For years people have known him as MR. D-MARS, but now, in his 20th year of business, MR. D-MARS is here to reintroduce himself and show the community who Keith J. Davis, Sr. is.
Influenced by Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich,” Davis always said if he made it 20 years in business, he would write a book, sharing his journey and the things he has learned along the way.
Growing up, his idea was just to become a successful businessman. And his plan to achieve this goal was to meet as many people as he possibly could, hoping that this would increase his chances of success.
“I became the hook up man,” Davis said. “I was trying to meet everybody I could and find a way to hook them up and help them out.”
Davis did not know what he wanted his business to be specifically, he just knew he wanted a way to help the community and help local business owners. He asked God to give him a vision and help him to do three things through his company: make a living for himself, help the community make a living and help local businesses grow. With a background in business, newspaper and accounting, Davis was given a vision for his career and started his business, becoming MR. D-MARS (Discount Membership and Referral Services.) His natural gift of compassion and a personality that drew people near made it easy for him to connect with others and build up a client base.
“We were Groupon, before there was actually Groupon,” Davis said. “Mr. Carwash, Thrifty Car Rentals, Breakfast Klub…all of these companies took our membership card, and our business grew faster than I could believe.”
Starting d-mars.com gave Davis the platform he needed to start making a difference in the community. A native of 5th Ward Houston, he was surrounded by so much negativity in his community and could not believe there was never anything positive being said about the black community. Realizing this issue, he vowed that if he was ever given the opportunity to change this community, he would work to inspire by showing people they are doing alright, inform them on what is happening and educate others about the community. These established the core values of the company – to inspire, inform and educate.
“One thing I am proud of is, for 20 years, I have kept my core beliefs,” Davis said. “I know that by holding on to those values, we have changed lives and helped people grow in business and in their personal lives. It is all thanks to the people who supported us, people who saw we were good for the community.”
Davis has done so much good under the name “MR. D-MARS,” and he does not want the community to think he is done with that part of himself. He has entered a new chapter in his life, however, and is focused on showing that same community a more personal side of himself and his journey and making it his responsibility to reach back and help pull the next generation forward to greatness.
His introduction for Keith J. Davis, Sr. comes in his debut book, “Maximizing Your Own Treasure Chest,” where he details lessons he has learned throughout his life and shares personal accounts of the ups and downs he has experienced.
“In the 20 years I have been in business,” he said, “I have learned a lot of lessons, had some ups and downs, and for me to be truthful to this community, it is time for me to start giving back and sharing my story. I built my career on a journal that shares the stories of others. Now it is my turn to inspire, inform and educate through my own story.”
The focus of the story of Keith J. Davis, Sr. is that we all have treasure chests full of diamonds representing our individual skill sets, life experiences and natural born gifts. The special thing about “Maximizing Your Own Treasure Chest” is that Davis was able to write this book from a personal perspective, sharing intimate details about his life, but somehow, also allows the reader to reflect on their own lives and replace his personal accounts with their own, giving them the chance to apply the lessons in the book to their life experiences and uncovering things about themselves they may have looked past.
“In your treasure chest you may have some diamonds that do not look valuable or desirable, but sometimes all they need is a little cleaning to really shine and be put to use. We also have gems in our treasure chests to give away and use to bless the lives of others.”
Davis has made it a point to encourage his audience to buy more than one book – to bless another. He wrote this book in the hopes that it would be bought in multiples and handed out as a gift by the people who buy it.
“Our lives and experiences should be used to bless other people,” Davis said. “If God puts you in a position of influence, you have to look out for yourself, but also look out for others. That is the only way our community is going to grow.”
This new chapter for Davis doesn’t end with just writing a book. He has plans to start touring and speaking throughout the state with the intent to start a movement of “maximizing your own treasure chest.” He plans to continue sharing his stories and encouraging others to speak up and start sharing theirs.
“By sharing our stories, we are going to create a fire, and our community is going to be on fire for change.”
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