IBC 2007 was an excellent convention put on by a lot of very enthusiastic bison industry stakeholders; and Rapid City, SD proved to be a great location for the event. The western heritage of the city and surrounding region was a perfect fit with bison - the heritage animal of North America. The recognition of our heritage animal was evident when you first entered the lobby of the host hotel, the Ramkota, and saw a beautiful tile inlay of a bison on the lobby floor. Artisan works with a bison theme were on display throughout many of the stores ('Prairie Edge' was incredible).

I was delighted when the Canadian Bison Association invited me to assist in working at the CBA booth and be a part of the Canadian contingent, which numbered about 70 out of the 550 attendees. And I think most of those attendees stopped by the CBA booth - it was definitely a busy place! Pauline and I met with not only Americans and fellow Canadians, but also people from Russia, Scotland, England, and Germany. They asked a variety of questions from herd numbers and management practices to export regulations and consumer awareness. We must have provided the right answers as we sold several new memberships! Everyone was very impressed with the quality and variety of the promotional material the Canadian Bison Association has available for both producers and food service industries, and many orders were placed for these materials. We also sold Raffle tickets from our booth on the beautiful bison leather saddle, Harley-Davidson motorcycle with bison leather accessories, and bison coat. (But darn, none of my tickets were the lucky ones when the draws were made.)

Unfortunately, with the booth being so busy, Pauline and I were only able to attend a few of the Conference sessions. Of those I did take in, I admit I especially enjoyed two on cooking bison meat as presented by Bruce Aidell, Aidells Sausage Company and Michael Paley, Executive Chef of Proof on Main, Louisville, KY. (Yes, the best part was in tasting their creations.) "Creating Events and Festivals" by Bill Keitel was most interesting. Bill owns the successful Buffalo Billfold Company, but he shared observations and notes from over 300 days of festivals that were insightful for anyone involved in public presentations.

The time before and after sessions saw large numbers of people going through the Trade Show that displayed a wonderful mix of bison products. These included beautiful bison leather furniture, home décor items, clothing, boots, handbags, crafts and some incredibly lovely jewelry pieces.

But it wasn't all work – the IBC Committee had evening events planned that gave all attendees a chance to unwind and network. Ted Turner was the keynote speaker for the Opening Ceremonies at Mount Rushmore, and began the event with a very positive message for our industry that Senator Tom Daschel added to. But it was Ted that was thrilled when he was inducted in a special ceremony into the National Buffalo Foundation's Hall of Fame. Watching the eagles soar gracefully above the monument as the sun was setting, then taking in the Lighting Ceremony at 9 all provided for a very moving evening. Wednesday evening was the Foundation Dinner at Crazy Horse Memorial for 125 attendees, or the Flying T Chuckwagon Supper and Show for the rest of us. I heard the Foundation Dinner was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience as promised; but have to say we had fun and a good meal at the Flying T. Thursday evening saw all of us in the downtown area of for the Taste of Rapid City Block Party. Area restaurants served delightful tastes bison meat prepared in many different ways. (Didn't need supper after that.) Deadwood City was the destination on Friday where IBC attendees could take a trolley ride to Boot Hill or the oldest gold mine in the world, or try their luck gambling at one of the numerous casinos. 6 pm was the start time of the PRCA Deadwood Days Rodeo, and there was a large group from the bison conference cheering loudly with the locals. A lunch at Custer State Park on Saturday was followed by a bus tour that took us through buffalo herds (that paid us little attention) and the Park's handling facilities. Many of the IBC guests got together for dinner that last evening, and comments could be heard everywhere about what a great event it had been.

The next International Bison Conference will be in Canada – site unknown at this time – but when the date and site are announced start making plans to attend. You don't want to miss the next one!

A concise treatise on city and regional festivals from the perspective of an exhibitor, artisan, craftsman, musician, entertainer and organizer.  While most people attend a festival or two each summer, Bill spends 30 to 45 days each year on the road attending festivals & markets.        This writing includes the observations & perceptions on what deems them successful.  (available in writing or discourse)

   This information has been compiled over the course of numerous years ( while attending many of the most respected festivals in the Midwest).  If your city / chamber of commerce or organization is considering a new festival endeavor,  the insights that the author has to offer may well be invaluable to your organization.

Author contact

Bill Keitel  507-372-7175  

Bill’s business builds burly buffalo billfolds, bags in bunches

By Richard Siemers
The Land Correspondent
 

September 26, 2008 03:20 am

— Bill and Lauri Keitel have never raised a single bison, but they know buffalo hide inside and out.
That’s why they’ve been successful transforming hides into usable items. Their Buffalo Billfold Co. in Worthington makes a variety of items out of American bison leather. Billfolds and purses are their mainstay, but they also produce top-of-the-line items like hand-crafted flight bags, as well as laptop/legal briefcases, checkbook covers, belts and just about anything you can make out of leather.

