Rancher, wife, Ag-vocate, and business owner, Charity Saulsberry, is always on the move and devotes her life to everything in the beef industry. A New Mexico rancher, alongside her husband Chad, she noticed a discord in home decor options while decorating her house. Most websites and stores brought up dairy cows when typing in ranch goods. Frustrated by the lack of beef and correct ranch jargon, Charity got to thinking and U-Spur was born, after all, necessity is the mother of invention. At U-Spur Charity takes pride in providing anatomically correct cattle as well as working ranch equipment for her prints. All graphics are photos taken by Charity and reworked by a graphic artist; she then pairs each with a clever anecdote.
Generational ranch kids, both Chad and Charity, have years of beef cattle knowledge under their belts. When not being the brainchild of U-Spur, Charity is helping her husband move, medicate, and feed cattle. Also a proud member of the New Mexico Cow Belle’s Association she recently moved into the presidential position, where she will serve a one-year term. If you couldn’t tell, beef is her thing, and U-Spur is a 100% beef promotion. All items are hand-printed right in the ranch house, and because “cows don’t live on concrete”, there will never be a brick-and-mortar store. Everything will come directly from a real ranching family.
Q: What does your business offer, and what sets you apart from others in your space?
A: We are the original working ranch graphic apparel and camp cup makers. We started out with tees and other apparel, but branched out into kitchen and home decor when we noticed most of those items, considered “western”, had dairy cows, so we went all high horn hooking cows and beef. Our shop now prints and dropships for many other boutiques and ag businesses as well.
Q: What did the journey to launching your business look like?
A: Oh gosh, we are a commercial cow/calf operation with a feed lot in the mountains of New Mexico. We started out as wholesale, but as we’ve gathered quite a following with the working ranch crowd, we’re starting to dip our toes into the retail side. There are no brick and mortar buildings when you get way out in ranch country, so we’ve always been online while doing large vendor shows such as Art of the Cowgirl, western heritage, WRCA rodeos, and we will be in Vegas this year for the NFR.
Q: What is something you wish the general public knew about your industry or the ag/western industry?
A: I’ve been a public beef ag-vocate for 24 years, and I still find it appalling how much of the public really doesn’t know that their food isn’t grown in a store or by some big conglomerate. 97-8% of all American farms/ranches are family-owned and operated. We’re still out here, you just can’t see us from the road.
You can follow Charity and her family on Instagram at @Uspurclothing or learn more about her products at www.u-spur.com.
