Today we’d like to introduce you to Dat Nguyen.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
It all started while I was working for Tweeter, a well-known car audio shop where I was the West Coast Trainer and Custom Car Audio Installer at the time. Although I was very happy there, I always wanted to have my own business. I had an idea to open an online store specializing in Automotive Performance Parts as a part time business while working my full-time job. It was my way of getting into Entrepreneurship with low risk. I commissioned one of my friends to make a website for me and on my off time at work, I was busy opening wholesale accounts with brands that I was interested in selling. After a few months of preparation, I opened Speed Alliance in 2001. I would answer phone calls during work and placed orders from the website after I got off from Tweeter. I was very fortunate that my boss at Tweeter saw how determined I was and allowed me to pick up phone calls during work hours if it didn’t affect my work.
After a couple of years of Speed Alliance being open, I saved all income from the website and decided to open a brick and mortar store. Again, while still working at Tweeter. I knew it would be a lot of work but I was determined to see Speed Alliance succeed. I hired a couple of workers and had my friend partner up with me to run the business on a full-time basis while I worked at my full-time job. I would go to work at my full-time job from 10-7pm and go straight to Speed Alliance to do paperwork and orders until Midnight daily. It was definitely a struggle, but well worth it to me!
I was really into a Motorsport called Drifting originating from Japan. The cars would compete in a battle going 80-100 mph in a controlled slide. Three judges would judge you on style, proximity, and speed. There was a Japanese company called Option Videos that featured the Professional Drift Series called D1 Grand Prix in Japan. I was fortunate to find these VHS tapes at my local video rental store, yes…VHS Tapes. That long ago! While watching the D1 Grand Prix I noticed a company called Vertex. They were a professional drift team but specialized on making Japanese Body Kits in Japan. I always loved the style of their cars.
I knew that for Speed Alliance to survive, I needed to bring over something that not all performance shop can get their hands on. I needed to make Speed Alliance a bit different than other performance shops, that was the key to my success. I hired a translator and started talks with Vertex in Japan. At first, Vertex did not want to enter the U.S. Market. However, after persistently contacting them every month for the next year, they decided to meet me in the United States. After negotiations, we became the North American Distributor for Vertex exclusively in 2003!
There was so much involved with importing items from Japan such as duties, taxes, currency fluctuation, estimated time frame from the factory and when it would actually arrive to the United States just to name a few. I noticed my partner getting overwhelmed and honestly stressed out. He was a great friend of mine, but I started to feel that he was only there because I needed him to run the business. He never complained, but I started to notice to that he definitely wasn’t happy. Well, in 2007 Tweeter announced they were leaving California and closing all stores. I think this was a blessing in disguise! I loved working at Tweeter with a steady income but I knew for Speed Alliance to succeed, I needed to work on it full time. After Tweeter announced that they were closing, I started to plan out how I wanted to operate my shop. After long talks with my partner, I realized business just wasn’t for him and he departed from the business. To this day, we speak regularly and I’m grateful for him and all he did for the business. He actually stayed on until I made the decision to finally work on my business full time. I’m forever in debt to him.
Through the years, Vertex started to become well known in the United States due to the D1 Grand Prix coming to the United States to do exhibitions. Drifting was getting bigger here in the United States. We started to see track days opening up at local race tracks for grassroots drifters to practice and simply have a great time. I would go to these drift events every chance I got! I felt this was a perfect time for me to officially open Vertex USA instead of using the Speed Alliance name and being the exclusive distributor for Vertex brand. I felt the name in itself would make it easier for customers in the United States to find us. With the permission from Vertex in Japan, I opened Vertex USA in late 2007 after leaving Tweeter for good.
I kept Speed Alliance and sold all different parts from well-known Japanese Manufacturers and dedicated Vertex USA to the Vertex Brand only. With many years in the business now I was able to pick up the biggest names in the Automotive Parts Industry for Speed Alliance while expanding our product line for Vertex including accessories such as Steering Wheels, Shift Knobs, and also Vertex Engine Parts!
