Former pro golfer now entrepreneur times three

“I’m an entrepreneur and that’s what I do. I don’t know if there’s a recovery group for that or not. Maybe there should be,” Brewer said.

Brewer & Associates Inc., an S-corporation, is an umbrella for two companies: Find-A-Sign Advertising and MoneySaver Marketplace. Brewer also has a separate LLC for FAS Custom Carpets. Collectively his businesses fall under FAS Enterprises.

“I like businesses that look like franchises. It’s a branding. The most common thing I get asked when I introduce myself is whether this is a franchise, which means I’m doing something right. I want people to look at this and think this is a national company. It builds confidence,” Brewer said.

Find-A-Sign was Brewer’s first company. He started it in 1996 and formed an S-corporation in 1998.

“I tell folks I kind of fell into business. I had customers wanting things I couldn’t provide,” Brewer said.

At the time, Brewer worked for an outdoor advertising company. Because he felt limited in what he could offer his customers, he said he got the idea of brokering outside locations for companies and that became Find-A-Sign.

Find-A-Sign matches buyers who need outdoor advertising with sellers of outdoor advertising. Find-A-Sign is compensated through industry commissions. Brewer described the business as unbiased in that he not only can help clients find an outside media location, but help them determine if that is the right kind of advertising for their needs.

“We found a niche where people liked to make one phone call to us instead of many calls to different advertising agencies,” Brewer said.

Find-A-Sign has over 200 locations under contract in southwest Missouri and other areas. The customer base, Brewer said, is made up of nearly 60 regular customers who use outside advertising, most of which are in Branson.

“Our current client roster is about 65 percent Branson theaters and entertainment. We’ve got a solid reputation down there and good loyalty we’ve built up over the years. Springfield is the market we’ve wanted to expand into. Before, Branson was 100 percent of our business. Now we’re growing our clientele here,” Brewer said.

He said Find-A-Sign clients are mainly small businesses with up to 200 employees. The company’s largest client in Branson is Starlight Entertainment, Brewer said.

Other Find-A-Sign customers, past and present, include Battlefield Mall, Springfield-Branson Regional Airport, KY3, Bass Pro, Grizzly Industrial, Ramada Limited and Comfort Inn.

Brewer said the business greatest growth right now is outside of the immediate area. For instance, agencies have contacted him to find locations in Arkansas, Nebraska and Florida.

Find-A-Sign is www.findasign.com on the Web. At that site, customers can order such items as LED message signs, trade show displays and neon signs.

On the Find-A-Sign site, Brewer found that customers often asked if he could put customer logos on trade show carpets.

“I got tired of saying no and found a company that wanted representation to expand their line,” Brewer said. Thus FAS Custom Carpet began in July 2003.

FAS stands for Fantastic Artistic Solutions, Brewer said.

“We do custom-inlaid rugs for homes, custom commercial carpeting for businesses,” Brewer said. “We are able to create designs for customers, based upon their colors and expectations,” Brewer said.

The carving of the carpet is done by laser, which is why the lines are so precise, Brewer said. He described the custom carpeting as a high-end product.

A multimillion dollar house in Joplin is a current project receiving custom carpet work, Brewer said. He also said his company has done custom carpet on the small scale, too, as with a custom rug for a baby’s room.

“We sell direct, but we mainly work with the trade – interior designers, builders, architects,” Brewer said.

So far, most of the customers for carpet sales are from the Internet, although he has done spec rugs for Bass Pro and work for such clients as Heritage House Interiors, Brewer said.

Pricing of carpets depends on the complexity of the custom cutting.

“We did limo rugs for Sterling (Coach Builders). Those were a couple of hundred dollars. Rugs can go up to $60,000 or $70,000 for wall-to-wall inlays. Our average sale is $2,800-$4,000,” Brewer said.

From signs to carpet to print publishing is an odd jump. But Brewer’s latest endeavor, MoneySaver Marketplace, is the realization of a long-time desire to go into publishing. When the opportunity came along, he took it.

MoneySaver Marketplace, a monthly publication started in July 2004, is a direct-mail advertising magazine full of coupons. Approximately 36,000 are direct-mailed to seven ZIP codes in the area including Nixa, with an additional 6,000 placed in Wal-Mart stores.

Brewer’s three-year goal for MoneySaver is to get to the point of direct mailing 72,000 to residences each month.

“Direct-mail magazines are the fastest growing type of direct mail advertising in the U.S. right now,” Brewer said.

MoneySaver Marketplace is Brewer’s favorite business right now. “It’s because I love start-ups,” he said. “It’s a grind; it’s grueling; but it’s very rewarding.”

The newest addition to Brewer’s businesses is Coupon Express, which he purchased from Dan Westermier in July.

Brewer projects that by the end of next year the two publishing ventures together should be grossing over $200,000.

FAS Enterprises is expected to do nearly $2 million in gross sales this year, Brewer said.

“I believe in low overhead. All my businesses have low overhead,” Brewer said. Part of that is done by keeping employees to a minimum.

Brewer began business with himself as the only employee; now he has one part-time and two full-time employees, as well as an independent salesperson.

While Brewer said he enjoys the challenge of starting up a business, having the right staff in place after the initial excitement dies down is the key to continued success.

“It’s a juggling act, it’s a lot of work. I have two young kids and I want to spend time with them. The biggest challenge is finding the right personnel to help – and balancing family,” Brewer said.