ABOUT US

Coming from a dealership background. Our own Michael went out and bought four Jeep Wranglers and one GMC 1500 at the auction. He had a plan, he would take these vehicles to a local shop, have them up-fitted (Lift, Tires, Wheels, Steps, Flares) and take them back to the auction and sell them for a profit! This idea worked and Central Alps was started! 

After proving the concept that there was a market for pre-built vehicles, Michael began to be disappointed in the turn around time of the shops he was using. Most of the time it would take 3-4 weeks for the vehicles to be completed. (The same work we do in the same day today!) So Michael decided to take matters into his own hands and began building the vehicles in house. From this point on all Central Alps vehicles were built in the same facility we are in today. 

In 2015 we began running into an inventory problem. We were unable to buy the number of vehicles needed to supply the demand for Central Alps vehicles. So we went out and began buying brand new Jeeps and Chevys from the dealer and began up-fitting them to sell at the auction. This is also the year that we began to sell to the general public.  

In 2016 Michael became frustrated with the rising cost of parts. We were building 20+ brand new Jeep Wranglers each month with similar parts and no real manufacture on our side. So Michael began to look internationally for parts manufactures. By the end of the year we had established manufacturing in Shenzhen China and began manufacturing, importing, installing and selling our own parts. 

In 2017 we had our highest highs and our lowest lows. This is the year that we hit our stride. We were in a good rhythm with the manufactures ordering, building, and selling vehicles. Our containers were coming in with parts that we were installing and selling. And our builds were getting BIG and being shipped all over the world (France, Bahamas, Croatia, and Hawaii to name a few). It is also the year that Jeep said they would no long sell us vehicles. The business would have to change or cease to exist. 

2018 is the year Michael had his "Soloman Moment" after building the Jeep he had always dreamed of building. And then building three more each of them better than the last. After the "last build" a Jeep that would be known around Central Alps as "Michael's White and Grey Jeep" Michael was left much like Soloman in Ecclesiastes 1:2-11. Michael had built all that he had dreamt and realized there was no purpose for it. 

In 2019 we found our WHY. After being cut off from buying any new inventory and after building the biggest baddest vehicles we could think of. We had to find a new way of doing business. Michael launched a couple of Facebook ads. People like the ones who are reading this right now responded to them. We began building their vehicles and we found our WHY. Being able to serve people like Jesus and build their dream vehicle this was it, this was our WHY. Meeting with, dreaming of, and building peoples dreams and then being able to see their reaction when they saw their dream for the first time, all while trying to love and serve them like Jesus. This is what we became all about. Loving like Jesus and building the dreams of others, not just our dreams. 

2020 was our year of blessing. When many other customization shops like us were floundering we were thriving. We believe largely due to the fact that we were rewriting how the off-road business was done. While our competitors continued to do what they had always done. In 2020 we found ways to make builds happen (usually by sourcing parts from multiple suppliers to create complete kits) that other shops were un willing to do. This is what helped us to double our size. In the peak of 2020 we had a six week waiting list! Meaning if you told us you wanted us to build your vehicle today you would have to wait 6 weeks before we could get you in the shop! 

2021 was our year of refinement. Not only did we double in size in 2020 but we doubled in 2021 as well! We were determined to serve as many people as possible and we were doing things no other shop had thought of. We were capturing content on the majority of builds coming through the shop. And because of this relentlessness to capture the amount of content that we did. We believe that we set the standard for what content should look like for all shops. This is the year we rolled our our loaner car fleet, pickup and delivery services, as well as torque markings on all vehicles. 

2022 was marked by building our people. Our team took much of the day to day operations away from Michael and began to run the business without him. And through this the team that was running the business was able to grow exponentially. From this year of growth they have gone on to start ministries and businesses from what was learned from their time at Central Alps. This is also the year Michael became obsessed with building vehicles with 40 Inch tires with little to no lift! People often reach out to us to tell us that they can not find a local shop that will build vehicles similar to what they have seen us build!

2023 was the year that we made a dream a reality. Michael had always dreamed of having a "Gala". The Gala would be an event where we could host some of our favorite customers and love on them. We had servers serving food, a DJ, more content people then employees, a solid white bounce house, and lots and lots of gifts! 

2024 was the year that we had to go back to the roots. The roots being that we had an experience that no other shop had. Many shops had grown to try and operate like us and we were no longer pushing the envelope of the way a shop could function. In short, we had too many competitors similar to us. We had to realign how we served people. We had to remember to serve people like family and not serve them like a customer. Another initiative that we took in early 2024 was sending out our "Content Boxes". We created a gift that was an experience to open by our customers. The would receive a box in the mail from us. Inside they would find and Apple quality box. They would begin to open it and realize it was a personalized experience crafted for them around their build. We sent out 500 of them. This helped remind us the personal touch we wanted to have with each person that comes through the shop. 

To everyone that has helped us get to this point, from the vendors, to the suppliers, to the past employees, and the past customers. 

Thank you. Thank you for allowing us to serve you, and to try our best to love you like Jesus. As to where we are headed? We want to continue to help build peoples dreams, continue to love them like Jesus, and continue to find ways to set ourselves apart from every other shop.