|
 Jeffrey Moran is capitalizing on one of the simplest formulas for business success: Pick a product people desperately want, then do a first-class job delivering it to them. Moran owns Drop Top Customs by Convertible Builders, a company that takes hard-top cars for which there aren’t convertible models and turns them into aftermarket ragtops for car owners who love to ride with the top down.
“We’re pretty much the only people doing this,” he says. “It gives [customers] something they can’t get anywhere else.”
The High Springs business is considered one of the premier conversion companies, with clients in the U.S. and overseas. Emmitt Smith, Deion Sanders and Dan Aykroyd are just a few of its clients in this country. Moran’s crew also built a four-door Cadillac convertible given to the King of Thailand for his 79th birthday and a white Chrysler 300 conversion that greeted Pope Benedict XVI when he landed in the Republic of Cameroon last year.
The company started as Coach Builders in 1976. Moran’s father, Larry, has worked for the business since 1982 and Moran joined in 2003 after retiring from the Broward Police Department. He bought the business in 2008. DETAILED DESIGNS
One of the keys to Convertible Builders’ appeal is the attention they put into their work. Unlike companies that might do one-size-fits-all conversions on any car that comes in the door, Convertible Builders designs conversions for a handful of specific car models. The company currently produces convertible versions of the Cadillac CTS and DTS, the Chrysler 300, the Dodge Challenger and the newly relaunched Chevy Camaro. Moran says it takes three to four months to design a working prototype for each convertible conversion. “We put a lot of time and money into our design features,” he says. “What makes it profitable for us is when we take that design and reproduce it.”
The Challenger design was commissioned directly by Ralph Gilles, now president and CEO of the Dodge car brand and senior vice president of design at Chrysler group.
Moran says Dodge couldn’t make a good business case to mass-produce a convertible model, so it contracted with his company. The car debuted in 2008 at SEMA, the premier aftermarket automotive showcase held annually in Las Vegas, and took Chrysler’s Design Excellence Award.
“That’s what really launched us into where we’re at now,” Moran says. MARKETING A SPECIALTY BUSINESS
To reach potential customers, the company relies on publicity gained through major car shows and online marketing campaigns. Close relationships with automotive sites such as Edmunds.com, Moran says, help interest spread “like wildfire.”
Convertible Builders also has a sophisticated Web site with photos and articles about its cars, as well as screen-saver pictures to promote the conversions virally.
Beyond these marketing efforts, the company partners with auto dealers nationally and worldwide, who place converted models in their showroom to mutually boost sales. Also, Moran will soon open the Drop Top Customs by Convertible Builders Showroom in Frankfurt, Germany, the company’s first overseas showroom.
And, the company is negotiating to create its own reality TV show, “Modern Hot Rodz,” which will feature conversions for high-profile customers.
BUILDING CUSTOMER CONFIDENCE
Converting a car can be expensive and potential customers are sure to have questions about the quality of the work and whether it will affect their autos’ warranty.
To address issues like these, Moran offers a one-year warranty on parts and labor and a three-year warranty on mechanical parts.
Also, the company does all conversion work in-house to keep a handle on quality control, develops an instruction manual for each model and keeps spare parts and accessories in inventory.
“We can handle any aspect of the car built right here,” Moran says. “It gives a comfort level to our customers.”
Despite the fact that the company’s niche market consists of highly affluent and repeat buyers, the recession has had an impact on projects. Moran says the shop was handling more than 20 cars each month before the recession hit, but is now doing 75 to 100 a year. He says they saw significant decreases when Chrysler sales fell.
That’s led him to be more cautious about business. “You watch every dollar, and you truly don’t pretend to be bigger than you are,” he says. “You live within your means so you’re solvent in slow times.”
As part of that strategy, Moran says he’s kept the company debt-free and made sure he takes care of his staff. “When things are tight, I’m the last one to get a paycheck, and sometimes I don’t,” he says. “You take care of your people first. Customers see that.” And that helps maintain his company’s credibility, he says.
That’s important because of the scope of work Convertible Builders does. He says it’s typical for a customer to wire $50,000 to $100,000 to fund a project, “based on our word and reputation” alone.
Usually, a customer purchases a car from a dealer, has it shipped directly to the High Springs shop, and the first time the owner sees it is when it shows up in the driveway.
“That’s a giant leap of faith for people, which makes us feel pretty good that they have that much faith in us as a company,” he says.
Moran says his favorite part of the job is developing the company’s new conversions. The next project on the horizon is a Cadillac Tudor CTS conversion, which he hopes will be in full swing within a few months.
“I really enjoy the design portion of it,” he says. “The reproducing it is where the company makes money, but my heart is in the design.” |
