Dom Gervasi founded Made in Brooklyn Tours after a career change during the 2009 recession. He was inspired by local businesses and the people who ran them while traveling in Greece and Italy. Back in Brooklyn, he created maps using Google Earth, rode his bike to visit places that made things, and used a clipboard to plan future stops. A private tour of Gillies Coffee Company and hospitality he received reinforced his interest in guiding others. He named the business after an entrepreneurial course and secured the URL immediately. Early promotion used platforms like Groupon, LivingSocial, and Amazon Local. Tour formats evolved toward small groups of up to 12 people and durations under three hours.
"After graduating from Baruch College, the Bensonhurst native spent 16 years working at a hardware production company specializing in data and voice communications and network security. During the recession in 2009, Gervasi was laid off and forced to make a career change. While traveling through Greece and Italy, he found inspiration in the local businesses and the people who ran them. When he returned home, he wanted to discover what locals were making in Brooklyn."
"I got on my bike with my clipboard, and I would create a map on Google Earth, Gervasi said. I put all the places that made things in Brooklyn, ride my bike around, visit them, get off the bike with the clipboard, figure out where I'm gonna go next. Dom Gervasi, founder of Made in Brooklyn Tours, has spent 15 years introducing visitors to Brooklyn's small businesses and neighborhoods."
"On one of his expeditions, Gervasi was invited on a private tour of Gillies Coffee Company on 19th Street and Fourth Avenue. The hospitality he received stuck with him and opened his eyes to the possibility of producing tours for others. An instructor in an entrepreneurial course offered by the city's Department of Small Business Services inspired the name Made in Brooklyn after Gervasi took the class while considering creating tours with the same theme."
"As soon as he left the course that day, he bought the URL. Sites such as Groupon, LivingSocial and Amazon Local helped Gervasi promote his tours when he first started. In 2011, his tours involved full days of walking, even in 90-degree weather, and drew larger crowds. But over time, he realized that intimate groups of no more than 12 people and tours lasting no more than three hours would leave a more lasting impression."
Read at www.brooklynpaper.com
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