Dave Wilderotter opened the first Tahoe Dave’s location at the Henrikson building in Tahoe City in 1977. Over the years, adding in five more locations throughout North Lake Tahoe and Truckee, Tahoe Dave’s has become an institution in the Tahoe area.

So, when John and Autumn Lincoln reached out to Wilderotter about two and a half years ago about the possibility of purchasing the business, it was always going to be a tough sell. And while timing was not right at that time, the Lincolns still had an interest.

“I just kept staying on top of it,” said John. “Persistence always beats resistance in my book, and I wrote him a very personal story of my why and I got a phone call, and he said, hey I know timing wasn’t right, but are you still looking to do this?”

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While the timing might have finally been right for Wilderotter, by that time the Lincolns had just started a new business (Lincoln Search Group) and had established another business, Lincoln Healthcare. But the opportunity to get back to the Tahoe region and take the reins of the successful foundation was too great to pass up. It was the sale of Lincoln Healthcare that afforded them to take over Tahoe Dave’s.

With previous ties to the Tahoe area, the Lincolns already held the region in high regard.

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“I came out to Tahoe originally on vacation about 22 to 23 years ago, said Autumn. “I fell in love with the mountain lifestyle and came back, stayed, and bought a business.”

John was also no stranger to Tahoe having come as a kid with his father every spring and skiing Kirkwood and Sierra-at-Tahoe in the winter. The two were also married at Sand Harbor 13 years ago.

“When you talk about Tahoe, I tell people all the time, if I died and I woke up tomorrow, I would wake up to this, because that’s what I think of heaven,” said John. “I couldn’t think of any better community to be a part of.”

Autumn explained, “For me, my mission has always been there to help people, to create things, to help people to live their best life. What Dave has built, he is helping people to live their best life in a whole different way. We went from health care to this and helping people to really get out and enjoy what mother nature has to offer. It’s just super special.”

While the couple officially took over the business on August 18 of last year, Wilderotter remains part of the family.

“Dave’s been incredible,” said Autumn. “I feel like he’s still part of our community. No, he’s not involved in the day-to-day operations anymore, but he would if we ask him to.”

“It’s an open door. We’re like family with Dave and the transition has been amazing. We come from a world of building a company from the ground up, and this is new for us right to take over something that someone else has built,” added John.

And the couple does not take that task lightly. They know what has been put into the business to succeed and maintaining the level of service towards their customers and keeping the brand experience is important to them – especially when it comes to culture.

Culture was one of the reasons the Lincolns became interested in the business to begin with. Priding themselves on being fun people they know there’s a lot more to business than just fun, but what Wilderotter had built was exactly that – a culture that not only cares about the people who work for them and who they serve, but a sense of fun while they’re doing it.

That culture will continue to be at the forefront.

John emphasized, “We want the community and our customers to have the best experience possible. We want to continue to raise the bar, and that is our mission and goal. Stepping into an established organization like Tahoe Dave’s, it’s awesome, because you can embrace what’s there and it feels really good.”

That approach has created excitement – especially with the employees. Lincoln LIT is the official name of the ownership with LIT standing for Live Intentionally Together and the couple is enjoying spreading that mantra to the team.

“We’re teaching about living intentionally,” said Autumn. “And all the decisions that we do at Dave’s are intentional and how can we help build that? You can feel it when you walk in the store, there’s a passion that’s been fired up and it’s fun. They love it and it and it’s so cool to see. It has meaning, too. It’s not just we’re getting “LIT.” We bring a lot of purpose to what we’re doing.”

That purpose seems to be working and the feedback from the community has been extremely positive – especially when you can continue what Wilderotter had been doing for years.

“He’s so big at making a community impact, and that is something that we have continued, and we are even expanding on as we have really dove into the community,” explained Autumn. “That’s so important to us. And we love it. It’s a passion of ours.”

Stepping into a business that has been a staple in the community and replacing an owner as beloved as Dave is not an easy task. The Lincolns have not only embraced the opportunity but in a short time have embodied the business and injected it into their veins. And it’s fair to say that they are having the time of their lives with it.

John added, “The one word that came to mind was awesome. It’s like living in a dream. When you can take what we’re doing and layer it with what Dave has built, it’s beautiful it’s exciting and it’s fun. And it’s a great place to work.”

Tahoe Dave’s has six locations serving the greater North Lake Tahoe and Truckee region – two in Tahoe City, two in Truckee, Olympic Valley, and Kings Beach. To find the location closest to you, or learn more about the business, visit them online at tahoedaves.com.