Origins of The Trade

Moosilauke Visions Founder, Jay Wolter

The Trade recently interviewed Will Laughlin, CEO, about the origins of The Trade.   

Hi Will. So, to start, can you tell me a little bit about the company behind The Trade? 

Sure, Sarah. The Trade is a new project of Moosilauke Visions, a non-profit that creates, operates, and supports a network of small, high-quality mental-health, education, and wellness companies.  We have been quietly doing this work for about forty years. 

We think the best "people" work happens in small autonomous programs with passionate leaders and experienced teams. So, we work hard to create and support programs like that.   

So how did the concept for The Trade come about? 

It seemed like a lightning-bolt moment. But like a lot of "epiphanies," it was actually the result of a long process of research and reflection colliding with a timely coincidence. 

We had been exploring ways to serve young adults for over a year, looking at different partnerships, options, properties, and concepts. But nothing was really landing.  It seemed like everything we contemplated was already being done and we didn't just want to start a program to start a program. 

So one afternoon, Jay Wolter (Moosilauke Visions' founder) and I were discussing this young adult project in the parking lot of The Innstead (a luxury wellness retreat owned by Moosilauke Visions) when a young man drove by on a Gator—one of those mini trucks you see on farms and ranches. As the truck drove by with rakes and shovels and a chainsaw jangling in the back, Jay pointed to Nick, the young guy driving the Gator, and said, "maybe that's our program." 

That was the lightning bolt.

Several months earlier, Jay had invited Nick to live and work at The Innstead as a sort of informal apprentice. He did this as a spontaneous favor to Nick's mom, a longtime employee who had shared about her son's struggles finding a purpose and path. When Nick joined the team, he was a bit slumped; he would not look you in the eye.  He seemed tired and, maybe, a little defeated.

But when Nick rumbled by us in the Gator that day, he looked like any other member of our staff—confident, alive, and intentional. Like he knew where he was going and what he was going to do and why he was going to do it...because he did.

So when Jay said, "I think that's our program," I knew exactly what he meant. My response was a simple, emphatic, "yes!" And that is how it started. We got busy the following week.

The Trade is located on the same 2000 beautiful acres as The Innstead and several other thriving mission-based businesses. So it's the perfect place for young adults to learn how to work and live, to find their path and their people. It's a place to learn life by living life, but in a supportive community and with talented mentors. 

The solution we were seeking for so many months was right under our noses and, ironically, it was something we were already doing. That's what we realized when Nick rolled by in the Gator, giving us a little nod—no time to slow down and chit chat—on his way to something important.