He brought in two friends as partners: Ruben Barberan, who had first shown Guzman photos of the balsa boards, and Tom Bradley, who works in financial services at a local credit union. The three held equal shares of the new company, and each sunk a few thousand dollars in the venture. Barberan set up a website and traveled to Ecuador to talk to suppliers. Guzman spent time in Japan researching markets for the boards. They ordered four boards made and showed them around at surf shops on the Oregon coast.