Christopher Roney
Owner and Co-Founder, Ace Unlocks
Christopher Roney ‘98, is the owner and co-founder of Ace Unlocks, a locksmith company that offers home-locking assistance, key cutting and automotive programming. Since 1994, Christopher has been pouring his heart into his mission of bringing peace of mind back to his customers and serving the greater Pensacola community.
What experiences or mentors at UWF had the biggest impact on you?
I first came to the University of West Florida on a golf scholarship with the intent of becoming a professional golfer. That all changed in my junior year when I had a pretty bad wrist injury. Steve Fell, who was then – and still is – the golf coach, could’ve easily taken my scholarship away. He instead found a way for me to continue to be a productive member of the team through fundraising. He is a great mentor because he cares so much about his players not just as athletes, but as good young men. He can look at situations and excellently problem solve. That is why he has been so successful.
What set you on the path to become an entrepreneurial locksmith?
After the wrist injury, I realized pretty quickly that golf was probably not going to be in the cards. In 1998, I graduated from UWF with a B.S. in business management, so as a student, I was already learning the principles of business management. One of my fellow teammates, Charles Stead, and I decided we wanted to start a business of our own. We had secured the funding to purchase several vending machines to operate at UWF, and just before we purchased them, a friend of ours locked themselves out of their car. Chuck went out to the car and unlocked it fairly easily. I was amazed, and I looked at him and asked, “Why are we opening a vending machine company if we can do this?” We talked it over, and that’s how Ace Unlocks was born. In entrepreneurship, it is important to know your why, be consistent and be doggedly determined. If you do those three things, there’s not much that can stop you.
How has UWF continued to be prevalent in your life?
My wife and I are both very committed to giving back to the community that has given so much to us. I am the chairman of the Grant Committee for the UWF Foundation Board of Directors. Because we are the committee that covers applications for the travel abroad program, I get to send students all over the globe with scholarships to help cover their expenses. It’s very rewarding to watch students come back with a worldview that is bigger than when they left. As my best friend, Lewis Bear III, and his father, Lewis Bear Jr., were famous for saying, Pensacola’s continued growth is directly related to the University of West Florida and its growth. Lifelong Argos keep a close connection with Pensacola and UWF because the University offers so much to our community.