Curtis Edenfield is a self-described aviation nerd who has been around the industry his entire life—both parents worked in aviation, and his brother Stuart is a pilot and one of the co-founders of Thrive Aviation. “I was destined for a career in aviation from the time I could walk, and I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Edenfield said.
Edenfield, his brother and a third partner founded Thrive in 2018. Over the last five years, it has grown from several employees to more than 150, occupies about 80,000 square feet of hangar space and has grown revenue into the high millions. The business is entirely locally owned and operated, with a full-scale global impact.
Stressing the importance of company culture, Edenfield says that building the brand and brand values has been extremely rewarding. “The biggest challenge is managing growth while running a 24/7/365 global operation. Every day is a new puzzle piece, aligning flights, passengers, crew and more,” Edenfield said.
Looking forward, Edenfield is personally excited to grow as a husband and father of two children. Professionally, the growth of Thrive is top of mind. He wants to create a meaningful experience for his employees and for everyone to be proud of the work they do.