About Tin Sheets

We created Tin Sheets due to our desire to help small businesses find the tools and solutions to reach their full potential. In 2009, we took over a struggling family business and, through the implementation of new systems and fresh ideas, grew it to be profitable and ultimately successfully sold in 2016. Throughout our journey as small business owners, we discovered that what we enjoyed most about our work was designing the plans and developing the processes and systems to facilitate change and growth. Once we’d achieved this in our business, we realized that we wanted to help others find the same success.

Initially, we intended to be winery business consultants and Colorado business mentors but have since branched out to help entrepreneurs locally and nationally, with businesses both large and small across a wide range of industries. Our small business advisory services have helped a neighborhood yoga studio streamline, an auto broker innovate, and a fourth-generation local dining institution provide a memorable experience, as well as many others to cultivate, create, and captivate.

Why Tin Sheets?

In 2016, we sold our winery in Western Colorado to follow our dream of traveling the country by Airstream to see the sights and taste the wines from across America. We traveled more than 12,000 miles over three months seeking to find the remnants of the time when America’s greatest love was the car, documenting our travels in our travel blog, Tin Sheets to the Wind. The inspiration for our blog’s name, and ultimately our consulting company, was born of three sources. It combines the tin (often slang for aluminum) from which our Airstream, Stan, was made; the cliché, three sheets to the wind, an homage to our career as winemakers; and the wind which was vital to our winery and the inspiration for the names of our wines- Canyon Wind Cellars and Anemoi Wines. We no longer have the Airstream but still regularly travel the two-lane roads throughout the country by car, seeking the quirky and the kitschy with our furry co-pilot.

Our People

The Team

Jay Christianson

Founder/CEO

A Colorado native, Jay grew up on a ranch in Sedalia before spending a number of years attending school in the Northeast, earning a Liberal Arts degree from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH. A former ski racer and ski racing coach, he was also a boarding school science teacher at Cardigan Mountain School in Canaan, NH before returning to Colorado to take over the winemaking, and eventually ownership of his family’s winery, Canyon Wind Cellars.

Growing up on the family estate gave Jay the opportunity to work side-by-side with and learn from the famous Napa Winemaker, Robert Pepi, providing him with an extensive knowledge of winemaking and an understanding of the importance of terroir and low-intervention practices. Involved in the vineyard, winery, and winemaking world for more than twenty years, Jay grew sales, executed major marketing changes, produced world-class wines for the growing Colorado industry, and implemented cutting-edge winemaking and sales techniques. He also managed the day-to-day operations of what could be considered Colorado’s finest vineyard, the Everyvine Platinum-certified Riverside Vineyard, receiving the Colorado Association of Viticulture and Enology “Grower of the Year” award in 2015. Jay served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Colorado Wine Industry Development Board from 2014-2016 and served on the Board of Directors for the Colorado Association of Viticulture and Enology from 2013-2015.

A true lover of the outdoors, particularly winter, Jay spent eight years as a ski racer and twelve years as a ski coach. Now embracing all four seasons, Jay is a volunteer member of El Paso County Search and Rescue, a fully-accredited Mountain Rescue Association group, serving the needs of lost, injured, and stranded people in El Paso County, Colorado. When he’s not searching or rescuing, he feeds his love of cars by keeping Lamont Cranston, our official road trip vehicle, in tip-top shape and has yet to find a road in Colorado that intimidates him.

To contact Jay, email [email protected].

Jennifer Christianson

Founder/CEO

Though she grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, Jennifer’s heart has been in Colorado since the moment she arrived at a dude ranch in Durango when she was 16. She came to the University of Colorado in Boulder for school, fell in love with the mountains, and still hasn’t left.

After earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Geology, Jennifer worked as an Environmental Chemist for the U.S. Geological Survey before returning to school to earn an MBA with an emphasis in Human Resources Management. After graduate school, she headed to Vail where she spent four years as the Development Director for Ski & Snowboard Club Vail. Following a brief stint in other youth sports, she returned to the ski industry and accepted her second Executive Director role with the Park City, Utah-based World Cup Dreams Foundation where she helped to build the non-profit from the ground up, from logo design to website creation to successfully fundraising in order to provide insurance for U.S. Ski Team members.

Upon meeting Jay, she learned that she loved wine and that the process of creating wine was fascinating. Armed with passion, the resources of a world-famous winemaker, and a fabulous pair of (now retired) purple rubber boots, Jennifer helped to shape the future of Colorado wine by bringing new perspective and creative ideas to the winery, including the creation of Anemoi Wines. Jennifer was awarded a Winemaking Certificate from the University of California in Davis in 2016 and served on the Board of Directors for the Colorado Association of Viticulture and Enology from 2011-2013.

Jennifer loves seeking out remnants of Americana and vintage neon signs and is the trip planner for our travel blog adventures. When she isn’t researching our next adventure, she volunteers for El Paso County (Colorado) Search and Rescue, teaches yoga, and creates custom road trips for other two-lane enthusiasts. Her goal is to someday have her picture taken with every mountain pass sign in Colorado.

To contact Jennifer, email [email protected].

Saxby

Chief Canine Officer

Saxby is the newest addition to the Tin Sheets family. Following in the large paw prints of our founding Fine Wine Canine, Finley, he has enthusiastically jumped into the role of Chief Canine Officer. From requiring us to walk a minimum of four miles per day to warming our feet under the desk to enforcing regular play breaks, Saxby is a valuable member of the team.

In his free time, he loves to hike, “assist” with gardening, attempt to sit or stand on every piece of furniture in the house, and is an official K9 Member of El Paso County (Colorado) Search and Rescue. Named for a henchman in the James Bond movie, Diamonds Are Forever, Saxby is sweet, sassy, and always sniffing.

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