Zach grew up on the family farm where he was taught to work early. He enjoyed caring for livestock, especially cattle and horses. A stockman at heart, he stared breaking colts for the public at 15 and loping horses on the track.
The summer between his sophomore and junior year in high school, he attended the Western School of Horseshoeing in Phoenix. Upon graduation, he started his first business as a farrier. He was 16. He used this business, and work cowboying around Arizona on various ranches and rodeoing on the weekends, to put away a nice nest egg at a young age.
In 2001 he became ranch manager of a 50,000 acre operation in Northern Arizona. The M. Diamond Ranch was known for building a quality cowherd across the state. Here he learned to raise high quality beef, the value of genetics and nutrition, and how to feed calves all the way through finishing. While running the ranch, Zach continued his horse training and farrier business and soon he was able to invest in some property in Sedona, AZ.
When he sold the property, he invested his profit into a new business venture, launching Gibbs Western Wear. The store focused on quality goods for real cowboys and horsemen and developed an exclusive line of handmade boots and belts that held up to hard use, but didn’t break the bank.
Even while running his store, Zach continued his horse training business, now focusing on cutting and cowhorses. His successes continued and he pocketed several cowhorse wins including the Arizona Cutting Horse Futurity in 2006.
He sold the store profitably a few years later and held on as life took him through a few turns, after which Zach found himself in business again.
Oddly enough, this time it was an ice cream shop. This is when he fell in love with the food industry, an industry that would help him generate the financial freedom he sought… the freedom to buy and stock his own farm.
Things tended to grow under Zach’s care and the little ice cream shop was no exception. It expanded into a neighborhood café with the addition of cookies, coffee, and unique smoothies. He started catering parties and events, ultimately leading to the launch of Farmboy American Fare, a coast-to-coast catering operation. At that point, Zach sold the café and focused on the larger catering business and incorporating all types of American Cuisine, including smoked meats.
His goal with the Farmboy brand was to eventually raise everything sold on the menu, but he knew it was going to take a few years to accomplish. “I have always had a knack for anything livestock and food related,” says Zach, “it just comes natural.”
Farmboy American Fare grew and eventually catered major events including the Superbowl, NASCAR, the Indy 500 as well as the nation’s largest music festivals.
In the meantime, in 2015, he met the woman who would later become his wife, his business partner, and his muse… a woman who wanted to leave her own big city career and get back to her small town roots, farm life and working directly with her local community.
They were married in 2022 and began the search for the perfect farmland. They searched across the country and fell in love with Kentucky. They settled in the center of the Commonwealth, invested everything they had to buy farm land in Boyle and Mercer counties, to lease a little additional land, and to establish Dry Branch Stock Farm.
Zach could finally build a true farm-to-family business model, bypassing conventional sales channels and opting for quality above all else and (most importantly) selling directly to customers. Today Zach and Leah raise cattle, hogs, chickens, sheep and turkey on Dry Branch and follow a philosophy of decentralizing the food supply and selling directly to local families.
They believe individuals deserve to know what’s in their food, how it’s raised and to be able to ask questions and get answers about their food so they can feel confident that what they eat is healthy, wholesome, and natural.
“Everything that I have done in my career has led me to this,” says Zach, “this has always been my dream.”
