There are some remarkable encounters; Gene Fowler is one of those. I’ve never met him, but I just needed two or three phone calls, a tiny bit of research on the internet and a few incursions on his Facebook page to get an idea of how colourful this character is.
Gene Fowler - Photo & copyright: Cold Hard Flash
What also caught my attention is Gene’s personal story, which is one of resilience and a capacity to rebound and persevere.
In 1999, at age 22, he founded FatKat Animation, a small enterprise specialized in animation film. First based out of Halifax (Nova Scotia), then tranfered to Miramichi (New Brunswick), FatKat has gotten bigger and bigger, and bigger again. In 2007 FatKat Animation employed 120 people.
First things were up, then came the recession… and the downfall of FatKat. “I had to lay off 40 people”, Gene remembers. “I kept 80 employees to finish our last contracts. And, came the time where I had to stop all activities of FatKat. In the spring of 2009, I personally went bankrupt, with 2 million dollars in debt. Since setting up shop, I had always tried to keep as many full-time employees as possible. I didn’t want them to worry about their paycheque. But I understood that this business model is not viable for small animation enterprises”.
Back in the ring
Shortly after the bankruptcy, Gene and his wife created a new venture called Loogaroo. The small business relies on a core of three full-time employees. As contracts land on the drawing table, Loogaroo phones up freelancers for temporary assistance.
Gene thinks the unfortunate experience was well worth it. It taught him a lesson. “When I used to own FatKat, all what counted was to produce animation. I left the day-to-day management aside for others to take care of. When everything came tumbling down though, people came to me for answers. I suddenly found myself taking fast-track business management and crisis management classes. I learnt plenty. Today at Loogaroo, I take part in all areas of the enterprise”.
Does the economy pick up steam? “People start spending a little more now. Things have started slowly for Loogaroo but in the second semester of 2010, we’re starting to be quite busy”, he says.
For the road…
“I learnt that the thing that really matters in life is to have enough to eat, a roof over your head and someone to tell you ‘I love you’ at the end of the day”, confides Gene. I lost everything – except for my house and my car – and that’s good. At FatKat, I was under a lot of stress. I always wanted to push the business further. I was high-strung and brought tensions home. Today, I don’t experience stress anymore, my relationship with my wife and my son are way more harmonious. I feel good. So I guess one can say that the recession brought about positive elements!”
Annie Richer, writer-researcher
©2009 Le blogue PIB / The GDP blog
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