LOUISVILLE, Ky. — What started out as a hobby in his kitchen has transformed into his passion for making handcrafted leather goods. The face behind Dead Sled Leather Co. is Louisville native Jonathan Baker.
“It happened by accident,” Baker said. “I was just on Facebook and I saw an ad that someone had shared for a handcrafted wallet and at that time I was looking for something to do when I wasn’t working as a paramedic [to] kind of decompress.”
When Baker isn’t at “The Dead Space” in the Mellwood Art Studios, you can usually find him fulfilling a childhood dream of helping others, following in the footsteps of his father, who is a nurse.
“I had an injury playing little league football, and I was taken to a hospital by an ambulance and I was just like this is what I want to do, I want to help people because I was scared and they took care of me and made me not scared,” Baker said.
For 12 years Baker has spent his career in emergency medical services and the last 7 as a Jeffersontown paramedic. After a long day on the job, he can be found with a hammer in hand, giving back to others with the same passion.
“Firefighters are some of the greatest men and women you will ever meet. They’re organized, they’re driven and they take pride so I wanted to offer a product they could take pride in,” Baker said.
Baker hand crafts leather goods like wallets, belts, and leather radio straps for first responders out in the field.
“I didn’t want to become a fire department leather maker, but I can’t deny the fact that the fire departments have funded the growth of Dead Sled and have allowed me to continue to experiment and continue to offer new products,” Baker said.
Personalizing every product with different colors, names and symbols, Baker’s goods can be found on first responders around the city.
“Buechel, Fern Creek, Okalona, Fairdale, PRP, Anchorage, I guess it’s safe to say that every department at least has something that’s pretty cool when departments come together and their gifts to their employees are something you’ve made,” Baker said.
Why Baker prides himself with the slogan “quality ‘till your last ride.”
“We abuse things, we definitely abuse equipment and stuff like that,” Baker said. “I figured if I can make a product and it lasts in the hands of paramedics, EMT’s and firefighters, then it will probably last in the hands of anyone.”
Baker offers a warranty on all of his products and has nearly shipped his products to every state and overseas in Finland.