What happens when two women from the trucking industry decide to shake things up: you get Smokeshow Hat Company.
When we were little girls and we were asked what we wanted to do when we grew up, I can assure you the last thing on our minds was insurance much less trucking insurance. Think more nurse and teacher. Aspirations to contribute to the greater good but the passion we found for this industry exceeds any dream we had ever dreamed.
If you ask anyone in the trucking industry, they will tell you there are some people who are just made for it and some who shouldn't touch it with a 10-foot pole. It is not glamorous. It can lead to sleepless nights and both heartache and headache but if you sit back and think about your day-to-day essentials, it is all brought to you by trucks. And if you only knew how hard it was to operate in the industry, you'd be thanking each and every one who has enough grit to hang in there. And that is the fuel behind our passion.
From day 1 in the industry our passion was burning, we felt for the drivers, we saw the large barriers that stand in their way daily, and that lit a fire to shine a positive light on all the good they do to an audience that doesn't see even a small fraction of what we do daily.
That brings us to the birth of Smokeshow Hat Company. Another career path we never dreamed of: entrepreneurship. Sitting at our conference table on a July afternoon, after losing a tough insurance battle, we tossed around the idea of doing something fun that would still be trucking focused (our true passion). What goes better together than two diesel divas and trucker hats? We'll wait. And in true C+B fashion we dove in headfirst, hammered down and have yet to look back.
Trucker hats were once given away by companies to the hard-working truckers, farmers, and rural workers to protect them from the sun on their journeys. Safe to say they knew what they were doing because the style has yet to die, rather it's grown to be a staple accessory among the masses. We too were connoisseurs of the style and felt it was a no brainer to enter the space, with a new take. Trucking enthusiasts, who love the truckers, and love trucker hats. 2+2=4.
So yes, the hats we design are meant to catch your eye and be worn by all walks of life, but behind each hat is a story. One that can only be told on the open road. Every day we fight for the truckers of America 8-5, but Smokeshow is a way of sharing our passion with a bigger audience, because fashion is a story and ours is bold.
Our journey has just begun, and we can't wait to continue to bring you along with us.