Common frustration is probably the best way to describe how Casey Zeigler and Kris Bower came to be business partners, as well as friends.
Casey Ziegler & Kris Bower 38
maintenance issues he says weren’t necessary.
The oil and gas industry offers some pretty lucrative opportunities for landowners and there was a time where Zeigler and Bower were simply acquaintances in a business that helped position oil companies and landowners together.
They were licensed Alberta land agents, negotiating with landowners on behalf of oil companies. During this time they would both meet and speak with many landowners, all of whom were relying on oil and gas holdings for a significant portion of income.
“The only problem was there was no tool for them to actually manage it,” Zeigler says. “It was counterproductive for them, it was counterproductive for us as an industry.”
“There were some unique challenges people were having with data and information regarding oil and gas activity on their land,” Bower adds. “They’re farmers and they’re busy doing other things. They’ve been able to adapt to technology regarding every other aspect of their farming practice but there was really nothing to help them deal with the (oil and gas) portion of data.”
Zeigler says he would visit landowners for one purpose and wind up helping them with
Both Zeigler and Bower were finding that farmers and ranchers were starting to inquire about what services might be available for them to help with the endless amount of data and paperwork produced through their oil and gas deals.
The answer was, there really wasn’t any service like that, and so that’s when this duo decided to partner up and simply create it.
Not long after, WellTraxx was born — a fitting term considering both men had wives on maternity leave when they decided to quit their jobs and go into business for themselves. But understanding women, as well as some hardnosed entrepreneurial skills and a great idea, has proved their risk rewarding, and landowners and oil companies alike have reaped the benefits ever since.
“We were both at that age where we wanted to be doing our own thing instead of working for somebody else all the time,” Bower says. “We saw a bit of a niche market for something like (WellTraxx) that I think has some great potential to develop. We just saw it and went for it.”
The WellTraxx program is now helping landowners all over benefit from the extensive oil and gas opportunities available to them. But what really makes this idea work, Zeigler says, is its benefit to both sides.
“What is so unique about this is it’s
not just about the landowners,” he says. “What we’re most proud of is being able to offer third-party help without ever pitting anyone against each other.”
But the success of WellTraxx stems not only from the sheer benefit it provides its clientele but also from a strong bond Zeigler and Bower have built in their partnership.
“There’s a trust level there that is obviously really important,” Zeigler says. “It’s been one of the main keys to the success of our business. We work well together because at the end of the day, we like each other and we trust each other.”
“We’re both rural raised and I think we just had a very common, focused goal,” says Bower. “We make a pretty good combination I think.”
A business is only as strong as its employees and we have the best.
welltraxx.com Thank you Ashley, Julia,
Shirley, and Roxanne for your hard work and dedication.
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