For Brevard High School graduate Johnny Stamey laser cutting and engraving started as a college class and then a hobby, but is now a side business and one he hopes one day will be a full-time undertaking.
Stamey graduated from Brevard High in 2014 and attended Mars Hill University for two years, where he played baseball and later transferred and graduated with an industrial design (product design) degree from Appalachian State University (ASU) in 2019.
“There I took a rapid prototyping class, which included learning CNC (computer numerical control), laser cutting/engraving and some other prototyping techniques,” Stamey said. “This class is what led me to being a laser lab technician for the Applied Design building at ASU. I wanted to bring that skill back to the Brevard area and see how a side business may go.”
Stamey’s business, Brevard Laser, is now one of the latest members of the Brevard-Transylvania Chamber of Commerce.

“I think the coolest thing about laser technology is that you can do so much with it,” Stamey said. “You can engrave anything from wood, leather, glass, engineered plastics, and even metals, plus so much more. You can also cut materials with that same technology, as well, but the size and thickness will depend on the type of machine. Laser machines can hold tolerances on parts tighter than (one thousandth of an inch) over hundreds or thousands of parts. Laser machines are used for rapid prototyping to full production runs of parts and are very versatile and can be used in pretty much any industry you can think of.”

At this point, Stamey is mostly doing promotional items for local businesses, one-off projects, personalizing items for customers and some wholesale products for locations in Asheville.
“I am wanting to grow that side of the business, as well as adding in industrial laser marking and cutting in the coming months/years,” he said. “Brevard has always been a great place to live. Now being able to run a small business in the area really shows how great of a community I have grown up in.”