In February, Custom Neon, a small company, located in Kitsap County, celebrated its 10-year anniversary.

Fifteen years ago, owner Laurie Lewis was running her own neon sign shop in Salt Lake City, Utah, when her mother had to have a major surgery. She volunteered to be the one to come home and help with post-operative care, moved to Hansville, and found employment as a neon glass bender with a sign company in Seattle. (Many full-service sign companies farm out their neon work.)

This had the advantage of immediate, steady income, but did not afford Laurie the self-direction she experienced as a business owner in Utah, so she made the decision to set up shop in an outbuilding of her mother’s farmhouse, allowing her to continue caring for her mother, and to benefit from low overhead.

“I knocked on the doors of about every sign company in the Puget Sound area, and gave them my business card and rate sheet.” Clientele began to grow. “Then I got hooked up with Hanson Signs,” Kitsap’s largest sign shop. They had been doing their own neon in-house, and had just made the decision to farm it out.

Slowly but surely, Custom Neon grew. Suppliers began to refer clients. Word of mouth spread. Other sign companies subcontracted with Laurie. After five years, the business had stabilized and Laurie was now at a point where she could not do it alone. She made the decision to hire a part time person, on a contract basis.

“Getting someone else in to work with me was huge,” said Laurie, “even though I was a little worried about the expense. Working in a vacuum stunts creativity. It was our brainstorming together that led to all kinds of new things.”

Then a few problems began to creep in. First was the introduction of LED’s, those tiny little light bulbs that started replacing neon. LED’s are actually more expensive than neon, and are not as bright, but are easier to install and theoretically save energy. “And anyone can do it,” explained Laurie. Producing true neon, on the other hand, requires specialized equipment and an aptitude for bending the glass tubes.

Custom Neon needed to diversify. While maintaining all the previous clients, Laurie addressed an area she had long been interested in and had developed in Salt Lake City — neon art. Systematically, an art line was developed and shown to galleries and shops in the closest major towns. It took time to find the right sales locations, and working on consignment meant it took even more time to be paid, but gradually the art became a bigger piece of the income. Even when months would go by with no sales, people were noticing the pieces and coming to the shop to see what else could be done with this media. In addition, Custom Neon began to participate in Art in the Woods, giving even more people the chance to come to the shop and see the work firsthand.

Capitalizing on the public’s fascination with how the neon process works, and what it would be like to work in the industry, classes were offered and Custom Neon entered into an agreement with Vocation Vacations, where people can “try out” their dream job for a fee.

Two other areas were identified as marketing niches where neon will most likely always reign supreme. The first was microbrews, and the second was classic car lovers. Small targeted marketing began on these two, and again, although results were not immediate, growth did begin.

Custom Neon began an ongoing public relations strategy. For the first time, print ads were placed and press releases were sent out. To encourage the public to come in, Open Houses were held with special discounts, a once-yearly “garage sale” to clear out unsold items, and Laurie joined the Kingston Chamber of Commerce and hosted After Hours. Also, the business regularly donated to local charitable causes, such as Stillwaters Environmental Center, local schools, and the Chamber. To stay current, a website was also developed.

By the eighth year of business, another obstacle presented itself. The business had clearly outgrown its work space. So Laurie expanded into the new Kennedy Business Park. With windows partially facing Highway 307 (Bond Road), drive-by traffic could now see the shop.

Not only was the move more expensive than estimated, but within a few months the economy began to take its toll. “The biggest expense was rent,” noted Laurie, “but landlord Abe Young worked with me on rent because it was in both our interests to keep me there.”

“I returned to knocking on doors again — from Everett to Olympia — to say once more, here I am.” Other small neon businesses were folding, the survivors would get the work, and Laurie needed to let them know Custom Neon was a survivor. Gradually new, promising, connections were made.

Laurie resolved to maintain a good attitude: Going to work every day, continuing to do PR work, and staying connected with fellow business people.

“I emphasize the quality of the work,” added Laurie. “We never cut back on materials, or ordered cheaper parts. The company is built on quality work, and on making sure the customer is happy.