My First Year in Business: How Bluet SUP Was Born

When I look back at my first year in business, it still feels like a dream stitched together with sunrises, sweat, mistakes, miracles, and the kind of community you can’t plan — only grow. Bluet SUP didn’t begin with a business plan or a fancy launch. It began with a poster taped to the Starbucks bulletin board in Highland Village and a garage full of paddleboards in Highland Shores.

That was my headquarters. My “office.” My everything.

And then came my very first paddler: Katlin. A young woman who unknowingly stepped into the first chapter of Bluet SUP’s story. That day was special for another reason too — my Great Pyrenees, Sophie, who had never swum or paddled with me, watched us glide away. When I returned to check on her, she surprised us both: she jumped right onto the board.

At nine years old, my old girl decided to learn a new trick. A 100‑plus‑pound Great Pyrenees became my SUP pup, my workout partner, and my heart on four legs.

Katlin and I built a friendship that lasted long after that first lesson. Today, she has her PhD — and I love knowing Bluet SUP is woven into her story just as she is woven into mine.

🌅 The Early Days: Yoga in Skiers Cove, Race Training & Potluck Nights

That first year was full of “firsts.” Our first SUP yoga classes in Skiers Cove. Our first paddle race training sessions. Our first fun SUP nights that always ended back at my house with a potluck surprise.

My intention was simple: Create a community where everyone felt welcome, accepted, and connected.

💙 The CAC Years: Where Bluet SUP Found Its Heart

Teaching at the Flower Mound CAC was the moment Bluet SUP shifted from a small homegrown idea into a true community. That’s where I met paddlers like Robin, Russ, Craig, Dawn, and so many others who showed up with open hearts and became family.

Those classes were magic — SUP Fitness that left us laughing, SUP Yoga that softened the edges of hard days, beginner classes where fear turned into joy. The CAC shaped me as a leader and helped build the soul of Bluet SUP.

🌳 Pilot Knoll Park: Becoming “Official” (and the Day My Heart Broke Open)

When Highland Village welcomed me into Pilot Knoll Park, it felt like Bluet SUP was finally becoming real.

And then came the day that nearly broke me.

After a heavy Texas flood, I pulled into the park and saw my trailer — my entire business at the time — floating in the lake. My chest tightened. It felt like watching my dreams drift away. I was devastated.

The Highland Village Parks team showed up with a giant crane and the kindest hearts. They didn’t judge me. They just helped.

I took the trailer home, cried until I couldn’t anymore, opened a bottle of wine, and cleaned it piece by piece.

Even when everything sinks, you can rise. Even when your heart breaks, you can rebuild.

🌀 The Teenagers Who Became Adults (and CEOs)

One of my greatest joys has been watching the teenagers who once hauled boards and scrubbed equipment grow into incredible adults. They became family.

My favorite full‑circle moment is Nardelli Studios — my marketing company today — owned by Simone Nardelli, one of my very first team members. He started with me as a teenager learning responsibility and customer care. Now he’s a business owner I trust deeply.

Another former team member once told me:

“Juliet, I’ve traveled the world, learned new languages, earned degrees… but every job interview only wants to talk about Bluet SUP.”

I always told them: “This is hard work, but these skills will carry you far.”

And they did.

🔥 2020: The Year Everything Changed

When Texas went into lockdown, I drove to the lake with my power washer — partly to prepare, partly to stay hopeful. I posted that I was staying positive, and more than 25 people showed up that same day.

People were hurting. People were grieving. People were overwhelmed.

Some had lost jobs. Some had lost loved ones. Men arrived unsure how to support their families. Moms showed up exhausted and emotionally drained.

And we were there.

If someone needed a hug, we gave it. If someone cried, we held them. We laughed together, cried together, breathed together.

Some days we had over 100 paddlers, and I was lost trying to manage it all. But my team that year… they were perfect. Loving, patient, steady, strong. They carried me on the days I didn’t know what to do.

2020 broke us open — and somehow, it brought us closer too.

🌕 Growing Into Something Bigger Than Me

Each year brought new opportunities — the kind I never could’ve dreamed of when I was teaching out of my garage.

International SUP tours. Full‑moon dinners where strangers became friends. The biggest paddle race in North Texas — the Bluet Brawl. A self‑service kiosk that keeps us open 365 days a year.

But the best part? It never stopped being fun.

I still get butterflies before sunrise paddles. I still cry happy tears when beginners stand up for the first time. I still feel that spark when people connect on the water.

Bluet SUP became bigger than me… but it also made me bigger — braver, softer, stronger, and more joyful.

💫 Why I Still Love What I Do

Some of my favorite moments aren’t the big events — they’re the quiet ones.

The days when paddlers sit around talking, holding space for each other. The sparkle in a beginner’s eyes when they stand up for the first time. The laughter, the tears, the silence shared on the water.

And here’s the truth:

Behind the scenes, this work can be overwhelming. The paperwork, the scheduling, the weather stress, the equipment repairs… some days it feels like too much.

But the moment I step onto the water — alone, with a group, or especially with beginners — everything inside me settles.

That makes every hard day worth it.

Bluet SUP is more than paddleboarding. It’s a safe place. A community. A family.

And it’s the place where I remember who I am.

One paddle at a time, we change lives — including mine.