I started selling car parts with my dad aged 7 – now I run an eight-figure business flogging them on Shopify
A MAN has revealed how he made an eight-figure business form selling car parts with his step dad at seven years old.
Sean Rayes revealed the secret to success, from carving out a niche to making the most of online shops.
He now owns Shock Surplus, a car parts business he has turned into an eight-figure company.
Speaking on the Winning with Shopify podcast, Sean revealed exactly how he grew his business.
Back in the day, Sean used to help his dad sell car parts at the young age of seven.
Sean specifically sells Shock Absorbers for cars creating his own special niche in the car industry.
“I saw a lot of gatekeeping, nobody talks about what these products do,” Sean said, so he decided to change that.
These devices stop your car from vibrating or bouncing excessively when you drive over rough or uneven road surfaces, whilst keeping your tyres on the road.
Shock absorbers are a part of the suspension system of the car, and work by converting the kinetic energy of your car’s suspension into heat.
He first got into the business of selling in 2007 with his step-dad, using eBay and Amazon to sell off car parts.
But the pair had to sell the business in 2010, which was gutting for Sean but taught him a lot about the new market as online selling became even more popular.
Sean masters the art of bundling items, which set him apart from other car part ventures.
He was able to bundle items that work together – providing the customer with everything they need for a cheaper price than buying them separately.
Speaking on how he transformed his business into an eight-figure company, Sean said the first step he took was to stop using large companies to sell his goods and head to Shopify.
Sean revealed he lost almost £80,000 on Google ads which did almost nothing to bring in new business.
Instead he focused on his Shopify store front and paid for ads to direct people to the site which made up 30% of his sales.
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He made £1,000,000 from organic traffic to the site , but he revealed going to eight-figures happened very suddenly, partly due to Covid in 2020.
Sean added that customers are often looking for excellent service and knowledge about products rather than the product itself.
Almost anyone can sell if they want to, but customers will keep coming back if you provide a service they can’t get elsewhere says Sean.
He also revealed emails and newsletters can help grow the business and reach new customers as it’s a constant ‘nudge’ for customers to try them out.
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