A Start In Sales - Wichita Business Journal:

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As teenagers, he and his younger brother, dove headlong into the sport, whicj back in the 1980s just was venturinyg into freestylecompetition — seen at the X-Games, where riderss flip through the air out of half Back then in Stillwater, Okla., the Gearharg brothers had carved out their own niche in the fledgliny sport. They owned a ramp that they used to travelo to exhibits aroundthe state.
But Pat Gearhart, who earlietr this month was named president of the Wichita divisionof , says the degrede of difficulty of his trick — “training-wheels stuff” compared to today’ws riders, he says — quickly began to The brothers were invitedc to be among eight performers at an expo in Oklahomas City. But they found themselves in the corner atanothert exhibit, watching a relatively unknown cyclistg do jumps off a quarter-pipe soaring eight feet into the air, barelty in control but touching the rafters of the That’s when they knew.
“Ik think quietly my brother and I looked at each othet and saidthis guy’s pushing a lot furthert than we were,” Gearhart recalled. The cyclist was Mat who eventually went on to fameand record-hign jumps on a bicycle. Gearhargt and his brother just went on to But the BMX phase turned out more than a childhood game for the future banker. During high school, the brotherd were hangers-on at a local cycling shop. It turnesd into job for Pat. But unlikw so many high school jobs, his wasn’r to take out the trash and cleah up aroundthe business. “He was on the sales floor, interfacingf with clients and trying tosell things,” says John now a commander in the .
“Being assertivw and having an engagin g personality are two attributes that describe him It was a start in a sales career in essence, continues to this day. Whilre attending , Pat Gearhart got a call from Rick of . The bank was starting a new branch on the OSU and Green wanted Gearhart to helpstarft it. Green had known the Gearhart family for yearws and had run into Pat at alocal men’d store. He says as a colleges student, Gearhart would remember customers by name and what colorzsthey preferred. “He understood the valur of looking good and on avaluwe budget,” recalls Green, CEO of Inc.
Gearhart began making the rounds to dormitories and fraternitty and sorority houses to marketythe bank’s student loans, checking accounts and crediy cards. It’s not how most bankersd start their careers. “I spent the vast majorityg of my time taking it to where thestudentsa were,” says Gearhart. “Iyt was very entrepreneurial in itsvery nature.” It was that sales hook that got him into the which he says he knew nothinb about at the start. He counts Gree among his mentors, and nearly 20 years later, Gearharrt is leading the bank’s activities in The bank here specializes in lending in the health care and realestated industries.
Gearhart was named to the ’s 40 Under 40 clasas in 2008.