Greg Stewart was today's main speaker. He
was born in Canada. He is a dual citizen.
He got the radio bug as a teenager and began working
part time at a radio station. He went to
school at the same time but was offered a full time
position at the radio station and took it. He
also did some television. At that time it was
live television. He told stories in front of
the "magic kingdom". This is where he learned
to ad lib. He worked his way into upper
management at the radio station. The fun was
gone and he eventually got fired after a change in
ownership and downsizing.
They would come to Arizona for vacations. He loved the
dude ranches. After leaving the radio station they decided
to move here. All of there kids and grandkids live here in
the Valley.
Greg was blessed with enjoying everything he did. He
loved radio. But he found that his enthusiasm for radio
was just "his enthusiasm". He is just as enthusiastic and
passionate about FASTFRAME. He could even be enthusiastic
about being a dishwasher for Don Ellis...just not at home.
When looking at franchises, FASTFRAME caught his eye.
It was art. It was new...He is one of the original owners.
He and Pat are referred to as the pioneers in the business.
They just signed their third 10-year agreement. They are
the first ones to ever do this.
He wanted to do something he knew nothing about.
Getting into the business was a total learning experience.
They were instructed on how to run the business. Then they
hired professional framers - Greg stays out of their way.
People walk in and look overwhelmed. There are so many
choices. People see the word "FAST" and think it must not
be that good. But Greg and his staff stress quality.
In 15 minutes they have to show customers a good, better and
best options or they lose them. (Greg showed samples of
the different levels of frames and explained the differences).
He has learned what sales tactic works for each generation.
For instance, he has found that the Y-Generation doesn't care
about how long something will last. They are more
concerned about the color of the matte. They do sell more
best and better than good.
They have two stores. They had three stores at one time
but realized you couldn't be at two places at the same time.
They are proud of the fact that an owner is always at the
stores. Greg loves working with the customers.
Visit
www.fastframe.com. Go online and place your order.
Get free shipping if you send it to one of their stores, and
they can frame it for you.
Greg admits that he couldn't do this without Pat. She
is the "guts" of the business. She is the buyer and
handles all of the finances for each location. She stays
on top of everything.