Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1376086
It all started in 1971 when Darryl Harris left his current job at Evans Advertising Agency in Salt Lake City and moved to Idaho Falls, Idaho, to start his own business, Darryl W. Harris Advertising. As he was building his new company, Darryl developed a hobby following chariot racing — a sport that was quite popular in the region back then. He had the idea to create a magazine for that association, selling copies at different races throughout the region. While that proved to be successful, it was the first of many ideas that led Darryl to change the business name to Harris Publishing and focus solely on publishing magazines. "If I was going to end up in the magazine publishing business, I needed to do some magazines that had more potential for growth," Darryl says. "That's when the idea of Potato Grower came into the picture. Being from Idaho, I wondered what magazine would be successful in Idaho? What was Idaho known for? You guessed it — potatoes." The bank loaned Darryl money using sold ads as collateral. The challenge was selling ads with no prior product to showcase. Darryl worked hard writing, designing and selling that first issue, and he ultimately pulled it off. The rest is history. Since that first issue, Harris Publishing has published over 500 editions of Potato Grower, as well as launched many other publications including Sugar Producer, SnoWest, Idaho Falls Magazine, Houseboat, Pontoon & Deck Boat, Dirt Toys and Diesel Tech, among others. WWW.POTATOGROWER.COM 17 Chuck, Ryan and Jason Harris now own and operate Harris Publishing, Potato Grower's parent company.