Seth and Avery Brown-Hickman’s Small-Town Texas Love Story

Some readers may recognize Seth Brown-Hickman from his quick-witted vehicle walk arounds and entertaining behind-the-scenes moments from the showroom floor. Seth’s Facebook and Instagram Reels have attracted a growing audience, turning the East Texas car salesman into an unexpected social media personality. What began as a way to build his business has evolved into something much larger, offering viewers an authentic glimpse into his personality, his marriage, and life in small-town Texas.

“I was trying to do what I was told and get on social media and build my brand,” Seth explains. “It started with just little voiceovers or this or that, and then it just randomly started hitting. It definitely has taken off.”

Behind those viral videos is a love story nearly a decade in the making. Seth, 28, and Avery Brown-Hickman, 25, both grew up in Cold Spring, a town of roughly 2,000 people north of Houston. Although they attended the same schools and church, their nearly three-year age difference meant they mostly knew each other from afar.

It wasn’t until one Friday night football game that everything changed. “I remember we locked eyes, and we were kind of checking each other out,” Seth recalls. “Then he drops something on the ground, goes to get it, gets back up, and we’re still holding eye contact.”

Avery also remembers the moment just as vividly. “I just broke eye contact to see if he was still looking at me,” he notes. That same evening, Avery made the first move by messaging Seth on Instagram. After talking online for six months, Seth finally suggested meeting in person.

“Avery was super bold,” Seth says. “I think I took it from there though.”
Their first official date was delightfully low-key. The teenagers visited the Sam Houston Statue in Huntsville, went for a hike, grabbed sushi, and headed to the movies. It also included one memorable culinary prank. “It was my first time actually ever eating wasabi,” Avery remembers.

Seth laughs remembering the moment. “I said, ‘Here, you just eat this.’ And then he picks the whole thing up and puts it in his mouth! I was thinking, ‘Whoa!’” Despite the spicy introduction, the relationship quickly blossomed.

Coming out wasn’t something Avery had fully navigated before they met. In fact, Avery came out to his mother while the relationship was beginning. “I came out to my mom and she was very accepting,” Avery reveals. “We were in a relationship, and I told her ‘Hey, this is my boyfriend.’”

For Seth, the relationship was equally groundbreaking. “This is also my first boyfriend,” he says. “Where we’re from, there’s no [LGBTQ] community.”
Growing up together ultimately became the foundation of their relationship. “We’ve literally figured out how to do this life together,” Seth admits. “We don’t give up on each other. We don’t plan on giving up on each other.”

Avery agrees. “We had a really solid, deep connection at the very beginning.”
Their personalities balance one another in ways that continue to strengthen their marriage as well. “Avery keeps my life together,” Seth states. “I like to think I zest his life up, but he keeps mine functional.”

Avery smiles before offering perhaps the most fitting description of his husband. “Like Taylor Swift said, ‘He’s like a human exclamation point in any room he goes into.’” Adding, “He brings the fun to my life.”

Long before Seth proposed, the couple had already developed a tradition around Valentine’s Day. They officially began dating the day before Valentine’s Day after Avery surprised Seth with a handmade gift filled with photos from their earliest memories together. “It was all handmade,” Avery explains. “I just remember giving it to him, and I said, ‘Are we ready to make this official?’”

A little more than five years later, Seth returned the favor with a carefully orchestrated proposal. He planned a picnic at a local park while quietly recruiting family members to hide nearby in disguises.

“We had our little picnic,” reminisces Avery. “Then I hear somebody screaming. Sure enough, it was his sister, my sister, my brother, and family and friends.” The surprise left him speechless. “It was just completely breathtaking. I just started shaking my head yes and had my hands over my mouth.”

When it came time to plan their wedding, the couple initially explored traditional venues before life intervened. “My car got stolen,” Seth says. “It just became this big fiasco.”

Rather than postponing indefinitely, they shifted course. On February 11, 2024, exactly seven years after they first got together, Seth and Avery married in the backyard of Seth’s childhood home, surrounded by family, lifelong friends, and the woods where he grew up.

“It was better than I imagined!” Avery beams. “Thinking back on that day, it was wonderful. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”

The ceremony reflected the couple’s shared creativity and determination. “We built everything by hand,” Seth recollects. “For the pews, we took a fallen tree and cut it into sections.” Their two beloved rescue dogs, Olive and Gus, also played starring roles.

“We walked down the aisle to ‘Enchanted’ by Taylor Swift. The violin version,” Avery remarks. “Seth and I had our friends walk our puppies down the aisle.”

For Seth, months of preparation made the ceremony feel almost sacred. “It just felt like this ritual that we were getting ready for,” he shares. “When everything started happening, I just started crying.”

Avery’s favorite memory came moments later. “Walking down the aisle to everyone congratulating us,” he states. “And of course, the food after the ceremony.”
If there was one defining theme of the day, it was family. The Brown-Hickmans planned the wedding themselves, but nearly every relative contributed something meaningful. “Our families played a really big part in the wedding,” Avery explains. “From sisters helping organize to cousins doing florals, and from a sister doing photography to brothers helping with labor. Even our good friend officiated the ceremony. It was a full-blown Brown-Hickman ceremony.”

“It takes a village,” says Seth, echoing that sentiment.

Their officiant, Michelle Thomas, wasn’t a professional wedding officiant. She was someone Seth met while delivering groceries through Shipt during the pandemic. She was a generous tipper who eventually became a close friend, and later, the person who married them.

Floral arrangements came together with help from Seth’s cousin Chloe Brown, while longtime friend Brave McRaven photographed and filmed the celebration alongside Avery’s sister, Taylor Hickman. After the ceremony, Joe’s Italian hosted the reception.

“It was mostly family,” Avery shares. “But Seth and I used to work for a company, Joe’s Italian, and they hosted our after-dinner ceremony and did a phenomenal job. The owner was so kind to us.”

Looking ahead, the couple hopes their growing online presence eventually helps them build something of their own. “Eventually me and Avery do hope to come together and build something of our own,” Seth mentions. “It’d be cool if this persona and our relationship ends up feeding into something even better.”

Until then, anyone shopping for a new vehicle can find both husbands at Kramer Autoplex in Livingston. For the Brown-Hickmans, whether helping customers find the right vehicle or continuing to build the life they’ve imagined together, they’re proving that some of life’s greatest journeys can begin in the smallest of towns.