ENTREPRENEURIAL ADVENTURES
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“ We place a lot of emphasis here on doing things right . We place a lot of importance on legacy and taking lessons we ’ ve learned from the past and implementing them to provide direction to capitalize on the future ,” Andy said .
Andy and Sara got married in 2020 . Although Sara did not grow up on an agriculture operation , she was surrounded by it growing up in rural Kansas . Both Sara and Andy are entrepreneurs , and they realized that to keep the tradition of Larson Farms thriving , they ’ d need to tap into their business skills and get creative . This led to the addition of Wild and Blooming , an event planning and floral design business begun in 2021 by Sara . Many of her clients are local brides or K-State alumni , and she often helps with alumni events on the college ’ s campus .
“ I love designing and making personal experiences for people . I enjoy the constant innovation and being challenged not to produce the same thing for every bride or every corporate client . For example , we ’ ve got three different tailgate-style parties for three different groups on K-State ’ s campus , and we cannot have them look the same ,” Sara explained . “ And just because we ’ re in Manhattan , Kansas , doesn ’ t mean we can ’ t have all of the things you see on Pinterest or TikTok .”
Wild and Blooming lived up to its name , blooming and growing out of two different locations — first it outgrew a renovated Larson-family garage and then a studio they purchased in nearby Manhattan . Now , Wild and Blooming can be found in a downtown storefront in Manhattan for customers to visit .
Whereas Sara ’ s entrepreneurial path was to begin Wild and Blooming , Andy ’ s remained even closer to home , on the farm . Andy knew he wanted to diversify the business to preserve the legacy for their daughter . A long-time goal of Andy ’ s was to share their highquality beef with local consumers . In 2023 , the couple began 1880 Beef .
“ We are trying to take our product direct to the consumer because we put a lot of time into genetics and our feeding and grazing systems , so we want to offer a personal product for our customer ,” Andy explained . “ We want to raise a product with the highest level of nutrition and care from the time they are bred until they are sent out the door .”
As with any business , the journey hasn ’ t been a straight line . It ’ s had its challenges , too . They experienced hurdles like trying to predict the cuts and volume of beef consumers would demand ,
determining what people would be willing to pay , and the best method to ship their beef cross-country . Andy learned there was a difference in what local consumers want and what consumers around the nation will purchase . Plus , Andy and Sara still had to manage challenges that face every beef producer , factors outside of their control , such as market conditions , weather and access to grazing land which has become increasingly competitive .
Their persistence with both of their businesses has kept them growing . With the second move of Wild and Blooming , the studio space in Manhattan became the perfect home for 1880 Beef ’ s retail store . This is a place in the community where they can easily sell prepackaged cuts of beef and be central to a lot of customers . Another exciting achievement for 1880 Beef was getting their meat into restaurants in Kansas .
“ It ’ s rewarding to see our beef on the menu of a high-end restaurant and see that the work we put in is now being enjoyed and valued by a customer ,” Andy reflected . Andy respects and remains tied to the history of his family and the land , which goes back to the establishment of their community . Yet , knowing his historical facts does not diminish his passion and palpable energy for the Larsons ’ potential in the future . Andy and Sara both have a deep-rooted love of this lifestyle because there ’ s an opportunity to do something different every day and to see the fruit of their actions make an impact not only on their own family , but on other local families . For them , watching Clara grow up in wide-open spaces , around livestock , learning beside her parents and grandparents is the most rewarding part .
As Andy put it , “ Agriculture is an exciting industry . The challenges we face just seemed tremendous growing up on the operation . And I wanted to be able to participate because I love taking on a challenge ; I don ’ t want to be doing anything mundane . We do something different every day and it ’ s appealing to me to be outside and create something new to contribute to our family operation .”
Andy Larson loves teaching his daughter Clara about caring for the cattle and the land .
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