I guess I never really realized it, but as I look back at the history of SparkFun, it’s puzzles all the way down. SparkFun turns 20 years old this week, and next year I’ll have worked at SparkFun half of my life. Since SparkFun opened its doors, there was always work to do. The challenge of getting a little faster to market, writing a little cleaner code, open sourcing more technologies, and increasing the production yield rate a few fractions of a percentage more was, and continues to be, thrilling. I get to puzzle for work, and I’ve got a whole team of like minded folks that makes another twenty years of SparkFun sound absolutely delightful.
I’m surrounded by the amazing people at SparkFun who enable me, you, and each other to constantly come up with new and innovative ideas. We play a very important role in the development of new ideas and technologies. Everyone at SparkFun: the shippers, the builders, the cleaners, the support staff, the engineers, the marketing team, the tech writers, even Lilian (the white labrador and latest dog to enter the SparkFun family) form the very solid foundation for others (me, you, and the future generations of innovators) to stand on.
After 20 years, I’m the luckiest guy I know because I’ve been able to find a place to work and fill it with awesome people who do amazing things. And for that, I am eternally grateful.
Hold on to your hats! Who knows where the following twenty years will take us but I’m excited to see what needs to be solved next.
We're going to be celebrating SparkFun's 20th this whole year, stay tuned for more updates and looks back at our history.
Nate,
Congrats on the 20 year anniversary! I've long said that "the most important person in any business is the customer because without the customer you're not going to be in business very long". SparkFun is the most customer-oriented business that I know, and I'm very proud to be one of your customers! Keep up the good work, and continue to remember that every member of your team is important.
I've occasionally held up SparkFun as a good example -- your policy of allowing comments on each and every product on the store front is fantastic. Another great example is DigiKey -- I've been doing business with them for about 50 years. When they started, they were selling "first rate" parts at reasonable prices, but more importantly, at a time when getting data sheets was nearly impossible for the average hobbyist DigiKey was including key information in their catalog, e.g., the physical dimensions on electrolytic caps.
I'm looking forward to seeing what you do in coming years!
Thanks! It's been a trip but it's always good to hear from folks. Thanks for thinking so highly of us! We'll try to keep up are end of the bargain :)
Congratulations on making it to 20 years. I think I have been a customer off and on for about 15 of those years and remember some fun events back in the day (AVC).
Hi Nate and ALL Spark family, Congrats on 20 years! Your vision has grown into a great company, and Sparfun is a great resource to the community. Even though I may not buy as much SF product now, I do look forward to the newsletter and keeping up with the latest products. Wishing you all continued success in the years ahead! Bob D