In 1997, Chip Williams ran the New York City Marathon, his first, finishing the 26.2-mile, five-borough race in 4 hours, 21 minutes, 21 seconds.
Whatever sense of accomplishment he might have felt was tempered by the more daunting journey his mom had made to watch him run: from her bed, downstairs to the TV and back to bed.
It was the first time in two months that Helga Williams Strowbridge, sick with cancer, had left bed. It would also be the last time. She died two months later, leaving behind a legacy of business success ”“ founder of a real estate agency ”“ and community activism: with United Way and Meals-on-Wheels.
“To me, the 26.2 miles I had run meant nothing to what my mom had accomplished that day,” Williams said. “I realized and recognized the passion people have with training for and running marathons. Combining the passion of these unique athletes and in honor of my mom, I decided to start a business that would celebrate women”™s accomplishments in marathons and other athletic challenges.” Â
Williams has since honored his mother a second way, as well, by running another five marathons: a second New York City effort, the Boston Marathon twice, the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., and the Rock ”™n”™ Roll Marathon in San Diego. When he runs, he asks friends and coworkers to support cancer and liver research in his mom”™s name. To date he has raised $66,000.
Williams”™ entrepreneurial business venture came from having fought through the strained muscles, the runs in the rain, the butterflies on race day and, not least of all, running through “the wall” that does in so many marathoners late in the race. Those around him, he knew, those sloshing through the water stops and gasping for air, were persevering through the same challenges he was enduring. “Whether it”™s a triathlon or a marathon, people are so passionate about it.”
And that got Williams up late, thinking about his mom and perseverance and, if his thinking was correct, the desire to share that passion. “Hey, you can”™t wear your finishing medal out to dinner.”
The idea had Williams in T-shirt and boxer shorts at his computer for a year at night “trying to figure out how to make this work.” His research revealed there were 407,000 marathon finishers in 2006, 40 percent of them women. He also found there were more than 8 million participants in all the Thanksgiving turkey trots and July 4 walk-and-runs across America. And that did not count cycling and triathlons.
The upshot was Finish Line Charms with gold and silver charms that offered, for example, the ultimate shorthand for accomplishment: the number 26.2. The charms remain part of the business that last year attracted 1,000 buyers via the Web site finishlinecharms.com. Williams said the average order is $80.
Williams has moved on to include items like hand-painted Christmas ornaments, triathlon earrings, braided leather triathlon bracelets, custom silver bracelets and even a pewter bottle stopper. Gold and silver are the company”™s metals of choice. “Simple and tasteful” would describe the overarching design philosophy.
Williams”™ day job is as vice president for strategy and development with Parise Marketing Group in Millwood, N.Y.. He has been with Parise for 15 years.
“We”™re a strategic marketing firm,” he said. “We do online promotions for small and mid-size companies and publishing clients, including Disney, National Geographic and Forbes.”
Parise has six employees. “We”™re very close knit. We do big-agency work within limited budgets, but we”™re not a big agency.”
Williams”™ wife is Brenda Williams. They have two boys: 6 ½-year-old C.J. and 1 ½-year-old Hunter.
