Built from $80, a second chance, and a reason to never quit.
I started Loki-360 with my last $80. No kidding.
There were no investors, no big business plan, and definitely no warehouse full of inventory. I bought a few items, sold them, used that money to buy a few more, and kept going.
Today, Loki-360 has a small warehouse, a small office, customers around the world—and some pretty gigantic dreams.
But the real story behind this company started long before the first order was ever shipped.
Sometimes life changes in a second.
Before Loki-360, I was living my life and building my future when everything changed.
I was hit from behind by a distracted truck driver traveling approximately 65 mph. He never touched his brakes. The impact spun me into oncoming traffic, where I was struck head-on and ultimately pushed into a brick wall.
Looking at what was left of my vehicle, it's hard to understand how anyone walked away from it.
I didn't walk away.
But somehow, I survived.
What followed were years of surgeries, physical therapy, pain, and learning how to do things I once took for granted. It took years before I could stand and walk unassisted at any real distance.
And I want to be clear about something: I am not healed.
People sometimes see me today—running a business, exercising, walking Loki, laughing and living my life—and understandably assume the hardest part must be behind me.
It isn't.
I still live with tremendous pain every single day. There are ordinary things most people never have to think twice about that can require an incredible amount of effort for me.
I've simply had to learn how to keep living a meaningful life while carrying something I can't put down. Tremendous Pain.
Over the years, I've learned that I can't always control what my body is going to throw at me. But I can work on where I allow my mind to go.
I can find something that matters to me. I can focus on the task in front of me. I can set a goal. I can put in the work.
And on the days when all of that feels like too much, I can tell myself something I've had to say more times than I can count:
"Give it one more day. Tomorrow hasn't been written yet."
That's where “Stay Strong. Never Quit.” comes from.
It isn't about being the toughest person in the room. It isn't about pretending life doesn't hurt. And it certainly isn't about comparing one person's struggle to another.
It's about believing there may still be something ahead worth fighting for.
It's about finding that little bit of determination inside yourself that says:
I'm going to try.
And if today doesn't go the way you hoped, tomorrow gives you another opportunity.
If sharing my story ever helps one person believe in themselves a little more, attempt something they were afraid to attempt, work toward a goal they didn't think they could reach, or simply keep moving through a difficult season of their life, then something good came from everything I've been through.
That's enough for me.
So I created my own job.
Eventually, I had to accept something I never expected: my old life wasn't coming back.
At 46 years old, permanently disabled and facing limited employment opportunities, I needed to figure out what came next. And, nobody wanted to hire a disabled man with mobility issues.
So, with $80 and absolutely no idea where it would eventually lead, I created my own job.
One sale became another. A few products became shelves of inventory. The shelves eventually needed more room. And little by little, Loki-360 grew.
Not because I had some brilliant roadmap for building a company.
I just kept going.
Which, looking back, seems pretty appropriate.
And then there's Loki.
If you're wondering where the name came from, you've probably already seen him somewhere on this website.