BUSINESS & PROFESSIONAL

entrepreneur

"We want to keep
our name in front of
the public, and we're
grateful to the local
Jewish community
for letting us help
them with their
lifecycle events, so
we happily donate
our time and costs
to these worthwhile
charitable activities."

— Geoff Kretchmer

Star Trax Event Productions President Geoff Sretcluner, right, took time out to enjoy his own son's recent bar mitzvah at Temple
Emanu-El in Oak Park. With him are his wife, Jody Lipton, son, Noah, daughter, Emma, 11, and Star Trax entertainer Paris Jones.

Tracking Success

Star Trax roots growing along with nationally known
parent company, pulse 220.

Bill Carroll

Special to the Jewish News

eoff Kretchmer has a bit-
tersweet way of describing
Star Trax's connection and
longtime relationship with
the Detroit Jewish community. "We help
many Jewish families through the entire
life cycle," he says. "Our valet park-
ers are there for a baby's circumcision
event. We do birthday parties and the
bar or bat mitzvah. Then we help with
the wedding. And finally, we do the
valet parking at the shivah house."
After 23 years, the name Star Trax
has become ingrained in the communi-

G

ty's Jewish culture. The "star" continues
to shine even though it's now part of a
firm that took on a new identity as Star
Trax/pulse 220 three years ago, also
serving larger corporations on a national
scale.
And despite the state's shaky econo-
my, the company has been growing at a
rate of 10-12 percent a year since then,
garnering $12 million in revenue last
year, according to company CEO Craig
Erlich of Bloomfield Hills and Kretchmer,
of Huntington Woods, who is president
of Star Trax Event Productions. They are
partners in the firm with Marc Schechter
of Bloomfield Township, who launched
Star Trax in Ann Arbor in 1987, then

expanded it in West Bloomfield with
Renee Cherrin, now Erlich's wife.
Schechter is now in the insurance and
financial consulting business.
"Star Trax has become part of the
lives of thousands of families in the
Jewish community, especially the chil-
dren, when it comes time for birthday
parties and bar and bat mitzvahs,"
observed Kretchmer, 42, who became
president three years ago.
Kretchmer has a master's degree in
educational clinical psychology from
Detroit's Wayne State University. He
later was manager of the Orchards
Children's Service in Southfield for 11
years.

"But I gave up a career in clinical
psychology to join Star Trax in 2000
and it was the best career move I ever
made; and my expertise in clinical
psychology has helped me in this job
to a certain extent," he said.

The Lineup

Star Trax has 135 full- and part-time
employees, 90 valet parkers and 45
entertainers - and 77 of the total are
Jewish. "We handle about 600 events
a year, including about 240 bar and
bar mitzvahs alone; we valet more
than 500 events a year, about 10 a
week; we're involved in every type of
simchah," Kretchmer said.
"I tell our party entertainers to
concentrate on two major things: one
is to focus on the child being hon-
ored; make him or her the center of
attention throughout the event, while
producing a real dance atmosphere.
The second is to try to create a dif-
ferent experience for each client. Our
customers are very intelligent. Many

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