Member Spotlight: John Schuster

John Schuster owns an eponymous digital marketing company and was one of Workhorse’s very first members. We saw him so often, we quickly hired him to overhaul our website and have been so pleased with his team’s guidance, efficiency, and design skills. He is an unofficial Workhorse ambassador, so it was time to give him a Member Spotlight of his own. And, yup, his team uploaded it to the site!  

In describing his company, John says: “We get to help business owners experience freedom—freedom through e-commerce. We are a small team of people that runs a website development and digital marketing agency. The business was originally born out of a coffee shop—in Edmonds—over 10 years ago.”   

It all started in the spring of 2009. With his first daughter on the way and working what felt like a dead-end job, John set out to break free from the daily grind. One of his coworkers at the time mentioned eBay to him. Up to that point he had sold very little online.

Eventually, he settled into a niche selling board games on Amazon and eBay. Because of that, to this day he has a huge collection of strategy board games. Have you ever played Settlers of Catan?

It was this business that taught John how to sell online and morphed into what he does today: helping businesses use the internet to sell products, get leads, and a lot more.  

John’s first clients were a local Edmonds coffee shop and a local restaurant. That was the very same coffee shop that he worked from every morning building the board game business. Since then, he’s grown his small team, as well as his expertise, to include website development using WordPress, WooCommerce, and Shopify. He’s also expanded into digital marketing, including Search Engine Optimization, Facebook / Instagram ads, Google Ads, email marketing, and more! 

Currently, John’s focus is on growing a powerful team and empowering them to strengthen their skill set so they can bring freedom to even more business owners. Most of John’s work time is spent strategizing and ensuring his team is keeping up with the ever-changing digital landscape. 

Just as freedom is important to the clients John works with, the same can be said for his team and Workhorse has become an integral part of that. Before the pandemic, John and his team would work from coffee shops regularly. It was okay but noisy, and they were often competing for a place to plug in and sometimes, even a space to work. They would also get that feeling that they might be overstaying their welcome.  

With the pandemic shut down, John started working from home and struggled with productivity and getting on a regular schedule. He would drive his wife crazy talking on the phone and he felt like he was neglecting his kids because he had to focus. 

It didn’t take long for John to start hunting for a different solution. Looking for a coworking space near Lynnwood was his first search. A couple of places came up. One was a massive virtual office chain with a decent-looking building, but it seemed to lack any local culture or soul. Then he found Workhorse. He immediately called and secured a Hot Desk.

John has been working from Workhorse for about a year and says the space has been a tremendous boost to not only his productivity but his team’s as well. The people he’s met and the networking have given him a sense of belonging, and even more business. The convenience of having kombucha and coffee are also a huge bonus. As John states, “I even have a refrigerator if I want to bring lunch or my own drinks!” 

He continues: “The workspace and people at Workhorse really help give you a sense of freedom. Not having to commute into that dreaded day job, working when you want to work, and even its fantastic central location in downtown Edmonds; these conveniences all make for a great, freeing work experience.”  

Since he’s usually working on his laptop all day, John has started to take long walks to Workhorse. Edmonds is a fantastic location for walking and riding a bike! This works really well with the unlimited free parking just a short distance from the building.  

John affirms: “There’s just something about experiencing sweeping vistas of the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound before a busy workday, when I’m feeling stuck, or after a hard day. This does a lot to clear your mind and keep you productive.”  

You’ll find John and his team at Workhorse just about every day, Monday through Friday working to bring freedom to other people and ourselves using e-commerce. When he’s not working, John is playing board games (of course), spending time with his family, fishing, or snowboarding. 

Make sure to say hello! 

To find out more about John, how he can help your business, and to connect with him, please visit https://johnfschuster.com.