In conversation with Mississauga’s Christopher Wright, owner and founder of X1 Whips.

1. What does your company provide/do?

I always love this question because of the looks people give me when I get to tell them that I am actually a professional whipmaker. Think Indiana Jones, Zorro, Cat Woman, or for the younger audience, Jacques Ze Whipper from your Instagram and TikTok feeds. I probably have one of the coolest jobs in the world where I get to specialize in the production of high-quality, hand-crafted whips in a variety of styles, sizes and materials. Rather than mass produce a single model I prefer to work with my clients to create tailored products that suit their needs and really come to life in their hands. Although my company is less than a year old, my clients already include multiple Guinness World Record holders, award winning whip crackers, stage performers, and enthusiasts from all over the world.

2. What inspired you to start your company?

Ever since I was a kid, I have always enjoyed working with my hands. When I discovered whipmaking, I knew that I had finally found my calling. Whips are this beautiful blend of form and function that require an analytical mind as much as they do skilled hands, and every day learning to make them has been its own little adventure. Only seven months after making my first whip, I travelled to Los Angeles to compete at the 6th International Whip Convention and won 3rd place as a whipmaker in the synthetics division; I was blown away! When I got home I registered X1 Whips and I haven't looked back since!

3. What's been the most impactful lesson you've learned being an entrepreneur?

Time is your most valuable resource, and learning to spend it properly by delegating pays dividends!

As a new entrepreneur it is easy to get caught up in the mentality that you need to do everything yourself to keep your costs as low as possible. Do your own bookkeeping in that excel workbook you don't really understand? Make your own website with... wait which builder should I use? What on earth is SEO? Keywords? Compliance?Focus! Ok, Handle your own marketing by... HOW ON EARTH IS IT MIDNIGHT ALREADY?

Learning to delegate the tasks I was unfamiliar with by hiring the right professionals not only produced better results than I could have in a fraction of the time, but it allowed me to focus more of my time on the unique skills that only I can bring to my business.

4. How do you unwind?

As someone with ADHD I actually thrive on constantly having something to do! "Unwinding" for me often includes learning a new skill, prototyping new designs, playing with my dogs, going on adventures with my wife, looking after my plants, or any number of other activities.

5. What succinct advice do you have for aspiring entrepreneurs?

The best advice I can offer comes in the form of a quote and an anecdote, both of which have acted as guiding principles for me”

"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky

Edison, when queried by a reporter about the seemingly incredible difficulties associated with his work on the lightbulb, rebutted, “I have not failed 700 times. I’ve succeeded in proving 700 ways how not to build a lightbulb.”

I'm a firm believer that if you never try you may never fail, but if you never fail then you most definitely cannot grow. If it's worth doing, then it's worth failing at until you get it right.

6. What are your goals for 2024?

I will be returning to L.A. in January for the 7th International Whip Convention where I will be competing again as a whipmaker.

I’ll then move to my new workshop (my wife will be thrilled to have the living room back), launch my website, and rework my social media strategy to be more interactive. Whipmaking is not a common art so I want to take people inside my shop and show them what goes into the process, not just the finished results.

Click here for more info on X1 Whips