I was born in Vero Beach, Florida and grew up in Melbourne Beach. Went to Hoover Junior High, didn’t graduate — but I’ll tell you what, I’ve never stopped learning a day in my life.
I started working at 16. Not because I had to — because I wanted to. I’ve always been the kind of person who needs to be doing something, building something, figuring something out. Sitting still was never really an option for me.
Before I ever picked up a lock pick, I spent years in the trades. Framing, drywall, concrete work, painting, construction — I did it all. I learned how buildings go together from the ground up, literally. That background might sound unrelated to locksmithing, but trust me, it’s not. When you understand how a door frame is built, how a jamb is set, how a structure ages in Florida’s heat and humidity — you see problems other locksmiths miss entirely.
How I Got Into Locksmithing
I found my way into locksmithing and it clicked immediately. I went to work for Pop-A-Lock — one of the biggest names in the industry — and that’s where things really started to take shape. But here’s the thing about Pop-A-Lock that most people don’t realize: it’s a build-your-own-skill environment. They’re not handing you everything. You grow by investing in yourself.
So that’s what I did. I started making my own investments — buying tools out of my own pocket, the kind of equipment most guys wouldn’t touch because it was too expensive or too complicated. I was out there tackling jobs that nobody else could do, not because I was assigned them, but because I put in the work to be ready for them. Every tool I bought opened a door to another level of the trade. Every job nobody else could handle became mine.
From there I moved on to Secure Safe and Lock, where I got deep into commercial hardware, safe work, and advanced security systems. More tools, more skills, more problems solved.
After many years of that, I decided it was time to do it under my own name. I founded Key-En-Lock in 2020. In 2024 we acquired Beach Locksmith and kept right on growing.
Life Outside the Trade
I’ve been married and divorced. My wife came into the relationship with a child I raised as my own, and we had one together. Later on I got into a new relationship — she had a son, Ian, who I raised as my own, and we had two kids together, a girl and a boy.
And on top of all that, I’m raising my sister’s five children. She passed away, and those kids needed someone. So I showed up. That’s what you do — no games, just show up and love the best you can.
So yeah — ten kids in the picture total. And I’m single. (Laugh all you want, it’s earned.)
One of those kids I helped raise — Ian — is now building this company alongside me. He came up watching this business get built from nothing, and now he’s in it with me every day. That means more to me than I can put into words.
I’m not sharing any of this to impress anyone. I’m sharing it because it’s who I am. Every morning I wake up with a lot of people counting on me — and that’s exactly the kind of accountability I bring to every job I take on. When I say I’ll be there, I’ll be there.
I’m Not Your Average Locksmith
I’ll be honest — I’m good with computers. Always have been. I taught myself programming, built the Key-En-Lock website from scratch, and then built OnlyTopic — a full Florida business directory covering all 67 counties. I coded that whole platform myself. Most locksmiths can barely set up a Facebook page. I’m out here writing PHP and building databases.
That same mindset carries over into my technical work. I do advanced automotive key programming that most locksmiths and even dealerships won’t touch — transponder keys, key fob programming, and EEPROM bench work where you’re reading and writing directly to the immobilizer chip. I do soldering, work with microcontrollers, and handle the kind of jobs where the customer has already been told by three other people that it can’t be done.
That’s kind of my thing. If someone gives up on a job, that’s usually when I get the call.
Safes, Access Control & the Hard Stuff
I work on safes — opening them, changing combinations, moving them. I install and service access control systems for businesses across Brevard County. I do high-security lock installations, master key systems, and commercial door hardware.
I’m also one of the few locksmiths in this area who really knows safe work inside and out. Not just the basics — the actual mechanical and electronic systems, the failures, the bypasses, all of it.
Why I Built Key-En-Lock
Simply put — because it makes me feel accomplished. There’s something about building a business from nothing, solving problems nobody else can solve, and watching it grow that drives me every single day. I’ve been through a lot in life — more than most people know — and this work has always been the constant. The thing I come back to. The thing that keeps me moving forward.
I’m a pioneer in what I do. I’m not following a script — I’m building the playbook as I go, combining 25 years of hands-on trade experience with a technical mind that keeps pushing forward. And now I’ve got Ian next to me doing the same.
Life isn’t always easy. But you keep going. You keep building. That’s what I know how to do.
If you’re in Brevard County and you need a locksmith — for your car, your home, your business, or anything in between — I’m the guy. Not a call center, not a franchise. Me.
Call (321) 224-5625 or visit keyenlock.com. I’ll take care of you.