Apple product store is North Las Vegas business of month

Experimac has been open less than a year, but the electronic store’s North Las Vegas location already has been recognized as the city’s business of the month.

Brando Younger of North Las Vegas opened Experimac, a store that buys, sells and repairs Apple products, in March as a first-time franchisee. Younger previously served in the military as a network switching operator-maintainer for eight years and served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. He also worked as a government contractor for about six years, until 2016, he said.

Younger said he’d aspired to open a business for several years, but he wasn’t sure what kind until he saw that Experimac was providing franchise opportunities. The national company also has locations in Henderson and Summerlin, both of which are privately owned, Younger said.

“(Opening the store) is the next phase of my life,” he said. “I (wanted) to give it a try. It’s been quite the experience and very eye-opening, but I love it every day and I see the areas where I can get stronger and where we can get better as a store.”

Younger said that he wanted to open the store in North Las Vegas because there aren’t many like it in the area.

City Councilman Richard Cherchio selected Experimac as the business of the month. Younger received a plaque at a City Council meeting in November.

Cherchio met Younger during the ribbon-cutting for Experimac’s North Las Vegas location in March and said he made a lasting impression.

“When these men and women come back (from being in the military) and they are willing to step up and make a living for themselves and become entrepreneurs, which isn’t easy to do, I believe that we (as a community) have an obligation to help them succeed,” Cherchio said.

Younger said that he was “surprised and grateful” to receive the award.

Jared Thiel, who was Younger’s first employee, said that he wasn’t surprised Younger was given the award.

“I love Brando,” he said. “He’s very easygoing and (the vibe here is) family-oriented. We’re doing really well, but he works his butt off.”

Younger said his goal is to increase the store’s sales each quarter and to open another store.

Contact Kailyn Brown at kbrown@viewnews.com or 702-387-5233. Follow @kailynhype on Twitter.