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By now, Carrie Whisler is used to getting stopped in the grocery store. You might think that she’s a local celebrity, but it has more to do with where she works. “I’ll run into customers while I’m wearing my Oly Fed shirt when I’m shopping and they’ll say, ‘I love Oly Fed! You gave me my first loan back in 1942.’ People tell you those things,” she says. “I like that.”

In a role that could have been custom-designed for her, Whisler was hired as the Commercial Relationships Manager at Olympia Federal Savings’ downtown branch last year. Previously the bank had offered business checking accounts and commercial real estate loans, but had little focus on business lending. “Business lending is so one-on-one that I consider myself like a concierge,” she says. “You tell me what you need and I’ll find ways and resources to make that happen.”

carrie whisler oly fed
Carrie Whisler prefers to visit her business lending clients on site to get a feel for their organization and plans for change or expansion. ©ThurstonTalk

Her clients tend to fall into several categories: small business owners looking to expand or make a change, first time business owners striking out on their own, and ‘encorepreneurs’, retirees who’ve decided to forge a new path. “An example might be a clothing shop who’s adding a new product line or a food truck getting added as a new opportunity at the farmers market,” she says. “It’s someone who wants to expand themselves in an entrepreneurial way.”

Although she’s based in Olympia, Whisler filters calls from all of Oly Fed’s eight branches and spends a lot of time meeting with business owners on site. “I like to go out to people’s businesses and see what they’re doing,” she says. “It’s easier to understand their passion and it’s a lot better than just looking at financials. There are always new projects or things that people are working on that they want to show you.”

Aside from her role at Oly Fed, Whisler serves on the boards of the Thurston Economic Development Council and the South Puget Sound Community College Foundation. The latter is tied in with the Center for Business & Innovation at the college’s Lacey campus, and she refers many clients there.

carrie whisler oly fed
Aside from her role as Commercial Relationships Manager at Oly Fed, Carrie Whisler volunteers on several local boards. Photo courtesy: Olympia Federal Savings.

“I can help with my resources like the CBI,” she says. “I think it’s really important as a banker to make sure that you have provided all the resources someone needs to make an informed decision because it’s setting them up to be a successful business owner. It’s not just about having more businesses, it’s more successful businesses.”

She advises entrepreneurs to “explore the ‘what if.’ Have a road map that’s changeable,” she says. “Maybe the economy changes or your competition changes or maybe they go away and that creates a great opportunity. Do you have the capital available to be able to jump on that? What are you going to do to set yourself up?”

Considering all contingencies comes naturally to Whisler, who comes from a steady string of entrepreneurs. Her mother owns Maytown Ranch, a horse training and breeding facility, her father has been operating Whisler Communications since the 1970s, one grandfather owns several car dealerships, and the other, since deceased, was a commercial developer in the region. “A lot of the developers have done business with him in the past and they talk about that,” she says. “It’s cool for me to hear about the projects they worked on a long time ago and see how they shaped this area.”

She started in the banking business more by accident than design after graduating from college, but quickly discovered that she wanted to work with small businesses. “I think that comes from my background with my family,” she says. “I’ve always grown up in that environment.”

carrie whisler oly fed
Carrie Whisler and her horse Sheza Haillion (Hailey) placed 11th at last year’s National Reined Cow Horse Association World Championship Show. Photo courtesy: Carrie Whisler.

After becoming a branch manager at a larger bank, she decided that a smaller organization would be a better fit. In a moment of serendipity, Washington Business Bank was just starting out. “I worked there for eleven and a half years,” says Whisler. “I had some great customers and the staff are still all my friends.”

When the opportunity came to start a new business banking division at Oly Fed, she chose to embrace it. “Oly Fed is very community focused and very education focused, which is exactly like I am,” she says.

In what little spare time she has, Whisler competes at the international level in horseback riding. Last year she went to the National Reined Cow Horse Association World Championship Show and placed eleventh. “I’ve been lucky enough to always work for employers that support outside activity and are flexible,” she says. Half the year, she trains with her mom at Maytown Ranch. The other half she spends in Powell Butte, Oregon. “I have a 40-foot horse trailer with living quarters in it,” she laughs. “It’s a roving apartment.”

While others might admire her feats, her heroes are the local business owners she meets. “I really look up to them,” she says. “They take risks, but they’re calculated risks and they’re always adding to their leadership circles, whether through mentorship or connections. I’ve done the same thing, because I want to be that kind of banker that can offer those connections.”

To contact Carrie Whisler, call 360-754-3400 ext. 1126 or email cwhisler@olyfed.com.

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