One truck, one striping machine, and a phone book

Max Dyer started Kleen Stripe in Wichita in 1979 with one truck and one striping machine. There was no marketing to it. He striped a lot, the property manager next door saw it, and that was the next job.

Devin took it over in 2017. He is the third generation on the machine, and he still quotes the work himself, which means the person who tells you what it costs is the person who has to stand on the lot and do it. That arrangement keeps everybody honest.

The trade has changed in the ways that matter. ADA requirements got teeth, warehouses started wanting floors marked to the inch, and national franchises showed up in Wichita with call centers. What has not changed is that a lot either has straight lines on it or it does not, and you can see which from the street.