Everyone has had an experience where they say “if I was the boss, I would do things differently!” Tom Roberts spent most of his career working for someone else and in the process he gained a lot of experience. Most importantly he’s learned how to work with other people so the whole group can thrive! Tom started Autonerdz so he could supply oscilloscopes to automotive repair shops, but he took it one step further; he created a useful forum for users to interact, and ask each other questions and share experiences. Now Tom and his team at Autonerdz sell...

  If you’re into Subaru, GTR, BMW, or Mazdaspeed then no doubt you know all about Cobb Tuning. Or so you think! Did you know that Cobb Tuning’s first shop was a single bay in his father’s tire shop? In this episode Trey and I discuss the lesson’s learned over the years and we talk about making tough decisions. Trey says you need to create a plan for your business to force yourself to think things through. We talk about creating plans and how to hold people accountable. Trey says to FOCUS on your strengths, don’t try to be everything...

  Part 2 of 2: The remainder of the interview is David talking about the performance industry and shining a light into some of the dark corners. It’s a killer episode because we took the time to dive deep into a lot of different topics from patents to inventory turns. If you’re into the Honda drag racing scene, don’t miss this episode. This interview is packed with details about current companies and their role in the industry today.

  THIS IS PART 1 of 2: This episode is about business, and how David built and is continuing to build his businesses. David Hsu is an unapologetic capitalist who believes in free market forces which basically state that if your product or service is less-valuable than a competitor then the market will deal with you. In this first part (of two) we discuss how to bring a product to market, design patents, EBITDA, the four F’s of raising money, and David offers two things you must understand if you’re building a business.

  Modern Automotive Performance is a unique performance parts distributor that focuses on Mitsubishi EVO, DSM, Subaru, and Ford Ecoboost Mustang (among others). With 38 employees, the operation is relatively large. Chris tells the story of how he started with car stereo, and then graduated to performance work. His business was largely focused on custom performance tuning and has since cut that business segment to focus on the company’s strengths; engine building and parts retailing. We discussed three things that make his business unique and about their competitive advantage. This episode has really great insight into how to hire and...