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Meet Jarom Moore of NuKey Locksmith in Huntington Beach

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Jarom Moore.

Jarom, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
In 1995, my dad took me to work in the Inland Empire and showed me the ropes of a locksmith. My dad was an experienced locksmith and was working with property preservation and management companies at that time. I remember my dad was the guy that got called to work on the hardest locks that no one else could figure out. Because of his experience, I learned how to pick locks of all difficulties, how to rekey cylinders, cut keys and make copies, how to repair locks, climb through windows (when all else fails), and many other trade skills necessary to be competitive in the locksmith industry. I finished high school and traveled in Spain for two years where I learned my ambition and independence. I came back to the US to continue my education at Brigham Young University and I earned a BA in Spanish and Business Management. I did some work for a property management company in Provo, UT and after my wife earned her degree we moved back to California to pursue our careers. Since my dad had been in the locksmith business for several years, he had acquired lots of good contacts and so I was fortunate to land a management position at a property preservation company where I dispatched over twenty locksmiths and other contractors out to their daily jobs. This is where I learned that the office environment was a great place to learn some organizational skills but it was not where I wanted to stay. I gained more office knowledge than I deserved over the next few years and I also gained more experience as a locksmith doing the occasional odd jobs for my dad. At the beginning of 2013 I managed my dad’s company while he was traveling. I kept thinking, ‘I can do this in Orange County and LA County!’ My dad agreed and gave me his blessing to start NuKey Locksmith and he has been a great support all along the way. I should mention that I started NuKey because I was passionate about starting and running my own business, in general. I had been told by family, friends and professors while I was in school that starting and running a successful business is among the most challenging things one can accomplish. If anyone knows me, I love a good challenge. This idea was a persistent thought for several years, especially when I was working in positions that weren’t stimulating my interest. Since I started working in 2006, after graduating, my career has been the result of getting laid off several times because of economic turmoil and then desperately searching for a job that could sustain me and my family. I’ve never been a fan of working for someone else because I have lots of ideas that would otherwise, likely, be ignored or unappreciated.

Having my own business gives me the opportunity to own my wins and my failures. No one is to blame but me. And, I’m guaranteed that I won’t get laid off! All I have to do is work hard and make my clients happy! I am passionate about my work as a locksmith because my dad taught me the business without any expectations. This trade had been something that I could fall back on through several bouts of unemployment. Over the 22 years I’ve been ‘smithing locks,’ I’ve encountered so many scammers and swindlers that prey on vulnerable people that have no idea what to expect with pricing and procedures.

It makes me feel great that I can help someone in need and then charge them a rate that makes them even happier. I’ve had people hug me (not necessary) when I’ve finished the work and told them my price. These moments make going to work a delight. I have also used my website as tool for people to become wiser in the industry.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
1- If you haven’t ever prayed before and you want to start a business, you’ll feel like a spiritual giant by the time you get through the first year. When I say pray, I mean any variety of talking to yourself, a God, the universe, your wiser self or whatever because you really need to know yourself and what your focus truly is. Everyone told me the first year is hard and it’s true. So true. Just starting, for me, was hard. I felt like a fraud when I would show up to someone’s house and say, “Hi, I’m the locksmith” because in my previous experience I had only really worked on vacant properties or my dad was the one communicating with the client and saying HE was the locksmith. That was a hurdle; becoming confident enough to communicate clearly with my clients and to charge a competitive rate for my services when there were several, well-established, pro locksmiths all over Orange County. I now feel sufficiently confident thanks to very kind clients that have left me wonderful reviews on several platforms including Yelp, Google My Business, and Thumbtack, for example.

2- Another subject that I hate talking about, but everyone wants to talk about, is advertising. Many people don’t believe me when I tell them that I don’t spend any money on ad campaigns. I went that route and it proved to be a total waste of time, tears, and money. I know that this seems completely ridiculous to say because ads get your name out there, and I understand that. The problem is that a small company like mine cannot compete with the national companies that are paying $15-20 per click.

