business, Tim’s Pumpkin Patch. Another farmer in the area named Tim (what are the odds of that?!) used the same business name and registered it with the local government. Tim had to change his signs to read just “Pumpkins for Sale,” but he wasn’t bummed. He already knew not to put all of his pumpkins in one basket.

Blow, Wind, Blow
Farm businesses are affected by lots of outside forces — not just other farmers with the same name. The weather is sometimes a major pain. Tim decided he wanted to be like a ‘trep mailman: neither hail nor snow nor even raining frogs would stop him from running a business. To accomplish this goal, Tim decided to diversify.

“I knew how to rebuild small engines, so I started repairing lawn mowers, farm equipment, and four-wheelers,” says Tim. When winter comes, he switches to fixing snowmobiles and restoring antique snowmobiles. He recently restored a 1960-model dump truck, and fixes cars too.

Tim has so many business opportunities, he needs to invest his profits in something that is easy to manage, but still gives a decent return. “I talked with our farm’s financial advisor and opened a money market account,” says Tim. This gives him a higher yield than a savings account, but is safer than stocks and easier to access, although he uses a separate checking account for business expenses. In two years, Tim plans to use the funds in his money market account to help pay for college.

Doing Business on Three Levels
Growing pumpkins is great for the fall, but fixing engines is a year-round opportunity, so Tim has decided to make vehicle repairs his primary business. “I recently restored a three-story antique carriage barn built in the 1800s to house it,” Tim says with pride. The top floor holds hay for the farm, the middle floor is for storing vehicles, and the first floor is the repair shop and show room.

A fast-paced variety of businesses combined with an easy-to-manage, reliable investment means Tim Thorpe is ready for anything — rain, shine, or even stock market decline.

Exercising His Options
Tim considered a number of options when deciding how to invest. Check out the pros and cons of these investment alternatives: