Last week Scott Carey, owner/president, was interviewed by Kenny Luck for The Weekender, NEPA’s #1 local arts and entertainment paper, about Breaker Boy. This is the article:

Scott and Gerald

Drum maker marches to own beat

by Kenny Luck
Weekender Intern

When Scott Carey told some of his friends that he was going to start a business in the middle of an economic recession, many of them were skeptical.

“A lot of people didn’t think it was a good idea, but I don’t let that get me down. I still believe in my product, I still believe in myself, and I still believe that when a person wants a really high-end custom drum kit that we could build it for them.”

Carey, 23, a King’s College graduate, is the owner of Breaker Boy Drums, a Wilkes-Barre-based business that he started in early 2009. Starting a business was, according to Carey, an idea he had been considering for a long time.

“When I was in high school I always played on really bad drums in the marching band,” he explains. “My first drum was practically duct taped together.”

But it was not until his senior year at King’s when Carey decided to put together a business plan to make his dream turn into a reality. His efforts immediately paid off. He won the King’s College Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition and a year later won a business grant of $20,000 and $30,000 in donated services at the 7th Annual Greater Valley Technology Alliance Business Plan Competition held at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs last April.

What is unique about Breaker Boy is that the company treats drum construction like an art form. Carey, along with business associate Gerald LaMark, works closely with its clients, consulting them on every aspect of the process. Whether choosing between wood-types such as maple, mahogany, or acrylic to selecting what type of finish to apply to the drum shells, Carey makes sure that each drum kit is custom built for each drummer’s needs. Not surprisingly, there is a lot to consider. From planning to product the process takes about a month.

“There are a lot of factors,” Carey observes. “First we have to figure out what [the drums] are going to be used for, the playing style, whether or not they are going to be used live or in the studio. The final step is I recommend a finish. Our specialty, what we really love to do, is we take really exotic veneers and apply it to the outer drum shell. You get a really nice look and finish.”

Others agree. Ben Russin, the drummer for the pop-punk band Title Fight, which toured with New Found Glory this fall, has been playing a Breaker Boy drum kit all across America. From an Orlando, Fla., tour stop, Russin took a minute to praise Carey’s work.

“The drum set is working great,” he says with confidence. “This is the first tour that I’ve taken it out and, honestly, it’s probably better than any other set I’ve ever played on. It sounds great and the sound guy has been complimenting me. I’ve got tons of compliments on the look and sound.”

Russin and the other members of Title Fight are originally from Kingston, and it was Breaker Boy’s unique approach which initially gained the bands attention. Other Breaker Boy endorsers include A.J. Jump of Underground Saints and Miz; LaMark, a member of Goodbye Soundscape; and Zach Baldassari of Kartune.

No other local music business offers custom drum kits, Carey said.

“You go to a music store around here and you are going to just get something manufactured off the shelf,” Carey pointed out. “But if you come to us you are going to get something totally custom made for you.”

“I noticed that I have a lot of people coming to me for parts like drum heads, lugs, and hoops. Basically what I want to do is launch an e-commerce store for drum parts. People can go on the site and if they need to replace something, or if they want to build their own kit, we will supply the parts to them.”

Despite the skepticism of naysayers, what began as a vague idea for one area King’s College student has now grown into a successful small business.

“In a few years,” Carey says, “my ultimate goal is to be the leading custom drum suppler and manufacturer.”

source: http://www.theweekender.com/music/Drum_maker_marches_to_own_beat_01-26-2010.html