I paid thousands of dollars exploring ways that I could make ad campaigns work for my small Huntington Beach business and either broke even with every new avenue, or I was swindled by a company going under (one company that signed me up to do my SEO and ad campaigns went out of business and didn’t tell me but continued to charge my card for 6 months, which is a whole other story). After recovering from these fruitless ad ventures (pun intended), I resolved that focusing on good reviews from clients and working on my warm market was the best way to accumulate promising leads. I have a website that I designed and created myself, and I have completed all of the SEO that I could possibly manage as an amateur. I have also seen an opportunity to create good video content on YouTube and I am working hard on coming up with amusing and entertaining ways to interact with my current and potential clients.

3- Google was always a friend to my business, and all small business, because it was a search engine where the underdog can and should succeed locally until the beginning of this year, 2017. Now, the SEO that I had done (Google My Business reviews, social media posts, blogs, etc) for my company that was very successful in getting me calls and listing me locally (usually first or second in the local section is now not even good enough to get me listed in what is called the “local pack.” High ranking on Google and Bing have become very difficult and almost unfair to the small business without a marketing budget like mine and I have lost a lot of business because of this updated system. The irony is that Google claims that a business should be more involved in updating fresh content and getting positive reviews and I have done just that. But it seems that only a large-scale business that can afford to pay for ad campaigns and professional SEO will be able to show on the only page anyone looks at; the first results page. I have called Google about this and all I ever get is some person at a foreign call center that obviously doesn’t care about my situation, can hardly speak English, and defers to whatever blanket statement they have had all their operators memorize.

Needless to say, it is very discouraging and frustrating.

4- I drive a ton. Since I started my business, I have gone through 4 cars. 4 cars in 4 years! I started in my Honda Civic which was totaled on the 405-S by an older man that freaked out (claimed someone cut him off) and slammed on his brakes causing a 5-car pile-up. I almost had a Toyota Tacoma’s trailer hitch go through my face because my small Civic went right under the truck in front of me! Then, I got a Toyota Rav4 which was totaled on Adams and Lake St in Huntington Beach by a texter that ran a red light.

That person t-boned me going 35 mph, pushed me into another car, sandwiching me and spilling the toffee peanuts that I was munching on all over the inside of my car and the outside! I can’t eat those toffee peanuts anymore without feeling like something bad is going to happen. Haha. I replaced the RAV4 with the same, but newer, car. Soon after, the business became more demanding and I couldn’t fit all my tools in the back area so I sold that car and invested in a commercial Nissan NV200 which has been great. Cross your fingers that I don’t get into any more accidents! I really am a good driver!

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about NuKey Locksmith – what should we know?
NuKey is a small mobile locksmith company specializing in residential and commercial rekeys, repairs, and installations. I am the sole owner and operator of the company. My wife does the social media because she is better at that part than I am. I’m not sure how to describe a ‘typical’ locksmith,’ but I have been told on many occasions that I wasn’t what my client was expecting, in a good way. I don’t know what that means but I would guess maybe they were expecting a bearded, grumpy dude telling them that it’ll be $450 to rekey the front door? I did leave a church meeting one time to help a guy that was locked out of his apartment and my client just bursted into laughter when he saw me because I was in a suit and tie, ready to break in to his place (I verified it was really his registered place of residence). So I guess I would say that I take my expertise, as well as my professional appearance, seriously.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
This is a hard topic because I believe that all the mistakes I’ve made along the way have taught me to be better in the locksmith trade. While I grit my teeth just thinking about the money I spent in advertising, it’s hard to say that it was a waste. I could never really know for sure. One of the things that makes my business different is that I don’t service vehicles. I wish I would have learned to rekey and cut car keys because I have referred quite a few calls to an old neighbor that ONLY does cars. It was nice to refer business back and forth but I know I referred more business out than I received. Those car calls would have strengthened my business a ton if I was able to take them. But, it’s not too late. I’m seriously considering and doing the math on if servicing vehicles will make sense for us.

Pricing:

  • Huntington Beach Residents Flat-rate Rekey $99 (normal business hours). Get up to 8 locks rekeyed, 4 copies of the new key, includes service call fee.
  • Huntington Beach Residents Flat-rate Lockout $75 (normal business hours).

Contact Info:

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Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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