Earlier this month, Carter's Sports Cresting Ltd. celebrated a fantastic milestone – 25 years in business serving customers in Amherst and area, and even farther afield.
Deputy Mayor Dale Fawthrop stopped by the celebration to present a special certificate of recognition from the Town for the occasion.
Mark and Brenda Carter love what they do, and it shows. Together, they’ve been steadily growing the operation into the fixture of the community that it is today.
When asked how the business got started, the couple chuckled about how everything came together in a period of just one month – which is incredibly fast for launching any new venture.
“It was an idea I had about four months before that,” Mark began. “There was a special promotion on at a tradeshow and I put my credit card down. Then I went to Toronto for about a week of training on the cresting equipment.”
Sometimes you just need to take a chance.
Deputy Mayor Fawthrop presents Mark and Brenda Carter with a certificate celebrating their business's 25th anniversary.
Mark and Brenda Carter pose with their staff members and celebrate 25 years in business.
“Mark has a business background,” shared Brenda. “He knew what documents needed to be filled out and in what order to get the business going, so he kept giving me paperwork – everything was paper back then.”
The business opened in June, 1999. By September they had three cresting machines in operation in a space just down the hall from where they operate now.
“When our current space became available – it used to be a women’s clothing store – we didn’t think we’d be able to fill it,” Brenda said. “We started the trophies shortly after that, and eventually we began taking up more of the building’s space. We’ve almost expanded back to where we started from down the hall!”
Originally from Amherst, Mark has enjoyed growing up here and also growing the business.
“It’s been very good to us here. You put in the work for a marathon, and it’s been much the same way for our business in Amherst.”
The couple explained that the growth of their business happened naturally. Starting with cresting then trophies; signage, screen-printing, promotional products and printing are all now part of the busy operation.
“I’m not sure what the recipe is for having a great staff, but we just treat people well,” Mark shared. “Our staff has been key for us. When you have such a good staff, coming to work is fun.”
The Carters employ seven people at their business, most of whom have been with them for years.
“Everything in life helps you out later in life – we’ve been very fortunate.”
You can find Carter’s Sports Cresting at 141 Victoria Street in Downtown Amherst. Website | Facebook