In 2010, I went to Japan to visit the Vertex factory and noticed these Remote Controlled Cars that drift! It was awesome seeing these 1:10 Scale RC cars drifting around a track! It looked so realistic. After coming back, I purchased some RC Cars and made a track after hours and enjoyed RC Drifting with some friends. Being a drifter myself, I get the same adrenaline rush with these RC cars! After some research, I started to think this would be a great business since it’s not big in the United States yet and we would be one of the first if we opened a dedicated RC Track. In Japan, it’s common to see these drift tracks around town but you never see them here in the United States. After some talks with a good friend of mine that was a “Guru” when it came to RC Drift Cars, we decided to partner up and open Vertex RC USA in 2014. My partner Joshua Gumban was very technical having a background in Engineering working for Qualcomm. He wasn’t happy at Qualcomm, so I presented him with an idea of opening an RC shop, something that he would love to do! I take care of the business and wholesale side and he takes care of the technical side and retail customers. I knew that having a track only would not succeed, but with a great product that we can distribute, it would be successful. This was something I learned from Speed Alliance, the shop didn’t succeed until I was able to get exclusive rights to the Vertex product. So with the years of experience importing over products from Japan, I decided to try to get exclusive right to sell Drift Products from a company called Yokomo from Japan. After talks with Yokomo, we expanded the shop to have a dedicated RC Drift Track along with a Retail Store Front selling these hard to get items from Yokomo. We have a fully stocked showroom and distribute RC Parts across the United States. It’s still a growing business but we feel it’s here to stay. We’ve been getting new accounts across the United States and we see new dedicated RC Drift Tracks across the United States now!
So to this day, Speed Alliance offers the best in Automotive Parts from Japan. Vertex USA distributes Vertex Products across North America. Vertex RC USA is growing while we distribute Yokomo Drift Products and have an indoor RC Track with a store front for our customers!
I can honestly say I love cars no matter how big or small! I’m fortunate to be in a field that I honestly enjoy!
Has it been a smooth road?
It definitely wasn’t a smooth road. The biggest struggle I had was having these big ideas on bringing over these parts from Japan but we didn’t have enough cash flow to do so! I pulled loans and used my savings. It was actually very scary as I used all my savings to bring over the Vertex brand when we initially started. I was determined to bring over the brand and I’m happy to say all loans are paid off and business has been good!
I also struggled with the very long hours working my full-time job and having my own business as well. Looking back, I’m not sure how I didn’t get burnt out. I guess when you have a big dream and you’re actually doing what you enjoy, it helps!
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Vertex USA story. Tell us more about the business.
Vertex USA, I would say is my main business. We are the exclusive North American Distributors for the Vertex Brand. We manufacture body kits and accessories all made in Japan. We’re known for offering very clean body kits for cars such as Lexus, BMW, Nissan, Toyota, and even Ferrari. We’re also know for our Professional Drift Team. We stay competitive in all events piloted by our famous Driver Takahiro Ueno which is also the owner of Vertex Japan! I’m proud at the fact they our drift cars and logos are in video games such as Gran Turismo and Forza. We even had a show on Speed Channel that followed our Team as we competed in the D1 Grand Prix.
Speed Alliance offers all different kinds of products mainly from Japan. We only offer Authentic and Quality parts to our customers and dealers that purchase from us. We are distributors for some brands and offer wholesale discounts to shops in San Diego and the United States. We specialize in Wheels, Suspension, Body Kits and Performance Parts. I’m proud at the fact that while many performance shops open and close down, we’ve been here for over 16 years and was able to keep our doors open when the economy was bad. After all, we sell “want” products, not “need” products. I feel that our customer service is essential for our business and am proud at the fact that we strive on referral business now!
Vertex RC USA is my latest business venture and is relatively still new to the United States. We are the exclusive distributor for Yokomo Drift Products from Japan. Yokomo by far is the best in the market for RC Drift Products. I’m very proud at the fact that I was able to become the official distributor here in the United States. We have an indoor RC Drift Track and a fully stocked retail store front. Since we have been open, I’ve seen 6 RC Drift Tracks open across the United States in California, Washington, Hawaii, Chicago, Texas, and Florida to name a few!
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I don’t see big changes in the Automotive Industry. I feel that it’s been around for so long there will always be the ups and downs with the economy. However, there will always be new drivers that are into motor sports and customizing their cars. So as long as you carry reputable parts and have great customer service, I don’t think it will ever die out.
I see Vertex RC USA changing in a big way in the next 5-10 years. I look at other places in the world such as Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Netherlands, Poland, and United Kingdom where RC Drifting is huge. They have events and competitions that bring in competitors from all different nations. I see the United States as the next big destination for RC Drift Competitions. As a matter of fact, we will be working with Yokomo Japan to bring over a drift event hopefully starting in 2018!
Contact Info:
- Address: 5595 Magnatron Blvd., STE. T
San Diego, CA 92111 - Website: www.vertex-usa.com, www.vertexrc-usa.com, www.speedalliance.com
- Phone: 888-3-VERTEX
- Email: info@vertex-usa.com
- Instagram: @vertexusa @vertexrcusa @speedalliance
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VERTEXUSA/
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