Today we’d like to introduce you to Louben Repke.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I really feel like I’m living the American Dream.
I was born in Haiti and moved to Maryland when I was 10 years old. At the time, I spoke Haitian Kreyol and French, but I did not speak a lick of English. I attended Old Mill Middle North, which was definitely a big adjustment for me, haha. I later went to Broadneck High School and graduated in 2008.
My career started in the physical therapy world, working as a tech at Cypress Creek Physical Therapy. From there, I became a personal trainer and really found that I enjoyed helping people improve their health and their lives. That eventually led me to open Repke Fitness in Millersville in 2014. The goal was to create a place where we could help people get stronger, feel better, and especially work with those dealing with injuries or medical conditions.
Along the way, I also became a registered nurse. I graduated from Anne Arundel Community College and later earned my bachelor’s degree in nursing from Frostburg, I love helping people in anyway shape or form. . I have worked in different clinical settings over the years and still work PRN at BWMC’s surgery center.
Then DodgeArrows came into the picture almost by accident.
In February 2022, I was trying to find something different to do for my brother’s 34th birthday. We had already done things like paintball and laser tag, so I wanted something new. I came across combat archery, got a group of friends together to try it, and we had an absolute blast. I remember thinking right away, “Why don’t we have something like this in our area?”
Not long after that, I received an email from Opportunity Builders, Inc. about available space in Annapolis. The timing felt perfect, so I decided to go for it. That idea eventually became DodgeArrows Annapolis, and we officially opened our doors on December 22, 2022.
Since then, DodgeArrows has grown into much more than the original game that inspired the business. Today we host birthday parties, camps, field trips, corporate events, Nerf events, laser tag, archery tag, and all kinds of group experiences. For me, the best part is seeing families, kids, coworkers, and friends come in, have fun, and create memories together.
Today, between DodgeArrows and my other businesses, I employ more than 15 people. That is something I am extremely proud of because it is no longer just about creating something for myself. I get to create jobs, give people opportunities, serve families in our community, and hopefully build something that continues to grow for years to come.
When I look back at being 10 years old, coming from Haiti, not speaking English, and trying to figure out a completely new life in the United States, I never could have imagined where the journey would take me. I have been a physical therapy tech, personal trainer, registered nurse, and now the owner of multiple businesses.
There have definitely been a lot of long days, risks, mistakes, and lessons along the way, but I’m grateful for all of it. I truly believe I’m living the American Dream.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. One of my first big challenges was moving from Haiti to the United States at 10 years old without speaking English. I had to learn a new language, adjust to a completely different culture, and figure out how to fit into a new school system. Looking back, I think that experience taught me early on how to adapt, stay uncomfortable, and keep pushing even when I did not have everything figured out.
Entrepreneurship has brought a completely different set of challenges. When you own a business, there is always something. Staffing, payroll, marketing, customer service, scheduling, unexpected expenses, and making sure you are still providing a great experience for your customers. There have been plenty of times where I have had to figure things out as I went.
Work life balance has probably been one of the hardest parts for me. I love working and staying busy, but trying to juggle family, friends, working for yourself where you are always on is though. Over the years I have balanced nursing, Repke Fitness, DodgeArrows, family life, and now managing a team of more than 15 employees across my businesses. There are only so many hours in a day, so I have had to learn how to delegate, build systems, trust my team, and understand that I cannot do everything myself. Hiring the right people
DodgeArrows came with its own challenges because we were introducing something that a lot of people in the area had never heard of before. It was not like opening a restaurant where everyone already understands the product. We had to educate people on what DodgeArrows was, get them through the door, and then make sure they had such a great experience that they wanted to come back and tell other people about it.
There have also been mistakes, ideas that did not work, money spent in the wrong places, and plenty of long days. But I try to look at all of those things as part of the process. Every challenge has forced me to become a better business owner and a better leader.
I still do not have everything figured out, and I do not think any entrepreneur ever really does. You just get better at solving problems. For me, the goal has always been to keep learning, keep improving, take care of my team, and keep building something that serves our community. I especially love employing people who are trying to find their ways in life or have come from unfortunate background and are still moving forward. S
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
DodgeArrows Annapolis is all about bringing people together through fun, active, high energy experiences.
We are best known for DodgeArrows, which is basically a mix between dodgeball and archery using bows and foam tipped arrows. It is competitive, safe, and a lot of fun, especially for groups. A lot of people come in having never tried anything like it before, and that is part of what makes the experience so memorable.
Over time, we have grown into much more than just DodgeArrows. We now offer birthday parties, summer camps, school field trips, corporate events, team building, Nerf events, laser tag, archery style tag, and other group activities. We work with kids, families, schools, businesses, and organizations throughout the area.
What sets us apart is the experience we create. I do not want people to just come in, play a game, and leave. I want them to walk out talking about how much fun they had and wanting to come back. We really focus on customer service, keeping the energy high, making everyone feel included, and creating an environment where people can put their phones down for a little while and actually interact with each other. It’s a fully private and guided event from beginning to end.
