Headquartered in
Sarasota, Florida,
Carab Enterprises
has become a trusted source for lapel pins and other quality emblem
jewelry in several key industries. We look forward to helping you
promote or remember your event, reward your members or employees or
raise profits for your organization. We are a family oriented business
with the goal of providing a quality product at a fair price.
Combining his first and last names to brand the company he founded in
1989, Carroll Abrams has more
than 40 years
experience in the advertising specialty business. Joining forces with Carroll in 2002, Aaron
Watkins brings nearly 30 years of marketing expertise to the table.
Together, they take special pride in your complete satisfaction.
Carroll Abrams
was an entrepreneur before the word was ever coined. Growing up in
Bridgeport, CT, he sold magazine subscriptions and delivered more than
100 newspapers a day. He also mowed lawns and cleaned houses, developing
his business acumen and customer service skills with each endeavor.
Carroll served in the Navy, training in submarine electronics, and then
earned an Engineering Degree at the University of Connecticut. A job
with Phillips Petroleum took him to Kansas City, but Carroll soon struck
out on his own to start an advertising specialty business. In addition
to this highly successful venture, Carroll opened a sailboat business
and an innovative restaurant called The Calorie Counter. He has always
played as hard as he worked. His hobbies include swimming, golf, tennis
& skiing. He has traveled extensively around the world, including to
Scotland, where he met the love of his life, wife Margaret. He has three
children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. After surviving
cancer, Carroll sold his business and moved to Florida. He founded Carab
Enterprises as a small retirement business in 1989, but it rapidly grew
into the premiere pin supplier for many veterans organizations. Needing
more time for sports, painting, writing and rabble-rousing, Carroll
brought partner Aaron Watkins into the business in 2002.
Aaron Watkins' first marketing
coup was obtaining an endorsement from New York Governor Nelson
Rockefeller at his lemonade stand and backyard carnival at the tender
age of 9. In 1976 he founded The Watkins Button Company, which went on
to become the premiere supplier of buttons to high school theatre groups across the country. After successful careers as an actor in New York and
a clown with The Big Apple and Ringling Bros. Circuses, Aaron
incorporated his natural talents for promotion to form Chameleon Marketing
& Business Services. Chameleon MBS provided a wide range of marketing and public relations services
to arts and cultural organizations. He has written material for a wide
variety of companies and events, including TV Guide, the Macy’s
Thanksgiving Day Parade, Paul Newman and Element K Journals. He was
educated at Ohio University, earning a BFA in Theatre, holds a
certificate in Arts Management from the New York Cultural Council
Foundation and is a graduate of both RBBB Clown College and The Institute of Totally Useless Skills. Aaron
currently resides in Sarasota, with his lovely wife and
two cute-as-a-button daughters.
