Fred’s Story
My love for hunting and the outdoors started at an early age, it’s something that just seemed to be in my DNA. My first recollections of this are when I made bows and arrows out of tree limbs and string as a small boy, then moved up the chain to slingshots and then BB and pellet guns given to me by my dad. As I got older and wanted to begin deer and squirrel hunting, my older brother let me use his 410 shotgun. My first deer rifle was a .270 caliber Remington model 700 ADL that I bought from my dad. Shortly after I bought the rifle I was able to harvest my first whitetail deer. Then my brother got me interested in archery and I only harvested one more deer before putting the rifle away. I was born to be a bow hunter!
Our Southeast Texas family was of modest means, so my dad didn’t have the time or money to do a lot of hunting, but what we were able to do was enough to convince me this was where my passion was. As I progressed as a hunter from shooting rabbits and squirrels to whitetail deer as a teenager, I couldn’t have imagined how much more there was to experience in the world of hunting outside of Texas.
That all changed just before I turned 20 when my older brother and I went to Colorado – which was my first hunting trip outside of Texas. On a 90-yard walking shot with a bow and arrow, I was able to harvest a Mule Deer. That experience raised the bar for me personally, and at the age of 26 (with $25 in my pocket and the clothes on my back), I moved to Alaska and lived there for the next 10 years.
After moving to Alaska I took a job at a tannery, and that was when my passion for hunting and the outdoors took on a new meaning. Within a year of taking that job, I actually bought the tanning business where I was working. My time in the 49th State helped me to grow and take on all kinds of new challenges and experiences – I learned how to downhill and cross-country ski, how to fly an airplane (earning my pilot’s license), climb mountains, drive a snowmobile and many other things I could have only imagined as a kid growing up in Southeast Texas.
As my tanning business in Alaska grew and evolved over those 10 years, it eventually became apparent that in order to have the kind of business I really wanted – one that could match my passion for hunting and the outdoors in size and scope, I would need to relocate to an area where costs were lower and the demand for my expertise was greater.
In October of 1990, I moved back home to Texas and in 1991 I opened Quality Fur Dressing in Spring, just north of Houston. Over the past 33 years, I’ve continued to grow as a hunter and outdoorsman, just as I’ve grown my business. I still enjoy hunting whitetail deer in Texas, but I also travel the globe to some of the most remote and exotic places on the planet to hunt wild game.
I’ll be posting pictures from my hunting adventures past and future on a regular basis, and with each picture will be a true story about how it all happened. I invite you to subscribe to our newsletter so you can stay informed of industry trends, what’s new in hunting and all my adventures.
As you consider Quality Fur Dressing for your tanning needs, I want you to know the service you receive is from a kindred spirit, one who shares your passion for the outdoors and wild game from around the globe in all shapes and sizes. I look forward to sharing my joy and passion with you.
To Your Success,
Fred Sweisthal
President and Founder
Quality Fur Dressing