BUILDING BNDRY
We’re just getting started
Avg. Read Time: 2m 47s
Let me take you back to start: It’s late fall in Boise. The days are getting shorter. You leave work and the sun is already setting, making you want to crawl into bed and call it a day.
But imagine you didn’t succumb to the desire to hibernate. Or—let’s be real—you did hunker down, but instead of curling up with the TV, you launched down a path you’d be writing about five months later. A late-night bitching session, fueled by too much tequila and post-desk-job restlessness. A mixing bowl of delayed teenage angst, cultural confusion, and the familiar, well known feeling of being absolutely lost. That’s the origin story of BNDRY—a journey carved out of conversations between friends. The ones about the people who left, the businesses that shut down, the Boise we love but want more of, and the ongoing struggle to find our people. These conversations are well known to those in their 20s and by the Boise community. Luckily, on that dark, depressing, late autumn night, we were solution-oriented.
[ I don’t even wanna think about how many hours went into scrapped logo ideation…just for us to land on the original logo Joe designed. But at least it was fun lmao]
We’ll fast-forward through the next month or so, but just know it was a saga. Debates, 2am epiphanies, and truly terrible ideas that were shared and discarded on repeat for hours.
For context, the business name idea list included; Powder Keg, Don’t Blink, Boise Hit List, and Challengers.
Imagine having to gently say hell no to “Powder Keg.”
Even through the incestuous mess of being co-workers, roommates, and friends, we powered through. And anyways, that’s the Boise experience in a nutshell, so what’s new? The lines between professional and personal are blurrier than the Neurolux bathroom mirror.
The Problem and the Solution
Madison, Joe, Krista, and I formed BNDRY—a platform built on collaboration, shared experience, and an unwavering commitment to showcasing local talent and businesses. The ones that are single handedly carrying the weight of Boise’s culture.
I’ve grown tired of watching my favorite artists, musicians, and creators leave our city with their eyes set on something bigger. A new home that caters to their talent, offers more opportunity, and gives them a real shot at achieving their goals.
Joe wants a new narrative. One that doesn’t show a city standing by as our favorite businesses and young entrepreneurs fall through the cracks and close down. Space Bar, Somewhere Bar, Txikiteo… the list goes on and on.
Krista knows it’s time to bring people together and make finding a community accessible. How is Boise the smallest city but finding your people is the most painful, humbling, and tragic endeavor?
And Madison—well, she still has her eyes on New York City, so we’ve got some work to do.
Let’s shake things up
BNDRY invests in the real Boise. Our Boise. The Boise that breeds the most scrappy, brilliant, and motivated talent. The Boise where mere ideas have the opportunity to evolve into inspiring success stories. The Boise where you are one “hello” away from having a friend for life. This investment involves a lot of nitty gritty work, but from the outside simply points the lens on what matters. Sharing stories, bringing people together, standing on our values, and making a meaningful investment in them.
The easy thing to do would be to pack up and chase opportunity somewhere else, but what if we flipped the script? What if Boise wasn’t just a place you outgrew, but a place that grows with you?
That’s what we’re here for: to provide a platform in Boise that can support the raw talent that it breeds. BNDRY is not just about showcasing the best we’ve got; it’s about making space for it to thrive.
So yeah, maybe it started with a late-night rant. Maybe we were just four people with a half-baked idea and too much tequila. But five months later, we’re still here. Still showing up. Still believing in the potential of this city and the people who call it home. And if you’re reading this, chances are you believe in it too.
So, let’s get to work. We’re fundraising for this project and need your help. Know someone who’s willing to give to support the arts and small businesses? Send this story to them today!