FASTSIGNS^® Corporate Leadership

With over 30 years of franchising and management experience, Catherine became the CEO of FASTSIGNS Inernational, Inc., in 2009. She has served on the board of directors since 2008, where she is the Vice-Chair.

• 2009—She was recognized for her contributions to the growth of the franchise industry with the International Franchise Association (IFA) Bonney LeVine award

• 2010—Catherine was named a top Women Industry Leader in the Dallas metroplex by the Dallas Business Journal

• 2012—She learned of new ways to enhance and improve the FASTSIGNS franchise after her appearance on the Emmy Award-winning television series “Undercover Boss”

• 2015—Her advocacy work in the franchise community earned her the IFA’s first Franchise Action Network “FAN of the Year”

• 2016—Catherine’s contributions to the printing and graphic communications industry lead to her selection as a Soderstrom Society Inductee

• 2016—Won the 2016 Leadership Award from the Women That Soar organization

• 2018—Won the Ambassador of Free Enterprise Award from the Sales and Marketing Executives International (SMEI)

Some of her other roles include serving on the Board of Directors of Brain Balance and Big Blue Swim School, which is one of the fastest-growing swim schools in the nation. Catherine can often be found providing the keynote speech at numerous franchise industry and sign and graphics industry events.

Mark has been with FASTSIGNS since 2009 and leads Franchise Support, including training, operations, and supply chain, as well as global Franchise Development. Some of his responsibilities include overseeing the “lead to lights on” support, which includes Sales and Real Estate Development, and continually providing ongoing support to Franchise owners through Training, Operations, and Supply Chain teams.

He brings more than 20 years of experience to his role and is a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE). He has worked in both consumer industries, including home services and retail, and the business-to-business industry. He boasts an impressive franchise background, including:

• Operations
• Sales and marketing
• Franchise law
• Training
• Financial management
• Company store operations
• Franchisee relations
• Intellectual property
• Procurement
• Technology

Mark has been a part of many IFA conventions and Franchise Development Leadership Conferences, where he was either a panelist or panel leader, and has spoken in the Middle East, Peru, and the U.K. on international franchise forums.

Since he’s joined the company, FASTSIGNS has added over 200 locations both domestically and internationally. Prior to our sign franchise, Mark was the VP of Franchise Development for several CCA Global Partners brands.

Jim Howe brings over 30 years experience in franchising, both as a franchisee and a franchisor, to his role as President of FASTSIGNS®. Jim leads the growth of the FASTSIGNS brand and is dedicated to increasing franchisee profitability and satisfaction through effective leadership, innovation, new revenue streams, and operational efficiencies, as well as driving growth in the number of franchise locations. To accomplish this, he is focused on franchisee/franchisor collaboration, sharing best practices, and optimizing processes, as well as deepening customer relationships to bring the brand promise to life.

Prior to this role, Jim was Brand President for NerdsToGo®, for over 3 years, where he helped transition the brand from B2C to B2B, creating new relationships with vendors, systems, and processes around being a managed service provider.

Before that, Jim was with the FASTSIGNS International team for 11 years, where he last served as Vice President of Franchise Support and also held several other leadership roles. In the Vice President role, he led the Franchise Support, Sales Development, Training and New Center Opening Support departments, as well as executing planning for all company events. He has also held his CFE (Certified Franchise Executive) designation for over 8 years.

Jim’s prior franchisor experience includes The Coffee Beanery and national candle retailer, WnS, Inc. Jim was also a Hallmark franchisee, and he and his wife are currently franchisees of Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming. His wife Shelley and their son Trevor operate the Woof Gang franchise.

Howe is truly passionate about and understands franchising, which includes the importance of effective systems, possessing a deep focus on franchisee profitability, and working to build strong relationships with franchisees through open, two-way communication. He believes in delivering well-thought-out programs to help the network grow its profitable sales. In addition, Jim has previously been a speaker as well as roundtable facilitator for the International Franchise Association’s Annual Convention. Jim has also previously served on the IFA Convention Committee.

“Jim’s leadership acumen was evident in his previous roles at FASTSIGNS, but it’s his passion for the franchising industry, franchisee support and brand excellence that I am most excited to experience again,” shares Carmen Ruiz, franchisee with FASTSIGNS® of Daytona Beach, Florida. “It’s evident why the amount of enthusiasm over Jim’s return to the brand is overwhelmingly positive. Jim is a well-rounded leader who truly cares and gets work done, and he’s the right choice to take FASTSIGNS into the future.”

“Jim is a down-to-earth leader with excellent vision, who thoroughly understands the franchise world,” says Chris Farr, franchisee with FASTSIGNS® of Conroe, Texas. “He genuinely cares about our success, and he fosters a culture of performance. Jim has inspired and motivated us on our FASTSIGNS journey!”

Trey Pease is the Director of Training and Sales Development at Propelled Brands, bringing 20+ years of experience leading learning and development programs across global hospitality and franchise brands. From opening restaurants worldwide with Outback Steakhouse International to transforming leadership training at G6 Hospitality, Trey is passionate about building strong teams, improving culture, and using innovative tools to make training more impactful. Outside of work, he enjoys traveling, gardening, family time, and spoiling his dog.

Since joining FASTSIGNS in 1994, Bryan has held several positions and is currently Director of New Center Operations, where he utilizes more than three decades of hands-on experience to guide brand-new franchisees and their teams as they launch their businesses. He previously served as Director of Education, leading the Training Team to modernize learning system-wide by developing refined processes and a robust online LMS.

Earlier in his corporate career, Bryan led the Technical Services Team, supporting centers with daily break-fix solutions and evaluating new technology. Before joining the corporate team in 2013, he spent 19 years in center operations at the North Dallas franchise location, working as a Sales Professional, Designer, Production Manager, and General Manager.

Outside of work, Bryan and his family love to travel and spend time anywhere with warm, beautiful waters and sandy beaches.

Grant Walker, CFE, is the Senior Director of Business Systems at FASTSIGNS. With over 15 years of leadership experience at Propelled Brands, he focuses on increasing franchise profitability by driving operational efficiencies. Walker excels at fostering cross-departmental collaboration to streamline processes, equipping franchisees with the strategic tools and data-driven insights needed for continuous growth and long-term success.

Bio coming soon!

Brian Boehm has been part of the FASTSIGNS family since 1997, when he started as a graphic designer in a center and later managed operations. He joined the corporate team in 2005 and has led technical services and supply chain teams ever since, taking his current role in 2025.

Today Brian leads the Technology and Supply Chain Team, overseeing technical support, vendor relations, R&D, and hardware and software evaluation. His experience spans design, output, and workflow solutions across the full range of sign and graphics production, and he is a frequent resource for franchisees and industry partners alike. He focuses on operational efficiency, helping centers lower costs, increase throughput, and clear bottlenecks. He also identifies new and emerging applications that can increase franchisee profitability. Having worked in a center himself, he brings a franchisee's perspective to every decision.

Bio coming soon!