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AlpacaNation Q&A with Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC
Dr. Steven Jesse
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285 Bates Road, Manhattan, MT 59741
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406-282-9111
AlpacaNation: Tell us about yourself...
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: I'm Dr. Steven Jesse, a neonatologist - a physician specializing in the care and treatment of premature infants; retired in 2005. My wife Debbie is a Registered Nurse with a business degree, who is self employed as a healthcare consultant. Together with our youngest son Dylan,(13 years old at the time) we started Harvest Home Suri Farm in 1999 as an early retirement business. Since that time,the initial starter herd of 3 has more than quintupled; including alpaca sales, there are now 19 Peruvian suris in our herd. Debbie manages the business side of things and we share the duties of daily hands-on care and feeding,as well as pasture and physical plant maintenance.In June 2005, we moved to Montana, to a 20 acre ranch, and changed our business name to Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC, to reflect the Old West spirit and culture of our community.
We enjoy spending time with our alpacas, training them to halter and lead, attending shows and welcoming visitors to our ranch.
AlpacaNation: What steps did you take to prepare for raising an alpaca herd?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: We read everything we could find about alpacas, most importantly: Secrets of the Andean Alpaca, The Field Guide. With no livestock experience, we approached our alpaca endeavor from a scientific perspective. Our initial goal was to learn as much as possible from respected publications and qualified authors (those with many years of experience with alpacas,veterinarians,animal scientists, etc.). Then we visited several farms to get a feel for the day-to-day routine of caring for these animals.
We attended farm-sponsored seminars to prepare ourselves for the responsibility of stewardship of the alpacas. We also considered "worse-case" financial scenarios, as we were financing our new business, and always want to manage inherent risk.
AlpacaNation: How long have you been in the alpaca business?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: We are in our 9th year of operation; having started in 1999.
AlpacaNation: How did you become interested in alpacas?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: We first learned about alpacas by coincidence - Debbie was taking a course in International Business and as a result of research regarding textiles, came upon information about alpaca sweaters. Intrigued, she did more research and realized that breeding alpacas could be an ideal home-based business for our family; specifically an early retirement business. The information was collected and set aside in a file, with the intent to "look into it someday". Several months later, we were at a local county fair (one that we had never attended before), and on a lark, went to look at the livestock exhibits to see if anyone had alpacas. They did - we asked lots of questions, collected brochures, etc. With growing excitement, we sketched out a rough draft of a business plan right there at the fairgrounds concession stands while we got something to eat. Three months later, we welcomed our first alpacas to their new home.
AlpacaNation: How did you decide on your farm name? Is there a special meaning behind the name?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: We relocated to the Bozeman, Montana area, and changed our farm name to reflect the spirit of the Old West. We are "alpaca pioneers" in this location, as we are the first full service alpaca ranch in the area. We offer alpaca sales, breeding and boarding,educational field trips and educational seminars. We also operate a Trading Post on our ranch where we offer a large selection of alpaca apparel, accessories and gifts as well as official "Made in Montana" alpaca yarn and rovings.
AlpacaNation: What sets your farm and herd apart from others in the industry?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: Hospitality first and foremost. We always welcome visitors to our ranch - we want folks to meet the alpacas and find out what the alpaca lifestyle is all about. We don't use high-pressure sales tactics; we didn't buy from a breeder for that reason, and won't subject any potential clients to it.
Honesty and integrity are extremely important to us, professionally and personally.
A key component of our standard operating procedure is full disclosure of all known details about our alpacas to a prospective buyer. All our alpaca's health records, registrations, birthing records and award information are available to potential clients. We offer an extensive array of additional services with each alpaca purchase, to help the buyer manage the inherent risk. Our focus is on the client - educating, advising, guiding the new breeder, and working with the established breeder to create a mutually beneficial business relationship.
AlpacaNation: What is your greatest achievement or favorite memory since you started raising alpacas?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: Our greatest achievement to date has been producing subsequent generations of alpacas that exhibit improved qualities, such as finer, denser, more lustrous fleece, beautiful color, vigor, correct conformation, and delightful dispositions.
It is gratifying to see such positive results from our breeding program and husbandry practices. These results have been validated by judges in the showring, as well as by fellow breeders with years of experience.
AlpacaNation: Describe your first alpaca purchase... would you do anything differently today?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: Our first purchase consisted of 2 bred females (Peruvian imports)and a junior herdsire, purchased from a long-established,well known large farm. All three have been good producers for us;we've shown 2 of them, both have taken ribbons, some first place. Their offspring have been shown, and also have ribbons. If we were to do it all over again today, here is what we'd do differently:
Do more research before purchasing
Ask for and insist upon a package price
Visit more small farms prior to making first purchase
Purchase from a small breeder
AlpacaNation: What advice would you give to those just getting started in the industry?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: Visit as many farms as you possibly can...large, small and medium sized. Prepare a list of questions, and record the answers from each farm. No doubt, you will get different answers to the same questions from different breeders. Make a note of how your inquiries are received, the degree of effort put forth to provide you with an answer, and if there is any follow-up from farms you've visited. Look at the physical environment of the alpacas - cleanliness, availability of fresh clean water, any evidence of overcrowding in the barns or shelters. Ask for a list of references from a farm's clients. Assess your level of comfort with the breeders you visit. A caveat: choosing a breeder to purchase your alpacas from is just as important as choosing the alpacas!
AlpacaNation: How do you see your farm and alpaca business growing over the next 5 to 10 years?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: We out-grew our existing acreage after 6 years, and have moved to much larger acreage. With our most recent crop of crias,we've increased our herd size by 50%! In the next 5 years, we expect to double in size (for a total of 30 alpacas), taking into account sales of alpacas. We'll also dramatically increase the depth and breadth of the alpaca products inventory for our Trading Post. We'll continue to anticipate the needs of our clients and retail customers by talking with them,learning what is most important to them, and finding more ways to serve them.
AlpacaNation: If you could change one aspect of the Alpaca industry what would it be? Why?
Bozeman Alpaca Traders LLC: W'e like to see a formal Code of Ethics established. Forutnately, the vast majority of alpaca breeders are ethical, honest, hard-working folks, but we are aware of a few who are not. Sadly, newcomers to the industry may be victimized by those few unethical breeders. While a Code of Ethics may not prevent this from happening, it could provide a mechanism by which offenders are reported and sanctioned.
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