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Wraptor Customs Design

by Zach Copus

My original career plan as a business and finance major at The Ohio State University about eight years ago was to go into the financial field. I was about to start an internship with Northwestern Mutual when I realized working in finance was just not for me.

Fortunately, I also took a bunch of classes in entrepreneurship. One day, I was cleaning out my car in the parking lot of my apartment near campus when I noticed a Safelite auto glass repair vehicle go by. It reminded me of something one of my professors had said, that everything is going to be mobilized. Consumers like the convenience of services coming to them. That sparked the idea of buying a van and outfitting it to start up an auto detailing business. I named the company Tidy Rides.

That moment opened my eyes to how small opportunities could evolve into something much bigger. It felt like the perfect blend of business and creativity, and I knew I wanted to pursue it further. I was successful in building up a customer base, but I learned that in a northern climate like Ohio, you only have about seven months to do auto detailing out of a mobile van. So, pretty quickly, I got out of the mobile business and rented some space from a vinyl shop to establish a physical location in Columbus.

Over the next six years, we added paint protection film, window tint film, ceramic coatings, and color change wraps to our original interior and exterior detailing services.

About a year ago, one of my longtime detailing and PPF clients told me he was interested in getting into the industry. Robert is an avid car collector with a fleet of very cool cars that all have full PPF. He also has a lot of connections in the car world.

Around that time, the graphic designer and lead installer at the vinyl shop we were renting from came down to Tidy Rides. They weren’t happy where they were and asked about going to work for us. After talking with Robert about the opportunity this represented, we decided to go into business. We launched a new venture, Wraptor Customs Designs, in a second location in Powell, Ohio, about 30 minutes north of Columbus.

Wraptor Customs specializes in print and design. We have a Mutoh printer and our graphic designer has 15 years of experience in the printing business. On the vehicle side, we offer full and partial vehicle color change and digitally printed wraps; decals, splash graphics, and striping; and commercial fleet graphic services. We moved the color change wraps offering from Tidy Rides to the new shop and continue to provide the other services in the Columbus location. We also opened a second Tidy Drives shop in Findlay, Ohio, about an hour northwest of Columbus.

All the vehicle restyling and vehicle graphics services at Wraptor Customs have been doing great. The printing side is different from what I’d been used to, but we’re learning.

An important factor in the early success of Wraptor Customs has been the flexibility of our team. We have two full-time employees at the Powell location today, but we are looking to scale that pretty quickly. Meanwhile, my paint protection film installer at Tidy Rides has the skills to help out when needed in the wrap shop. Our manager at Tidy Rides has 20 years of experience in the sign industry, so he is able to help out with printing projects when needed.

Even so, having separate locations isn’t ideal, so we’re looking to combine the two businesses in one facility with 8,000 to 10,000 square feet under one roof.

Speaking of my partner Robert’s many connections, one of them recently led to a really interesting project. Once or twice a year, Robert brings in a photographer, Will Pohlman, who has a specialty in car photography, to do a photo shoot. I often lend a hand, which is how I got to know Will.

It turns out, Will also does a lot of photography work for Avery Dennison. Two months ago, they asked him if he knew of any wrap shops that might have cars available for a rush wrap job using the company’s new Supreme Wrapping Film™ colors, which were scheduled to be introduced in mid-September. He put them in touch with us.

I was nervous about the tight deadline, but we had two cars available and we believed we could get the job done—though we knew it wouldn’t be easy. I actually had never used Avery Dennison color change film and my installer only had a little experience with the product. We viewed that as both a cause for hesitation and a great opportunity. We decided to take the opportunity. The film was great. Supreme Wrapping Film was very conformable and I loved its ability to coldstretch. It adhered well in recessed areas where we traditionally used inlays. It’s probably the best colorchange material I’ve worked with. We’re definitely going to use more of it in the future. We also got all the telephone tech support from the Avery Dennison team we needed throughout the process. We washed and wrapped the cars in about two and a half days with three installers working full-time and some help from a fourth. On the last day, we worked about 22 hours straight. Will, the photographer, filmed and shot the whole time. After we finished the wraps, we took a 45-minute nap before driving the cars to another location for the photo session, where we also helped. It was a long, long day. I feel like I'm just recovering from it all.

I think the new colors, which Avery Dennison names “Bright Escapes,” will be a big hit. They are very vibrant. You cannot miss those cars going down the road. We took the Supreme Wrapping Film Bright Escapes color Pool Party Pink “Barbie” Porsche 911 Targa to a car show last weekend. About 900 people took photos with it.

Looking to the future, we’re especially excited about the growth opportunities in the print and

design side of the Wraptor Customs business because there are so many different avenues you can go down. I’ve always been a believer in niche markets. You’re not fighting with a bunch of competitors all after the same piece of the pie. For example, we’ve had a niche focus in the detailing and PPF business with the car collector car market. I hope we can find some niches with Wraptor Customs and do the same thing.

That said, Columbus is a good market for auto detailing and customization. It has a vibrant car scene, with a lot of car collectors and enthusiasts. There are a lot of big shops, but we’re spread out, so there is plenty of business for everybody. Interest in PPF and color change wraps continues to grow, and I think color PPF is going to take off.

As the Avery Dennison project demonstrated, owning a shop is stressful at times, and it can take a toll on you if you’re not careful. But at the end of the day, it’s very rewarding. I love what we do.