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About Us  Greek Glow was recently founded by Creston Brown, an former undergraduate business student at the University of Notre Dame. Creston has been in involved in the Sign Business his whole life. His grandfather, Henry Arthur Brown Jr., pioneered the business many decades ago. His two main businesses were Colite Industries and Transco Incorporated. Mr. Brown involved his entire family in the Sign Business; whether working in the factory or office, each child developed a strong understanding of the industry.Currently, four of Mr. Brown’s sons are in the Sign Business. Each of their businesses is known internationally as leaders in their field. Creston has worked with his family’s business since he was a small child. Now he has taken the initiative to start his own company. Unlike most sellers of Neon Sculpture Signs, Creston has direct contacts with the manufacturers and suppliers of his products. His advanced knowledge and contacts in the industry ensure each customer that he/she is getting the best product at the best possible price. Contact Us For any questions or inquiries please contact us at customersupport@greekglow.com Depauw University Growing up in the Sign Business, I knew this was a field that I would like to enter into one day. The only question was when it was going to happen. I have always wanted to own my own company, and I have had hundreds of ideas—some practical, and others just plain silly. I guess that just comes with being an entrepreneur; however, one spring night in Greencastle, Indiana would soon be a night that I would never forget. It all started when two of my college roommates wanted me to go with them on a weekend trip to Depauw University. One of my roommate’s brothers was in a Fraternity at Depauw, and I was the only one in my room who had a car…you can do the math. My vehicular services were requested. At first I declined, but after much begging and pleading by my roommates, I gave in and decided to go. After several hours of driving, I was at the Fraternity house on the campus of Depauw. Now for me, this was my first time at a Fraternity house, being there are no Fraternities or Sororities at Notre Dame. As the night went on and my roommates were off doing their thing and I was arguing with someone regarding Notre Dame Football, I came upon a blue neon sign with the Fraternity’s initials. At that moment, I just stopped and stared; I don’t know why this sign was so attractive to me. I have been around signs my entire life, but this one was different. All of a sudden, the words Greek Glow went through my mind. I knew that this was the time that I was to start my own company. I was going to sell Fraternity and Sorority neon signs. That night I could not sleep. The wheels were spinning wildly through my head. I was starting to mentally put a business plan together; however, I had to tell myself to calm down. If this vision was going to turn into a reality, I had to be realistic and not expect things to happen overnight. The Following Days Over the next week I began to compile research on the steps that were needed for this venture to successfully happen. I soon learned that I had a tremendous task ahead of me. I had to: 2. Manufacture the product 3. Ship the product from the factory to a warehouse location 4. Pay for the product 5. Find a way to sell the product 6. Find a way to process orders 7. Find a way to process credit card and paypal payments 8. Find a way to ship the product from a warehouse to the consumer 9. Deal with potential defects 10. File Articles of Incorporation with the State of South Carolina 11. Obtain a Federal Tax ID number 12. Create a company bank account 13. Design a website 14. Maintain a website 15. Design and distribute marketing material 16. Create a web presence 17. Pay for all of this…did I mentions this before? 18. Actually run this business while attending one of the toughest Universities in the country 19. Deal with day to day problems of running the business And all of this was considering I was given approval to manufacture Fraternity and Sorority neon signs!!!! I had no idea where to start. So my first instinct was to Google Fraternity and Sorority neon signs. This search turned up virtually nothing. I then started to call different Fraternity and Sorority websites inquiring on how I could sell them products. I left lots of messages, and only a few were returned. One of my first contacts told me that licensing was done through a third party company. I then contacted this company and spent several weeks going back and forth on what was required. First off, I had to submit past financial records of my company; this was hard since I had none. I was just starting out. Second I had to submit sample products to the licensing company who would then submit them to the actual Fraternity and Sorority, bearing they approved them. The cost of submitting was non refundable, and there was no guarantee that they would be accepted. On top of that, there was a large double digit licensing fee that the Fraternity and Sorority collected from each $ of sale. Now this alone was not a problem, but I learned from talking to certain on-line sellers of Greek items that they required a 100% markup on all products! Lastly, I was required to carry large amounts of inventory of each sign type. Just to have several sign styles would require much more money than I possible had or could even get a loan for. I knew for now that I would have to put the Fraternity and Sorority signs on hold. It was so frustrating for me after devoting several months of my time to find out that this idea was not going to work. However, I knew that I had to keep working…I would find different styles of signs to carry, and I would to process the orders myself through my own e-commerce based company. Currently, prices for neon signs are very low with low margins, and the only way I could survive would be to sell directly, not through distribution channels. There was no way that I could afford a middleman. Sign Designs I found three different manufactures and received samples from each. After much testing and analysis, I picked a manufacturer. Following my selection of the best quality manufacturer, I picked 10 sign styles that I felt would be top sellers. I actually traveled and visited with my manufacturer and discussed how quality, durability, and ethics were most important for Greek Glow. After negotiating prices, warranties, and delivery dates the time finally came…the time to put my life’s savings into this project that I had put so much time into. This was a big risk for me. The Library I still remember where I was when I gave the final go ahead for the order. I was in the Notre Dame Library basement studying for final exams (one of the most famous collegiate buildings known as Touchdown Jesus). I just received an email and phone call from my supplier, and I knew that I had to give the final go ahead. I went upstairs, placed the call, and confirmed the order. All of my life’s savings, and then some, were gone. On top of that, I had to return to the basement and continue studying for my exams! Ducks in a Row After I placed the order in May, I spent the entire summer setting up my website, credit card and pay pal processing system, articles of incorporation, federal tax id, and warehouse distribution. Success I could go on forever on setback after setback, but I don’t want to bore you. There were times when I wanted to give up…times when orders were misplaced, signs broken, inventory wrong, etc. However, I worked through it day in and day out. Right now, I have sold signs in 39 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico. I have doubled the amount of sign styles that I currently carry, am working on new product styles, and am working on manufacturing signs for internationally recognized clients. Thanks to everyone for their support, and have a great day! Sincerely, Creston W. Brown | ||||
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