Fastco's story reads exactly like a boyhood dream come true: “Some day I will race cars, and have a great life doing what I wanna do!”
Glenn Chaplin is that boy and his dream has come true. Obviously, it did not happen overnight and long working hours were required to get to where he is now.
A short while back, I toured Fastco's impressive facilities in Vaudreuil-Dorion, just west of the island of Montreal. Over the next few weeks, we will publish a few stories on what happens to be the largest maker of alloy wheels in Canada.
Seriously, wheels may not mean much to you, however, this business (a CANADIAN business) is an amazing example of what can be done, when a team of bright and like-minded people work together as a team and with the proper motivation.
Here's the Fastco story, from the very beginning, recounted with the precious help of Ian Pavelko, Director of Product Development.
Glenn, the man, the legend, founded his first automotive venture called Automotion back in 1971. It was a performance parts store and he started it as a way to finance his true passion which was, and still is, road racing.
As one would hope, the business grew quickly. Then, came marriage, two sons and new priorities. Unfortunately, but wisely, Glenn put racing on hold but knew full-well that he was going to get a second crack at it. It's good to have goals!
In 1981 Automotion became Lazer Auto, a chain of auto accessory shops with three locations in the Montreal area.
This taste of success at the retail level wasn’t enough for Glenn. He then set his sights towards the next step up the ladder, which was distribution and manufacturing. Thus, in 1989, Fastco was born.
Various auto accessories were initially offered. 1995 marked the first year that alloy wheels, the product that the company is known for, were first made available.
Glenn Chaplin is that boy and his dream has come true. Obviously, it did not happen overnight and long working hours were required to get to where he is now.
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| Photo: Miranda Lightstone/Auto123.com |
A short while back, I toured Fastco's impressive facilities in Vaudreuil-Dorion, just west of the island of Montreal. Over the next few weeks, we will publish a few stories on what happens to be the largest maker of alloy wheels in Canada.
Seriously, wheels may not mean much to you, however, this business (a CANADIAN business) is an amazing example of what can be done, when a team of bright and like-minded people work together as a team and with the proper motivation.
Here's the Fastco story, from the very beginning, recounted with the precious help of Ian Pavelko, Director of Product Development.
Glenn, the man, the legend, founded his first automotive venture called Automotion back in 1971. It was a performance parts store and he started it as a way to finance his true passion which was, and still is, road racing.
As one would hope, the business grew quickly. Then, came marriage, two sons and new priorities. Unfortunately, but wisely, Glenn put racing on hold but knew full-well that he was going to get a second crack at it. It's good to have goals!
In 1981 Automotion became Lazer Auto, a chain of auto accessory shops with three locations in the Montreal area.
This taste of success at the retail level wasn’t enough for Glenn. He then set his sights towards the next step up the ladder, which was distribution and manufacturing. Thus, in 1989, Fastco was born.
Various auto accessories were initially offered. 1995 marked the first year that alloy wheels, the product that the company is known for, were first made available.
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| Photo: Mathieu St-Pierre/Auto123.com |