If there’s one thing popular restaurants never seem to have enough of, it’s space.
The Cow: An Eatery is no exception. The Cow is in beautiful Morrison, Colorado, which is home to Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Red Rocks Park. The restaurant has a busy mix of tourists and local regulars.
To make the most of their space, the owners enclosed the Cow’s back patio with fabric and plastic shades. This allowed them to add seating for about 30 customers.
It was not an unbridled success.
“We were dealing with cracked plastic windows on the old shades due to our extreme weather swings,” said David Lind, who, with wife Sherri, co-owns the restaurant. “These old fabric and plastic shades were an eyesore with all the repairs. Not to mention we had to manually roll them up and down.”
Add to that damage from a burglary and the Linds needed a new solution.
“As a restaurant located in the foothills of Morrison, Colorado, we needed something that could withstand high winds, slanting torrential rains, and, of course, snow,” Lind said. “All while making guests feel warm, dry, and safe.”
The solution suggested by Draper and dealer FutureGuard was the FlexShade® ZIP. The ZIP offers unique side channels that ensure a sealed enclosure for existing garages, porches, patios, pool houses, and outdoor commercial food service areas. Several units were installed by Ace Awnings.
“The shades—the weather barriers—are super beneficial. We are able to stay open year-round because of them,” said Amanda Cameron, assistant general manager. “In the summertime, any time we need shade we can put them down. In the wintertime, when it’s super cold, we leave them down and we get this patio heated up really nice.”
David Lind agrees the upgrade to FlexShade ZIP shades with Soltis Perform 92 Sandy Beige fabric makes a difference.
“These electronic shades proved to be far superior. We have had huge wind, rain, and snowstorms and virtually nothing penetrates the micro screen,” he said. “The screens allow guests to see through them in an effort to keep the beautiful Colorado landscape within sight. Customers are protected on our patio and, with a gas heater in the corner of the patio, the ambient temperature allows us to utilize the space in temperatures above 20°F. This is square footage that no restaurant can afford to vacate.”
A graduate of DeVry Institute of Technology, Doug has been in the Technology industry since 1976 and actively oversees Fearing’s daily operations. Along with his wife, Lois, and three others, Doug started Fearing’s in a 600 square-foot facility in Portage, Wisconsin. In the 25 years since, the company has grown to over 30 employees with offices in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Doug likes to say he’s a “TV Technician with a dream� going back to his history with the family’s original business-Fearing’s TV and Appliance.
Doug values time with family, watersports, hiking, snowshoeing and skiing. In addition to being a devoted member of his church, Doug serves as Board President for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County, Board member of Schools for Haiti and Scripture Chair of the Gideons-Portage camp.
A graduate of MATC, Lois oversees Fearing’s daily book keeping along with various HR responsibilities.
Along with Doug, Lois is deeply connected to community outreach, serving as a Board member and Fundraising Committee Chairperson for Kinship Mentoring of Columbia County. She also serves on the Schools for Haiti Fundraising committee. In addition, Lois’ ongoing passion and commitment to provide care for the elderly comes from her 10-year history of working in a Reedsburg, Wisconsin Nursing home.
Lois enjoys singing, hiking, sunny days on the pontoon, and spending time with her 4 grandchildren.
Ehren drives Fearing’s technology by continually seeking out trends to enhance capabilities while supporting Sales, Engineering and Installation teams. Throughout his years with Fearing’s, Ehren’s talent and vision have joined forces to create a wide variety of projects and strategic solutions that exceed expectation.
Ehren loves music, family time, movies, nature, sustainability efforts and electric vehicles.
With 10 years with Fearing’s and over twice that long in the industry, Ben continues to lead, coordinate, and develop the Commercial AV team.
By consistently delivering an outstanding experience and outcome, Ben contributes to the Fearing’s legacy of long-lasting partnerships that truly make a difference. Whatever the Commercial AV need may be, Ben and team deliver at the highest level.
Ben is an avid fisherman and photographer. He enjoys coaching his sons and other youth.
Chris has been with Fearing’s for 20 years and in the industry for over 2 decades. As a Certified leader in Sales Acceleration and trained in EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating Systems), Chris successfully utilizes his skills to lead the Fearing’s Salesforce. Chris and team are motivated and driven to develop new client partnerships while continuing to reinforce loyal long-term relationships with ongoing Service excellence.
Married for 19 years with 3 children, Chris enjoys skiing, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, camping and golf. He’s also been actively involved as a Youth Football and Softball coach for his family and others.
