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The old adage rings true for two young brothers, who started Furiously Fast Flyers recently, with a business plan and a niche.

“We always loved rollerskating, and we love to skate fast,” said 11-year-old Alex Haslam. “We thought passing out fliers would be a good fit — and a business was born.”

His business partner and younger brother Ben, 9, explained a unique advantage the pair share over their competition.

“We figured we’d be a lot faster than everybody walking around with fliers,” Ben said, recalling when he watched an adult also walking around with fliers.

“I skated right past him,” he beamed with a smile, briefly checking his stack of fliers before zipping off and around the homes on Dewdrop Avenue in Canyon Country.

It’s also a  family business in every sense of the words.

The boys’ father, Ryan, watches from near the end of the block as the boys and their dad communicate their path with walkie talkies, furthering their enjoyment and safety.

Ryan Haslam helps them figure out the routes and supervises, but other than that, the business is all their own, he said.

It’s been a teaching tool that’s taught them how to send emails, practice the basic algebra that Alex is already learning as a sixth-grader at Old Orchard Elementary and even how to use Microsoft Excel, which is how they track the orders they’ve filled.

“The walkie talkies were the best idea, by far,” Ryan Haslam said. “I can usually see them pop in and pop out and when they get too far down the block, I’ll pull forward a little bit,” he said from the business’ mobile operating center, the Haslam family’s minivan.

Alex determines the rates and business plan, while Ben often comes up with ideas such as the custom-made carrying pouch the brothers use, which was also a family operation.

The flier pouch that other businesses use is cumbersome and clumsy for the speed the boys travel at, so Ben asked his grandmother, Nancy Haslam, if she could help create a homemade flier distribution pack he designed.

Grandma Haslam also added her own innovation, clips that allow the boys to quickly flip around the flier packs from front to back, so they can double their carrying load and access it quicker.

After the boys created a presentation for their small business at a Realtors’ networking meeting, the orders really started to roll in via email.

“The smallest order they’ll take is 150 fliers, and that’s probably their biggest competitive advantage,” Ryan Haslam said, explaining that most distributors have a much higher minimum.

The boys worked it out to a pretty sharp science, figuring that it’ll take them about a half-hour to distribute 150 fliers, for which they charge $20.

The cost goes incrementally up, with a price break after a certain amount.

They deliver all over the Santa Clarita Valley, and even one time in Simi Valley, Ryan Haslam said.

And there’s definitely room for expansion of their business model, as the boys’ 6-year-old brother Charlie already has helped them out with one order.

While they worked in Canyon Country on Friday under Ryan’s watchful eye, their 4-year-old brother was napping while their 1-year-old brother played in the grass by Ryan’s feet.

“It’s really amazing to watch them,” Ryan Haslam said. “I thought originally they’d just get one or two orders. And they keep coming in and doing them.”

If you have any interest in using their services, FFF can be reached at 661-222-7754, or fast.flyers@yahoo.com.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

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