I am especially proud of how much DodgeArrows has grown through word of mouth and repeat customers. We have had families come back year after year for birthdays and camps, schools return for field trips, and companies choose us for team events. To me, that says more than any advertisement ever could.
I am also proud that we have been able to create jobs and opportunities for people in our community. Across my businesses, I now employ more than 15 people, and seeing members of our team grow, take on responsibility, and become part of what we are building is a big deal to me.
At the end of the day, DodgeArrows is not just about launching arrows at your friends, haha. It is about creating experiences and memories. Whether someone comes in for a birthday party, camp, field trip, corporate event, or just something fun to do with friends, I want them to leave saying, “We have to do that again.”
That is the brand I am most proud of building: something fun, different, community focused, and something people genuinely enjoy being a part of. Plus everything that we offer at DodgeArrows is very active, from laser tag, dodgeball, DodgeArrows you have to move your body, dodge, duck, walk, run and more. So it gets people moving in a sneaking way while they are having fun and i love it!
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Growing up, I was always curious, active, and pretty independent. I liked figuring things out for myself, and I have always had a competitive side to me. I enjoyed sports, being around people, and anything that kept me moving.
Moving from Haiti to Maryland at 10 years old had a big impact on my personality. I came here speaking Haitian Kreyol and French but no English, so I had to learn pretty quickly how to adapt. At first, I was probably more observant because I was trying to understand the language, the culture, and everything happening around me. Over time, that experience made me more comfortable putting myself in unfamiliar situations and figuring things out along the way.
I think I’m still a lot like that today. I like staying busy, I’m always thinking about the next idea, and once I get excited about something, I usually want to figure out how to make it happen.
I wouldn’t say I just jump into things without thinking, though. I a big risk calculator, but I love risks, I think through what could go wrong, calculate whether the risk makes sense, and then I go for it. I don’t really fear failure because I usually start small and test things in a calculated way before going all in. If it works, I keep building from there.
That’s pretty much how DodgeArrows started too. I’ve owned DodgeArrows for about four years now, and I also have another business, Repke Fitness, that I started about 12 years ago and is still going today. So I guess you could say I’m a little bit of a serial entrepreneur. I’m also a techy. I love anything technology-related, tinkering with things, figuring out how things work, and trying new ideas.
Probably the biggest piece of advice I would give anyone building a business is to stop trying to be the “who” for everything. It’s about WHO, not HOW.
I love doing and learning how to do things, that used to be how I operated but not anymore. I love learning and I love doing things still. But now I hire out. When i was doing everything the problem was that things moved slower because I had too much on my plate. I would spend all this time learning how to do every single thing the business needed instead of realizing that somebody else could already do it better and faster than me.
About three years ago, I really started changing that mindset. I started partnering more, hiring people, collaborating, and letting other people take ownership of things. It has honestly been life-changing.
“Who, not how” is something I really believe in now.
You don’t have to figure out how to personally do everything. Sometimes the better question is, “Who is the right person to do this?”
Hire the right people, set clear expectations, and then let them do what you hired them to do. Don’t micromanage great people. Be a good example, take care of them, listen to them, and give them room to make decisions.
Even with the people I hire, I tell them that raises are based more on what you actually do than what you know or simply how long you’ve been with the company. I have people who are phenomenal. They’re self-starters, they solve problems without me having to ask, they make my life easier, and they genuinely take things off my plate. I never liked being a micromanager and I’m not a perfectionist so having the right people has been great for me.
in my opinion, an owner You should be competent enough to understand thier business, but wise enough to know that you cannot do everything yourself. So hire, delegate, collaborate and learn from others.
Partnerships and collaboration can lead to better products, faster execution, and ideas you probably wouldn’t have come up with alone. I also think it’s important to ask your team for honest, unfiltered feedback. You don’t want people around you who just tell you what they think you want to hear. Having people you trust enough to disagree with you can help you get where you’re trying to go much faster.
A great team also gives you something a lot of entrepreneurs struggle to have: some kind of work-life balance. A lot of entrepreneurs burn themselves out because they feel like they have to personally carry everything. I definitely understand that mindset because I used to operate that way too.
Find the right “who,” let them do their thing, and grow the company together. Pay great people well. If it makes sense, give them profit sharing or even a stake in what you’re building. When good people feel valued and feel like they’re actually part of what you’re creating, they’re much more likely to stick around and help take it to another level.
I’ve always liked the quote that 5% of a watermelon is better than 100% of a grape. I would rather build something much bigger with a great group of people than own 100% of something small simply because I insisted on doing everything myself.
That mindset has probably been one of the biggest changes for me as an entrepreneur. If anyone wants to reach out, talk business, collaborate, or just connect, you can find me at:
DodgeArrows: Collab@DodgeArrows.com
DodgeArrows.com
RepkeFitness: Louben@RepkeFitness.com
RepkeFitness.com
Pricing:
- 30 per person for 1 hour group booking
Contact Info:
- Website: https://dodgearrows.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dodgearrowsannapolis
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DodgeArrowsAnnapolis
