Business Spotlight: Tricked-Out Trucks

Sometimes a commitment to business means selling personal belongings and moving on site.

That was the case for Mike and Alesia Traiteur when they bought out their employer, Sportsland Pickup Covers, in 2010.

“There was a lot of dedication. We lived here for a year and a half,” Mike Traiteur says of the decision to auction off personal assets, rent out their home and turn a windowless conference room into a temporary apartment for the two of them.

“We took showers in the wash bay out in the shop,” he recalls, laughing. “It was 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

The seller and installer of fiberglass pickup covers and automotive accessories had nearly 40 years of history behind it, and the new owners took the opportunity to make their mark.

A contributing factor to the severe personal changes was an industry in the throes of the economic recession.

“We bought it at the lowest point in the economy, the lowest point in automotive sales and probably at the lowest point in the aftermarket industry,” Traiteur says. “We were in the depth of the recession, and car manufacturing in Detroit was needing assistance. People were not buying luxury items at all. People were making what they had work a little longer.”

Fast work
The new business owners had a tall order in front of them, but the husband and wife made fast work of it.

In their first full year of operations, Sportsland grew sales 75 percent to top $1 million in 2011. Traiteur says annual sales remain in the $1 million range and have grown each year under their direction, while selling mostly retail customers such accessories as truck-bed liners and spray coatings, suspension kits, running boards and grill guards.

Installation is performed on site at the 18,000-square-foot showroom and shop fronting Highway 60 in Rogersville.

The company also serves commercial vehicle fleets for such clients as Corwin Dodge, Marshfield Motor Co., Renew Crew, Mediacom and Faith Technologies.

Matt Smith, the accessories manager at Reliable Chevrolet in Springfield, says he calls Sportsland four to five times a week on behalf of clients seeking aftermarket parts.

“They’re my go-to people for lift kits and tonneau covers, specialty items that General Motors doesn’t carry,” Smith says.

He acknowledges orders for accessories on new GM vehicles have been sparse with the automaker’s recent recalls, but the preowned market remains steady for a variety of brands.

Typically negotiated during the sales process or for regular clients upgrading a vehicle, Smith says orders often range from $200 for a bug shield or floor mats to $800 for bed covers and lift kits. He says requests are often made for the UnderCover Inc. brand, and Sportsland is its exclusive dealer in the market.

“That’s a real popular tonneau cover in this area, with the plant there in Rogersville,” Smith says.

Located adjacent to Sportsland, Rogersville-based UnderCover manufactures thousands of truck bed covers a day. A few years ago, the company invested roughly $5 million to expand its capacity and add Class A automotive finishes to the covers.

UnderCover is among some 100 brands at Sportsland. The main product lines are Go Industries’ grill guards, Iron Cross step bars, A.R.E. fiberglass pickup covers and ArmorThane protective coatings, produced in Springfield.

Traiteur says the company just signed on as a stocking distributor for Better Built toolboxes. As for trends, he says Weathertech interior floor liners are making a push. Retailing for $125, the company has launched a big advertising campaign, including a Super Bowl spot.

Good stewards
Now organized under MACK Sales LLC – which stands for Mirror Always Christ’s Kindness – Traiteur says the radical personal moves and continued operation have a greater purpose.

“It’s a little bit deeper for us. We’re trying to make people scratch their head when they leave and ask what was different about the place,” he says.

He attributes Sportsland’s turnaround to a renewed philosophy: “We try to make the good and right decisions, not just what’s going to be profitable. Part of doing what’s right is being good stewards.”

To that end, the Traiteurs conducted a top-down analysis of budgets, equipment maintenance and inventory. They tightened expenses to remove waste and stay in line with their budget, and began a detailed tracking of cash flow.

“We started looking at everything from the first penny up,” he says.

Traiteur first became familiar with Sportsland as an installer of its products in the St. Louis market. Company founders Dale and Pat Brallier originally manufactured fiberglass covers on site and shipped to dealers across the country.

The owners invited Traiteur to come work for them in Rogersville in the early 1980s, and several years later, he met another Sportsland recruit, Alesia. At the time, she was handling Sportsland’s books as an employee of Jackson and Jackson CPAs.

“I grew up with this company,” Mike Traiteur says. “I learned a lot from them about business and grew up with the way they do business.”