Wendy Gutierrez always intended to own her own business. Thirty years later, after several reinventions and locations, she has advice for other small business owners as she reflects on what has worked and what she has been able to accomplish.
MEEKER | Wendll’s, a beloved fixture in the Meeker and Rio Blanco communities, is celebrating 30 years of transformation and growth.
Owner Wendy Gutierrez, reflecting on the significance of three decades in business, said, “I’ve lasted longer than I thought I would. For years when I first opened, I would have a sale called ‘It’s Been Another Year, We’re Still Here.’ So 30 years—we’re still here. I never knew how long this would last, so 30 years is surprising.”
She went on to explain how she got her business started. “I worked for the county for 15 years and would look out the windows at the courthouse over to Main Street, seeing some of the storefronts. I had always wanted to open a gift shop, a clothing store or some sort of store.”
Gutierrez added, “I bided my time and used my retirement from the
county to stake my claim and buy merchandise. I waited until a spot opened up and then jammed myself right in there.”
Discussing the unique name “Wendll’s,” Gutierrez explained, “It was a nickname from my brothers. Before I had a business, I wanted a vanity license plate, but they only allowed six characters, so I dropped the second ‘E’ and never put it back. This was before I opened Wendll’s.”
When asked why she chose to start her business in Meeker, Gutierrez said, “I moved here in 1980, and one of the conditions of moving here was that I wanted to open my own business eventually.”
“My parents always owned their own business, and their mantra was always, ‘If you do what you love, you’ll never work another day.’ So that was kind of the goal—to do what I wanted to do. I had gotten my family to a place
where I thought I could do that,” she continued.
Gutierrez also highlighted some of the challenges she faced over the years. “The first challenge was downtown, knowing that you have your local support but trying to gain the attention of people passing through Meeker. It was difficult to constantly try to attract attention to the downtown.”
“I worked hard with the Chamber on a couple of projects over the years to keep the focus on downtown because it’s the core. Without it, Meeker doesn’t exist—the downtown core is key,” she said.
When it comes to her favorite memories, Gutierrez has too many to count. “I’m proud of a lot of things I’ve done. I was involved in a lot, like the clock—I was part of a committee that put that together and raised those funds.”
She recalled, “I remember taking Tom Kilduff up to the Front Range so he could get an award for working as hard as he did to get the statue on the courthouse lawn and raising those funds. The two town signs—we helped with that, getting those funds raised, finding the contractors, getting the rock donated. Just things that improve the appearance and make it self-sustaining—it just makes me proud that I was part of things that have happened here.”
As a longtime business owner, Gutierrez offered advice for newer businesses in Meeker. She shared advice given to her by the late Herb Blagg, former owner of the Meeker drugstore, when she first opened Wendll’s.
“When I first started, he said, and I quote, ‘Darlin, I don’t care what you do, and I don’t care what you sell. Just decide when you’re going to be open and work those hours. Don’t change them, don’t let other people tell you when you should be open—you decide and work those hours.’”
“That’s something we’ve really stuck to. If there’s such a thing as success in this, that’s what I would attribute it to—because we’re consistent. We endeavor to be consistent, whether it’s food quality, drink quality, or simply our hours,” she continued.
Gutierrez also expressed her deep gratitude for her husband, Bobby Gutierrez. “Wendll’s would not continue to exist if it wasn’t for Bobby. He has transformed it and kept us moving forward for the past 19 years. He is an adapter, always thinking, always changing.”
As a community pillar, Gutierrez offered some advice to the youth in the community. “I have told my kids this: you have to earn the right to live here. Meeker’s not an easy place to live, so you have to live elsewhere, see what is out there, and then determine if this is where you want to be.”
Wendll’s continues to thrive, thanks to the dedication and love Gutierrez has poured into the business and the community.
By Jared Henderson