Rush River Scenic, a set design and development company, gives a twist on local business here in Pierce County. The company was started in 1996 by Nils and Jennifer Rahm and is located in a secluded area north of Ellsworth. In this studio, Nils Rahm builds sets for Fortune 500 companies such as 3M, Target, Red Bull and many more.

Nils Rahm is originally from the small town of Spread Eagle, Wis. and graduated with a degree in photography. After traveling the world and working as a professional photographer and photographer’s assistant for many years, he decided he wanted to do something different.

Rush River Scenic was not

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always the vision for Rahm, but he knew he wanted to do something with construction and design.

“I’ve always been a builder and I like the challenge of being able to create a vision and make unique sets each day,” he said.

His set design business started off small and grew into what it is today with the help of the people around him.

“Some of the clients I know locally referred me to others and this being a smaller industry, I was able to grow this business into what it is today,” he said.

The sets that Rahm builds can sometimes be built within just a few days, but the process usually takes a couple weeks. Some projects can be created and finished in a shorter amount of time.

“It can be days, sometimes someone will say ‘we need a set done tomorrow’ and that’s just how it works sometimes,” he said.

One of Rahm’s most rewarding and favorite projects was when he worked with Shaun White and Red Bull.

“The Shaun White projects were really cool and fun projects. They are always different so it is hard to pick a favorite. I’m really proud of the more challenging projects,” he said.

Rahm says Rush River Scenic’s location is beneficial to the work he does. It’s close enough to the Cities but far enough away that he has more space and privacy, which is helpful to the set development.

“We have so much space and we’re kind of undercover out here and in the Cities there’s more to consider and it’s hard to find a large space in a big city,” he said. Rahm also tries to keep full particulars local.

“We have a lot of local people working here and we try to use local welders, hardware stores and we try to keep it all in the area as much as possible,” he said.

Nils and Jennifer Rahm live in Prescott and love being a part of the Pierce County community. They both are very passionate and proud of how far they have come.

“We started this business together a long time ago by ourselves. I remember doing all the paperwork on the kitchen counter,” said Jennifer Rahm.

The Rahms also make it a priority to create a positive working environment. Jennifer Rahm said, “We’re like family honestly and Nils cares so much about everyone working with him and we try to stay close.”

Currently, Rush River Scenic is working on some projects for the Minnesota State Fair, Ferrari, and many others. Nils Rahm is always keeping busy and constantly building new sets for commercials for Arby’s, Target and many more. Some samples of their past work are available at their website rushriverscenic.com.

Photo by Melissa Thorud

Photo by Melissa Thorud