09/17/2026
It’s hard to believe I’ve already been involved with Bad Axe for 6 years 😮
I started at Bad Axe in 2020 as an assistant sawmaker. I had lost my job as a bartender during COVID, and I decided it was time to find something that involved working with my hands and learning a craft.
Over the years, I had tried my hand at all kinds of things — painting, jewelry and metalwork, ceramics, and eventually stained glass. I knew I loved making things, but I had no idea what kind of job was out there for someone like me.
Then I came across the job posting for Bad Axe. My first thought was, “I don’t know the first thing about woodworking or toolmaking, but if I have a good teacher, I can learn anything I set my mind to.”
So Mark (Mark Harrell) took a chance on me and hired me as one of three new employees when he moved the company to Superior, Wisconsin.
Fast forward a couple of years, Mark decided he wanted to semi-retire and have the employees take over the business. I'll be honest — I was nowhere near prepared to run a small business. But I did everything I could to make the transition as smooth as possible.
And let me tell you, it has been the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
Over the years, I’ve heard plenty of criticism. “She’ll run this company into the ground within a year.” “What does a woman know about making saws?” And plenty of other comments along the way.
Six years in, I’m still learning something new about this business all the time. I’ve made plenty of mistakes, figured things out as I went, and somehow here we are.
I’m incredibly grateful for our customers who have stuck with us and supported us through all of the changes over the years. It genuinely means so much to meet customers in person and hear them cheering us on and rooting for us to succeed.
Cheers to 6 years! 🙌
