At 29, this retailer has just opened his fourth store in BC Canada. He co-owns the chain that grosses nearly $4 million, and he attributes some of his success to lessons he learned in the world of stocks and investors.
Chris Cope ran his own construction company in his 20s before selling it, and he’s been day trading stocks for years. Yet he chose to open a car audio shop, Certified Autosound, to pursue a hobby and also prove to a former boss that he could do a better job at managing a store.
Cope knows about the world of investors. His dad is CEO of three small mining companies. As a single parent, his father took his two sons to various business functions including social events to wine and dine investors. Cope now takes those lessons learned and applies them in car audio.
“Honestly, the biggest part of anything I’ve applied from the stock market is taking care of the people who take care of you. I was always going out to dinner or golfing with investors and that’s just building relationships. That’s what I adopted. You have to have strong relationships with your customers,” Cope said.
Certified Autosound employees are treated to Go Kart nights every three months as well as a golf outing once a year. Plus, there’s an annual barbecue and employees are taken out on the company boat.
At the annual Christmas party, everyone gets a prize worth a minimum of $500. Instead of handing out $500 bonuses there’s a drawing with a few exceptional prizes thrown in, including a complete 7-day trip to Mexico and a 4-day trip to Las Vegas for two. It’s a reverse draw so the first names picked get the least desirable prize. “People get so excited,” he said. “We make it fun and someone gets a trip to Mexico or to Vegas and they remember it more than if they just got $500 in cash,” Cope said. The wives are given flowers. Employees go up to the front of the room and present their spouses with a bouquet and they say a few words, thanking them for letting them spend so much time at work.
There’s an annual men’s night that includes 18 holes of golf, dinner and gifts. Formal invitations are sent to clients and some employees also attend. It may cost $2,500 “but it’s the best money spent, hands down. They feel like they owe you after that and you’ve set yourself apart from everyone else,” said Cope.
“The biggest lesson we adopted and push is structure. Every other company in other industries, they have the policies and procedures in place to make sure anybody can do the job they do. So, employees know what their job is and what’s expected of them. The vehicles get checked in and checked out with seat covers and protective film, like a high-end dealership. We don’t care if it’s a 1990 Honda Civic. It needs to be professional,” Cope said.
“Ninety-five percent of car audio dealers have no structure. The guys take cash and don’t declare it. But that’s not building your business,” he added.
The business environment helps retain employees. “Our best tech came to us because of our work environment. Money is something they need, but they stick with us because of the culture of our stores and how we take care of them…” Certified’s top tech, with bonus, makes close to six figures annually, he said.
The chain employs 17 people including Cope and co-owner Pat Lee. Brands carried include BLAM, Helix, Brax, JL Audio, Rockford Fosgate and Kenwood. The store pushes BLAM and Helix and BLAM is its best-selling speaker brand.
