Business grad. Vintage Zippo restorer. Ready to help tell the story of a brand I've admired for years.
I just wrapped up my business degree at West Liberty University, and I've been hooked on Zippos for years. These days I restore and paint lighters from the late 1940s to the mid-'70s, so future generations get to enjoy them too.
Seven years in retail taught me how to talk to people, figure out what they actually need, and show them why something's worth it. Now I want to bring the creativity, the product knowledge and the people skills to marketing a brand I love.
Years of hands-on restoration. I know what collectors notice.
Seven years on the sales floor, building trust one customer at a time.
I make social content, and I'm part of the collector community.
Max Kellas: Zippo Restoration / A film by Kellas Productions
Don't sell a younger audience on nostalgia. Show them the work. A beat-up lighter from the '50s, brought back to life in a 60-second video, needs no explaining. When you grow up surrounded by disposable things, something you can fix and pass down feels new. Lead with the process, and let the product earn the sale.
What's at risk isn't the old products. It's the knowledge of how they were made, repaired and cared for. Every restored lighter keeps a little of that alive. I'd make the people and places behind the products the story: who built them, how, and why they held up. A legacy only lasts if someone keeps telling it.