Built Local: Far From Stock
Small Business Month gives us a reason to pause and look at the people quietly shaping the apparel industry from the ground up. The decorators, creators, and problem solvers who show up every day and make it work through experience, relationships, and consistency.
These are not flashy stories or overnight wins. They are long-haul lessons. The kind other decorators can learn from, because they reflect what actually moves a business forward.
Next up is Far From Stock. Far From Stock is an aftermarket truck parts company that builds and gives away fully custom trucks, using apparel as the entry point into each giveaway. It’s a business model that blends product, content, and community into one system—and it’s very different from how most decorators think about merch.
More than Merch
Most companies treat merch like an add-on. A logo on a shirt. A way to promote the real product.
Levi and his team at Far From Stock flipped that idea. Here, merch is not an extra. It is part of the business model and a core driver of how the brand grows.
That’s worth paying attention to.
Three Guys. One Garage. One Problem to Solve.
Far From Stock started the way a lot of great shops do. With a problem.
Three guys were working on a first gen Dodge build and could not find a steering kit or custom parts that actually worked the way they needed. So they built their own. They kept building. Kept testing. Kept sharing the process online.
“At first, Far From Stock was just an outlet. A way to build trucks the way we thought they should be built, save the journey on social media, solve problems we kept running into, and share it with a small group of like minded people.”
There were no big expectations. Just passion, mistakes, and a small audience that related to both. That honesty is what built the foundation.
When the Small Wins Started Stacking
Growth did not arrive as a single moment. It showed up as momentum.
“There wasn’t one single moment—it was a series of small wins that started stacking up.”
Orders started coming in from people they didn’t know. Messages turned into repeat customers. Customers turned into a community. And then something shifted.
“The biggest turning point? When people weren’t just buying parts—they were trusting the brand.”
That trust changed everything. This wasn’t just a side project anymore. It was a business solving real problems and building a culture people wanted to be part of.
What They Do Differently
They Build Everything Themselves
“What sets Far From Stock apart is that we actually do this ourselves from start to finish. From the drawing stage, to fabrication, to powder coat, to install, we are hands on in the process.”
They’re not reselling outsourced parts. They’re a real shop building solutions for trucks they know inside and out.
That hands-on approach does more than just improve quality. It builds credibility.
They Turn Giveaways into Experiences
Giveaways are common but most brands treat them like promotions. Far From Stock treats them like extensions of the brand.
“There are a lot of giveaway companies out there, but not many are giving away the older trucks we build around.”
Each truck is rebuilt using their own parts, their own labor, and their own standards.
One of the most memorable was an ’83 W250 that was transformed into a W350 dually with a full frame off build.
“When Richard Sampson came to pick it up, I got to ride with him as he took it down the road, and seeing his face light up when he realized what he was actually driving was incredible.”
That’s the difference. The giveaway isn’t the marketing. It’s the experience.
They Treat Merch Like a Real Product Line
Most brands treat merch as an afterthought, but Far From Stock built it into the system.
“We think about merch as its own reflection of the brand, not just something tied to a giveaway. We never wanted it to feel cheap or disposable.”
Because they print in house, they control the quality from start to finish. The merch has to live up to the same standard as the trucks and the parts.
That consistency is what turns a t-shirt into something people actually want to wear. Not just something they bought for a giveaway entry.
Building Hype is a Full Time Job
From the outside, giveaways can look simple: post a few videos, launch a raffle, let it run. That’s not reality.
“We’ve learned that building hype and engagement around a giveaway is a full-time job. You cannot just post a few videos and expect people to care.”
It takes consistent content. Showing up at events. Strong messaging. Telling the story behind each build.
The hype works because the story is real.
Photos provided courtesy of Far From Stock
The Reality Behind the Scenes
One of the biggest challenges hasn’t been building trucks, it’s been building the business around them.
“We’re really good at truck parts, and we’ve had to learn the ecommerce side as we’ve grown.”
Growth creates complexity: making the site easy to navigate, helping customers find the right parts quickly, keeping up with demand while still designing new parts for newer trucks as the community evolves.
Far From Stock had to grow into it.
When the Product Shows Up
Even though merch is tied to a giveaway, the expectation doesn’t change.
“Quality matters most. Speed matters, but when they open that package, we want them to feel good about what they bought.”
Levi’s customers expect the product to match exactly what they saw online. The right color. The right fit. The right print.
“Even though the purchase is tied to a giveaway, we still want them opening the package and feeling proud of what they received.”
Closing Insight
If someone wins one of their trucks, Levi keeps it simple.
“The first thing they should do is enjoy it and go make a memory with it. But if we’re being honest, it’ll probably involve about 650 horsepower and a burnout.”
That answer says a lot. Far From Stock didn’t just build parts. They didn’t just build trucks. And they didn’t just sell merch.
Levi and his team built something people want to be part of. And then they built a business model around it.