The Keitels work out of the basement of their leather goods and gift shop in downtown Worthington. Buffalo hides are piled on a counter, waiting to be crafted by the machines that line one wall.

“It may not look like it, but this is a herd of 200 to 300 buffalo,” he said of the pile.
They’ve been working with buffalo for 10 years.

“I’m originally a shoe repairman by trade,” Bill Keitel said. “I was kind of apprenticing in Worthington, doing orthopedic prescription build-up work.”

Doing other leatherwork with cowhide was a hobby, he realized that he enjoyed that just as much as shoe repair. So 35 years ago he and Lauri turned a hobby into a business. “We hit the ground running,” he said, “and we’re as busy as we could possibly be.” For years they have supplied fire departments in about 30 states with leather pager cases.

Ten years ago a friend who was raising bison asked if they wanted to experiment with buffalo leather. Keitel took him up on it, and it has now become their trademark.

Keitel explained that leather is measured by weight. The thinnest they use is two to three ounces per square foot, and the thickest is 7.5 ounces per square foot. Different weights are used for different pieces of a billfold.

“We have the tanner level the hide to whatever thickness we want. They run it through a machine that shaves off the bottom half so we have the top grain leather,” Keitel said.

Leather can be tanned multiple ways and in any color, he said. The natural color is a cardboard color. They have theirs tanned to a chocolate brown. After 25 years in the leather business, he learned that you can dictate to the tanner what you want if you order in large enough quantities. For cowhide, that would mean 50,000 square feet. Fortunately, buffalo hides are still more of a niche business, so he can order 5,000 or 10,000 square feet and specify how he wants it tanned.

“It’s neat that it’s a small enough industry that a little guy like me is noticed, within the industry,” he said.

Most of his hides come from South Dakota herds and are tanned out east. Technically, he gets “sides” and not “hides.” A full hide would be too large for his die cutter, so they come split in two. He will get a truckload of from 200 to 500 sides at a time, representing a herd of 400 to 1,000 bison.

The process to turn the leather into a finished project begins with die cutting the pieces. For a billfold it takes multiple pieces that are then assembled into a billfold.

“It seems like a pretty simple process,” he said, “and it is, once you’ve gotten used to it, but there are certain techniques of how you cut this on the hide. Cut the wrong way, the leather won’t stretch properly. You have to be able to know how to read the hide.”

Once the pieces are cut, they go to the skiving machine.

“When you have a piece of leather that you want to fold over the edge, it is too thick,” he said. The edge of the piece is run through the skiving machine, a kind of planer that thins down the edge. Before folding, it goes to the gluing machine. The glue holds the fold stable for the final step, sewing.

Keitel said they have had “unflagging patronage locally,” but local patrons cannot sustain such a specialized business and they’ve had to seek a broader market. They attend the wholesale gift show in Denver, through which they sell their product to about 200 different stores, mostly in the west where folks have an interest in bison. They also spend 45 to 60 days a year at art festivals.

When not on the road, they are in production mode, with all of the products crafted by the Keitels and three people willing to work as needed.

One of their selling points is durability.

“Being a shoe repairman by trade, I’m familiar with people’s anguish when things fall apart prematurely,” Keitel said. “We make things that last. After working with buffalo leather for over a decade, we go to great expense — more so than many people would — when it comes to tanning our leather. We put a finish on the back side so when it’s made into a billfold, we don’t have to have a lining on the inside.” The lining, he said, is often the first thing to wear out in a billfold.

They advertise that durability in their store. When people come in to buy a replacement, they ritually nail the old billfold to a post behind the showcase. It’s a tangible display of the durability, since many of the billfolds were 20 to 30 years old when replaced.

Quality is important to the Keitels, because “we compete with ruthlessly cheap imports,” he said, “and there are people who are willing and want to recognize the difference.”

In addition to quality and durability, the other ingredient to the success of the Buffalo Billfold Co. is Keitel’s obvious passion for leatherwork.

“It’s a real niche market,” he said, “and I think the reason we have been successful at it is that nobody else would want to work this hard. It requires unbridled enthusiasm. And my wife and I have it.”

One could wax mystical, and say that working with the hide of the strong, majestic American bison that has come back from near extinction would have an effect on those who handle it. And it is possible that the artisan and craftsman do want to produce a product worthy of the magnificent animal that once filled the hide. But Bill Keitel’s explanation is more practical.
“We have worked doggedly and never considered it work. We’ve always really enjoyed what we do. Looking back after 35 years, that’s a treat.”
Buffalo Billfold Co. is located at 326 10th Street in Worthington. Their website is www.buffalobillfoldcompany.com, or call (507) 372-7175.

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