Customer Experience

Remembering kiosk industry veteran Ron Bowers

Industry veteran Ron Bowers passed away April 25. He worked for Frank Mayer & Associates for 35 years.

Photo: Frank Mayer & Associates

May 5, 2026 by Richard Slawsky — Editor, Connect Media

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Every once in a great while, someone comes along who has a far-reaching impact on the industry in which they work and the people they work with. For many of those in the kiosk industry, that person was Ron Bowers.

Although many have already heard, Bowers passed away on April 25. He was 74. He is survived by his wife, Jackie; three children; five grandchildren and two daughters-in-law.

A longtime industry evangelist

Bowers retired in 2018 after spending 35 years with Frank Mayer and Associates. At the time, Bowers sat down with Kiosk Marketplace to reflect on his time in the industry.

The list of brands he worked with over his career was long and included Irving Oil, Eagle Foods, Miller Brewing, Nicklaus Golf and John Deere. He also discovered opportunities such as SoloHealth, Sig Sauer, Behr Paint, Garmin and Dave & Buster's.

Bowers grew up in Milwaukee, wanting to become a scientist. That changed thanks to a part-time job working in wine and spirits shops in the Milwaukee area while attending college.

"The pay was poor, but I was fascinated with the stories and the history of wine and food, and how the different brands were marketed to consumers," he said in the piece. "This motivated me to sign up for marketing courses in college."

Thanks to connections via a relative and a family friend, Bowers secured a job as a sales coordinator in Frank Mayer's Grafton, Wisconsin, office. That position gave him a front-row seat to the self-service industry in its relative infancy.

"That period saw the beginning of the consumer's fascination with the technology experience," he said. "At its best, it provided solutions that satisfied consumers' expectations, retailers' needs and brands' identities. At its worst, it was the perpetuation of technology for technology's sake. But in all paradigm shifts, we learned from the mistakes of those who grow our industry."

Along the way, Bowers developed a well-earned reputation as an advocate for both Frank Mayer and the industry as a whole.

"Ron blessed FMA with his style, experience, knowledge and positive attitude," Mike Mayer, FMA president, said in an email interview. "Most important, Ron was a friend to everyone he encountered. Ron interacted and treated everyone with kindness and compassion."

Chris Schilder, who works in the accounts payable department at Frank Mayer, echoed those thoughts. When Schilder first came on at Frank Mayer she worked on a project with AM General and was part of a group sent to Indiana for almost a week to learn about the Hummer.

Bowers joined them, and when their session was over drove them all home.

"Ron was so kind and was doing his best to get to know us, as three of us were just temps for the project," Schilder said. "Ron had a heart of gold."

Cheryl Lesniak, Frank Mayer's director of marketing, highlighted Bowers' willingness to offer education and advice to those around him.

"Ron wasn't just part of the kiosk and display world, he helped shape it," Lesniak wrote on a post on Frank Mayer's LinkedIn page marking Bowers' passing. He genuinely cared about the work, the relationships, and doing things the right way."

And longtime friend Andrew Govek, senior vice president — project leader with Frank Mayer, said: "I worked with Ron for 32 years and while there were plenty of laughs, I think the things I will remember most was his dedication to Frank Mayer and Associates, his willingness to work hard on every project and his friendly, enthusiastic attitude toward everyone he met," Govek said. "He was a great coworker, a great salesman, a great family man and a great friend."

Impact beyond the company office

In addition to having an impact on those he worked with at Frank Mayer, Bowers had a similar impact on those working for his competitors. Many expressed the significance of that attitude, both in LinkedIn comments and in messages to Kiosk Marketplace.

Ron Bowers, left, and family at his 2018 retirement party. Photo: Frank Mayer and Associates

"He was always someone that I admired from way back, the way he treated everyone was something to emulate," Frank Olea, CEO of Olea Kiosks, said in a comment on Frank Mayer's LinkedIn post. "He proved to me that competitors can be friendly and have a good relationship."

Others agreed with that sentiment.

"I had the good fortune of knowing Ron for two decades," wrote Stuart Armstrong, founder and managing director of AAG Consulting Group, on LinkedIn. "He was one of those rare individuals who didn't have any boundaries between who he was at work and who he is as a human being and why would he? He was a generous, kind, smart individual."

Bowers had a way of bringing people together, encouraging action, and making things happen, said Craig Keefner, manager of the Kiosk Manufacturer Association, in an email interview.

"He believed in the value of the industry and in the people working to build it." Keefner said. "I will always appreciate his friendship, his encouragement, and the time we had working side by side."

Bowers may be gone, but his impact on the industry will be felt for years. One of his last comments to Kiosk Marketplace back in 2018 was his never-ending optimism about where the self-service industry was headed.

"That's because I realize that through the combination of new technology innovations that allow the development of convenient, intuitive and experience-motivated solutions, innovative marketers and retailers will be investing in the connected consumer," he told Kiosk Marketplace. "The new consumer wants a personalized experience at retail that will rival the experience of a sales-assisted experience that is directed by their personal preferences."

A celebration of life is planned for June; details are pending.

About Richard Slawsky

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Frank Mayer and Associates

Custom Kiosk Design | Manufacturer

Frank Mayer Kiosks and Displays specializes in large-scale rollouts of custom digital kiosks for enterprise and growth-oriented brands. With a relentless focus on premium design, customization, and end-to-end service, we manufacture self-service customer engagement solutions that expand market reach, boost sales, and enhance brand equity.

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