Building a Life Together in Ogden
On June 20th, 1923, Wes and Vennetta were married in Salt Lake City. Both entered adulthood already accustomed to responsibility. Vennetta had built steady experience at The Paris Company Millinery. Wes had finished high school, served four years in the Marine Corps, and attended the University of Utah while working summers in the mines. The years that followed included several business ventures, long hours, and frequent adjustments.
After their marriage, they moved to Ogden. In 1923, Wes worked as a representative for R.G. Dun & Company (later Dun & Bradstreet), traveling to evaluate business credit. Dun & Bradstreet was an established commercial reporting agency. The work required careful observation and structured reporting. It was steady employment, but he soon pursued independent business.
Vennetta was employed at Wright's Department Store in Ogden. She brought bookkeeping experience and office discipline into the marriage.
By 1924, they were living at the Barnhart Apartments (336 27th Street). During this period, Wes and Vennetta operated a sweet shop. Vennetta later recalled that he worked days while she put their first child to bed and then she worked nights. For a time, they lived behind the sweet shop itself. Work and home overlapped.
Their first son, Lowell Wesley "Bud," was born on January 13th, 1925, at the Dee Hospital in Ogden.
The mid-1920s brought rapid expansion in radio ownership. Radios brought news, music, and national programming into American homes.
In Salt Lake City directories for 1922–1923, Wes appears connected to Snaps Manufacturing Company, a confectionery-related firm, working with his half-uncle Wilson T Robbins. A year or two later, the Ogden directories show him and Vennetta operating the Sweet Shop / The Robin (soft drinks, ice cream, sundries, cigars, magazines) and then adding radio supplies. The confectionery work likely exposed Wes to retail economics and supplier contacts that helped make a small Ogden shop a practical next step.
City directories show the business evolving in stages. In 1924, Vennetta is listed at The Sweet Shop (580 24th Street), while Wes is listed as a representative for Bradstreet Co. In 1925, the same address appears as "The Robin Confectionary," with Wes listed as proprietor, and the directories also list "Robbins Radio Co" at that same location. In 1926, the radio business is still listed at 580 24th, although "The Robin Confectionary" name no longer appears. In 1927, Wes is listed only with R. G. Dun & Co.
During the late 1920s, Wes suffered a serious bout of rheumatic fever. He recovered and returned to work, but the illness likely caused long-term heart damage.
His civic life also began during these years. In 1927, he became active in the American Legion. By 1929 he had been nominated as a director of the Executives Association of Ogden.
During this period, the family lived at Lakeview Apartments (3600 Grant Avenue) and later at 2824 Brinker Avenue.
The 1928 directory lists Wes as Office Manager for Browning Products Corporation at 2602 Washington Avenue. By 1929, the directory lists Robbins Radio & Supply Co., Inc. at 2602 Washington and calls it "Successors to Browning Products Corporation." The continuity of the address, plus the "successors" wording, points to a business transition where Wes moved from management inside Browning to leadership of the successor company.
In 1929 it appears formally in the Ogden City Directory as:
Robbins Radio & Supply Co., Inc.
Successors to Browning Products Corporation
2602 Washington Avenue, Ogden
L. W. Robbins, President-Manager
Golden W. Robbins, Vice-President
Vennetta Robbins, Secretary-Treasurer
Vennetta was listed as Secretary-Treasurer, reflecting her direct involvement in bookkeeping and administration. By that time Golden was a practicing lawyer in Salt Lake City, which would have made the corporate structure and officer roles more practical to set up and maintain.
Their daughter, Sharon Anne, was born on 14 October 1929.
By late 1929, the family had two young children and an incorporated business. The national economy soon shifted.