College Dropout Redefined
By Ashley LaVigna
Zach Beebe is a college dropout.
The 25-year-old stands in the middle of a clothing shop unpacking boxes while humming to the beat of Chiddy Bang’s “Ray Charles.” He stares out the store’s front windows, past the traffic stalled along Secor Road, onto the University of Toledo’s campus, his eyes locked on University Hall’s clock tower. Tattoo’s cover Beebe’s arms and chest, and diamond studs bling in his ears.
Beebe isn’t standing in the middle of a store where he works full-time or part-time. He is standing in the middle of the clothing shop he owns with business partner Matt Resor. Their collaboration is one of dreams, inspiration and a motivation for success.
The store is called NEX (which stands for “Never Ending” and the Roman numeral for 10) Street Wear Boutique. Beebe came up with the idea for the boutique during a business marketing class at the University of Toledo. At the time, Beebe recalls, he felt like he was at a turning point in his life. He was bored with the everyday routine of a college student, attending an hour and 15 minutes of classes held in a 300-seat lecture hall. Beebe says he felt lost.
“I was more concerned with my social life, with the fraternity, than my success in school. That scared me,” Beebe says.
Born and raised in a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, Beebe is the older of two boys. He lost both of his parents in a car accident when he was a sophomore in high school. After the accident, his grandparents moved into the house Beebe and his younger brother Vince were born and tried to help the two young men cope with their parents’ death.
“My dad was a business man and created his own success. He never had anything handed to him,” Beebe says.
His father has served as a role model his entire life, Beebe says. After his high school graduation, the then 18-year-old promised to honor his late father’s name and make him proud in college. And at first, Beebe did. He made the Dean’s List every semester he was enrolled as a full-time student.
But that changed.
Beebe can’t really describe what happened to him emotionally his fall semester of junior year. He says that something inside of him just clicked off and his attention and motivation for school was lost. Beebe says that as difficult as this time in his life was, it turned into a blessing.
“I don’t know, it might have been my subconscious or it could have been my dad’s way of telling me to follow my dream,” Beebe says. “But it’s something I can’t fully and accurately explain. You just gotta feel it to know.”
Beebe’s notebook that was intended for business ethic notes turned into a design sketchbook. Writing down possible names, sketching logos and creating t-shirt designs while listening to hip hop, Beebe used the rhymes and lyrics of Lupe Fiasco and Talib Kweli to create a specific style he called “Street Wear.”
“There were no stores in Toledo, or Ohio for that matter, which sold clothing which reflected this progressive, intellectual movement that was happening in L.A. and other West Coast cities,” Beebe says.
Beebe was introduced to the vice president of Campus Villa Communities, Matt Resor, through a mutual friend. The two instantly bonded over a vision to create an identity for Toledo. Five months later, NEX opened its doors.
“I left that meeting, drove to my parents’ gravesite in Columbus and sat there for hours. That was my celebration,” Beebe says.
In a society where many believe that only a college degree will offer success and economic fortunes, Beebe is the exception. The opportunity that presented itself when Beebe was a junior at the University of Toledo turned out to be well worth the risk.
Instead of studying or writing papers in UT’s library, he is researching the business market for future ventures. Last year, Beebe added the title “Co-Director of Business Development for the Benefit Concert Series” to his résumé. The most popular concert in the series is Ohio University’s Fest, this year marking 9fest.
“I remember all my professors talking about the power of networking and building relationships with everyone you meet. I honestly just thought they were talking to talk,” Beebe says.
But Beebe quickly learned that success depends on relationships. As an alumni member of the Kappa Delta Rho fraternity at the University of Toledo, Beebe met and built relationships with brothers who had graduated before him. He did the same with alumni of other fraternities.
Ryan Harvey, a brother of the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity, was one of those individuals. A native of Lakewood, Ohio, and a graduate of St. Edwards High School, Harvey was a local DJ in both Toledo and Lakewood bars. A Lakewood High graduate and known celebrity around town, Eric “DJ EV” Vajda was familiar with Harvey’s work. The two forged a business relationship.
“Harvz came to me one night in the bar - this was like a year and half after we opened the first NEX store - and he goes ‘Let’s schedule a business meeting for Monday morning; I have something major,’” Beebe says.
That something major turned out to be the opportunity to not only attend, but participate in 8fest.
“Music is in everyone’s life, but for me it was always an outlet, something to turn to when I didn’t know how to feel, especially after my parent’s death,” Beebe says.
Standing in his clothing store, Beebe is still staring out the shop’s windows. The overhead sound system is now playing The Weeknd’s remake of Michael Jackson’s “Dirty Diana.” Beebe is bobbing his head, accentuating each high note the singer hits.
“I’m not done. I want to explore so much more. But right now, I’m focused on getting back into my schooling,” Beebe says.
While Beebe may be a college dropout, he enrolled in the school of the real world instead.