So Ramzi and I were talking about the AST site the other night after dinner with mom and dad, mostly telling them about the recent launch in Vegas. While discussing the enthusiasm expressed by so many folks before, at, and after SEMA for this much-needed service, we got to talking once more about the motivation behind the site.
"The goal," Ramzi insisted, "is to help people. It's less about making money and more about building a community of people sharing tools and knowledge."
"All the same, we do hope that it starts to cover the costs of setup and maintenance," I chimed in. It is a brand new start-up business after all.
"What? How is this venture going to make any money??" Dad was (almost) speechless.
An entrepreneur whose primary objective *isn't* making as much money as possible? Yes. I guess that would make my brother an automotive missionary of sorts. (Must be that Catholic upbringing....)
Showing posts with label sema. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sema. Show all posts
Monday, November 15, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Back to reality...
Most people must have thought I was crazy when I said we were launching the site AND exhibiting for the first time ever at SEMA 2010... Well, we did it, admittedly with a few hiccups here and there.
What did we learn?
- 5 people managing a 10x10 booth is too much!
- Ergonomic flooring is an EPIC WIN (and a great investment!)
- People really like the idea and gave a few of their own!
- Switching from Paypal sandbox to "live" mode yields its own unforeseen issues (which we're dealing with!)
What does this mean?
- We're pumped that people like the idea and this fuels the fire in our hearts and minds to eliminate all of the issues associated with the site
- It also means that we have an even larger list of upcoming feature additions as this gets off the ground.
As Ibti mentioned above, the service is ABSOLUTELY FREE for lenders. This is kind of a shell shock to most people used to the Ebay-style fee structure that bills you no matter what.
In an effort to bring as many lenders to the table as possible, we made the decision a long time ago to allow fee-free posting of tool ads.
We really are dedicated to the guys on the ground level: DIYers, hobbyist racers, independant shop owners/mechanics, tool company franchisees, etc...
We are here to answer the call and help build and foster the DIY community by providing access to specialized, hard-to-find, expensive, or otherwise rent-worthy tools and associated information in a clear, concise, and user-friendly way.
I sincerely hope that this site succeeds in its goal of helping out the everyday hobbyist do what he/she loves for less money so he doesn't have to choose between fixing his/her car and going out or taking a trip, etc...
Sunday, November 7, 2010
What happens in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas...
At least not when it's news of the launch of an amazing new peer-to-peer tool lending website!
Yes, folks, Automotive Specialty Tool is now live. In Vegas this past week, Ramzi (the company's founder) and a proud team of AST staff (working out of the goodness of our hearts and a belief in the project... and hoping for plenty of free beer and a payday some day) held down the fort at a booth at the prestigious annual SEMA conference to raise awareness about AST and build up our tool lending library.
"What a great idea!" many people commented after one of us at the booth lured them in with our conversational tractor beam (or more likely our snazzy AST stickers). I know. That's why we're going this. For my part, I became involved with the business because though I don't own a car myself (I can almost hear my credibility shrinking as you read that sentence clause again, but wait, WAIT!) I fundamentally believe in the idea of doing as much work as possible yourself -- both for the learning and the cost-saving benefits. And I like the idea of building a community of DIY enthusiasts looking to help each other with advice, information, and of course reasonably-priced tools for rare but important specialty repairs and upgrades.
I actually got halfway decent at talking with people about the company by the time Tuesday's Young Executives Network happy hour rolled around. There I was, standing by the bar with a Heineken amid a sea of socially awkward men: "Have a tool you rarely use? Want to make a little cash on it instead of tripping over it in the garage? Lend it out safely and securely to another DIY automotive enthusiast via the AST website. It's 100% free to post and browse tools. The price of the rental and refundable deposit are set by lenders, and shipping costs are worked out between lender and borrower." (See? I totally have my 30-second speech down, though really those lightning fast Hilton elevators in Vegas forced me to cut it down to about 5 seconds: "Have tools lying around in your garage gathering dust? Rent 'em out for cash through this website. Here's a card. Oh, look, it's my floor....")
It's wild when I step back and think about this idea that Ramzi had a couple of years ago for the business. He has a lot of good ideas -- and, to be fair, a number of hair-brained schemes as well -- but in this case he's actually done it! I'm so proud of him. And I can say that, being his sister -- I am the first to ask questions or give him a hard time if he's into one of his shenanigans. Like that Thanksgiving a few years ago when he insisted on making a turducken with an entire turkey, chicken, and duck that were not deboned when he bought them. Good lord. I notice he hasn't tried that again.
Anyhow, welcome to all to the Automotive Specialty Tool blog: your place for the latest chatter from the do-it-yourself automotive repair team. We may get a little punchy sometimes, especially when, ahem, certain members of the team are up late fixing friends' Integras or playing video games, but we really are a friendly bunch. We welcome comments and feedback and hope to see you at one of the racing events soon! In the meantime, I'd encourage you all to check out the site and post some tools. (Remember: it's free to post them!)
Yes, folks, Automotive Specialty Tool is now live. In Vegas this past week, Ramzi (the company's founder) and a proud team of AST staff (working out of the goodness of our hearts and a belief in the project... and hoping for plenty of free beer and a payday some day) held down the fort at a booth at the prestigious annual SEMA conference to raise awareness about AST and build up our tool lending library.
"What a great idea!" many people commented after one of us at the booth lured them in with our conversational tractor beam (or more likely our snazzy AST stickers). I know. That's why we're going this. For my part, I became involved with the business because though I don't own a car myself (I can almost hear my credibility shrinking as you read that sentence clause again, but wait, WAIT!) I fundamentally believe in the idea of doing as much work as possible yourself -- both for the learning and the cost-saving benefits. And I like the idea of building a community of DIY enthusiasts looking to help each other with advice, information, and of course reasonably-priced tools for rare but important specialty repairs and upgrades.
I actually got halfway decent at talking with people about the company by the time Tuesday's Young Executives Network happy hour rolled around. There I was, standing by the bar with a Heineken amid a sea of socially awkward men: "Have a tool you rarely use? Want to make a little cash on it instead of tripping over it in the garage? Lend it out safely and securely to another DIY automotive enthusiast via the AST website. It's 100% free to post and browse tools. The price of the rental and refundable deposit are set by lenders, and shipping costs are worked out between lender and borrower." (See? I totally have my 30-second speech down, though really those lightning fast Hilton elevators in Vegas forced me to cut it down to about 5 seconds: "Have tools lying around in your garage gathering dust? Rent 'em out for cash through this website. Here's a card. Oh, look, it's my floor....")
It's wild when I step back and think about this idea that Ramzi had a couple of years ago for the business. He has a lot of good ideas -- and, to be fair, a number of hair-brained schemes as well -- but in this case he's actually done it! I'm so proud of him. And I can say that, being his sister -- I am the first to ask questions or give him a hard time if he's into one of his shenanigans. Like that Thanksgiving a few years ago when he insisted on making a turducken with an entire turkey, chicken, and duck that were not deboned when he bought them. Good lord. I notice he hasn't tried that again.
Anyhow, welcome to all to the Automotive Specialty Tool blog: your place for the latest chatter from the do-it-yourself automotive repair team. We may get a little punchy sometimes, especially when, ahem, certain members of the team are up late fixing friends' Integras or playing video games, but we really are a friendly bunch. We welcome comments and feedback and hope to see you at one of the racing events soon! In the meantime, I'd encourage you all to check out the site and post some tools. (Remember: it's free to post them!)
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