The Tube Dude Story
Who knew a smile could change the world? Certainly not Scott Gerber, a once-cavalier yacht builder humbled by the great recession of 2008.
Gerber was used to the good life. His business, Legend Custom Yachts, built high-end watercraft out of advanced materials like carbon fiber and Kevlar. When the boats were selling – million-dollar toys that you could literally shoot with a gun – life was good.
But when business dried up and Legend Custom Yachts was half-a-million dollars in debt, Gerber was at the end of his rope. One day in July of 2010, not able to stand the thought of looking at another boat, Gerber decided to do something else. He asked his highly skilled foreman, Laci Szalanzy, to help him build a life-size metal stick figure.
He didn’t know why. All Gerber cared about was the fact that he wasn’t building another unwanted boat. Four hours later, the first Tube Dude was born. He didn’t realize it at the time, but it was a transformative moment in his life.
Scott took his stick man home, installed it on his dock, and promptly forgot about the therapeutic experience as he went back to face the reality of his failing business. But before long his neighbor, who adored the stick man’s smiling face, asked him to make one for her mailbox. Scott was happy to oblige.
Weeks later, with the yacht business gone and spare time on his hands, Scott was painting his house when he noticed dozens of people stopping in front of his neighbor’s mailbox. They would get out of their cars, stand by the stick man, and have their picture taken. People were literally stopping traffic to get a better look at the metal stick figure with the smiling face.
That’s when Scott realized there is something special about the Tube Dude. He made a few more Tube Dudes and attached signs with positive messages like “SMILE” and “BE NICE” and placed them around Sarasota. It wasn’t a marketing gimmick. They weren’t even for sale. Scott wasn’t trying to build a new business. He was reinventing himself.
One day Scott was driving home with his Tube Dudes when a man stopped him and said, “I found you.” For weeks the Herald-Tribune reporter had been trying to solve the mystery of the metal stick figures. Since the story broke, Scott hasn’t stopped smiling.
Now you can see the brightly colored Tube Dudes all over town attracting attention to businesses and decorating front lawns. The response has been truly phenomenal, and no one is more surprised than Scott Gerber.
Local sales are up to two dudes a day. Dealer inquiries are coming in from all over the country. Retail stores are in the works. How far will Tube Dude go? Who knows? One thing’s for sure, whenever you see a Tube Dude, keep smiling.
