Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Kammeyer.
Hi Aaron, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Cascade German Parts, founded by Aaron Kammeyer, began in 2004 as Bora Parts, Incorporated. Originally a means to pay for flight school, I met my wonderful wife Lauren and she wanted me to keep my feet on the ground. The company rapidly grew to become one of the premiere online parts retailers for Volkswagen & Audi TDIs. Rebranded as Cascade German Parts in 2015, the company continues to provide the best parts, value, and service for VW TDIs and has expanded to include the rest of the VW & Audi line-up. We have shipped to all 7 continents – including twice to Antarctica, and many countries around the world. I had a call years ago that a critical VW generator in Antarctica had gone down. I had the rare part needed to get it going. We overnighted an injection pump to the tip of Chile where it was immediately put on a charter to Antarctica, We’ve done the same thing to the outback of Australia to the jungles of Brazil. We are one of a handful of companies globally with access to factory surplus VW and Audi parts, which gives us access to parts that no one else can get. Still, the majority of our customers are in the USA and the Northwest.
Our mission is to provide high quality OEM or Aftermarket parts with highly competitive pricing, and nearly unbeatable worldwide shipping rates.
We are located in Gresham, Oregon near the Cascade Mountain Range, allowing us to provide our customers with service after the business hours of most companies in the eastern United States.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
In business it’s never a smooth road. If it were, everyone would do it. There is a reason that half of all businesses fail in 5 years.
After 22 years in business there are many lessons learned. I’ve often commented that I could probably teach the basics of what’s needed for success in business in a week long course, We almost ended up a statistic many times over the years. To be successful you have to be willing to take risks and stick your neck out, and sometimes it’ll be chopped off, and sometimes it won’t, but as time goes on you gain experience. You learn what works and what doesn’t. You scrimp and save and reinvest in your company – and ultimately in yourself and your employees. You realize that cash flow is paramount to success, without it you’ll die. You decide if you are going to treat your employees as commodities (which can be added and shed at will) or if you are going to treat them as assets. I decided to cultivate my team and build them up like the valuable assets they are.
I had a gum ball and mint business in 3rd grade. In the 80’s I was bringing in a couple hundred dollars a month as a 3rd grader, when I got called into the principles office. The Vice principal stood up for me when he said, “Are we really going to crush the eentrapaurnal spirit here? I was allowed to continue that business. I had a house painting business in college where I ran three paint crews before I started the auto parts business. I asked my dad if he had any advice, to which he said, “Treat all your customers as you would your parents, and you’ll do fine.” I’ve tried to live by that.
One day in 2003 I was in my college dorm room and ended up selling some parts to Nick Woodman. He said he had a camera business he had started and wondered if I wanted to be his first distributor. I said that I planned on flying and that all this was going to be temporary. The name of the new company was GoPro….
I have had vendors and customers over the years that have cost me hundreds of thousands of lost revenue. You can’t spend time trying to change the past, you can only learn, plan, and work towards a better future.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
I am president and owner. As mentioned earlier we can get parts from VW that no one else can.
We are direct with many suppliers in the USA. We worked with Bosch years ago on a counterfeiting sting. After we helped them they asked what they could do for us. We requested to be able to be direct with Bosch. They replied that we were way too small of a company to be able to do so. I replied, “how else can we ensure that the Bosch parts we’re sourcing are legit?”
They allowed us to buy directly from them. You have to be bold to be successful. We’ve cultivated a great relationship with Bosch over the last 10 years.
This industry is often operated on a handshake. Your word is your bond. I had a supplier offer me 360 bumpers 9 years ago. I said I didn’t want them: they are big and a pain in the rear to sell. The vendor asked me to ask another vendor if they wanted them. They said yes.
The deal was struck with my supplier. Three days later when I hadn’t been paid, I found out that the other company had backed out. My supplier had already moved forward with getting them sent to me, so I ended up stuck with $80,000 worth of Euro bumpers that I am still trying to sell 9 years later. But I verbally promised my supplier I’d get them, so I stuck with the deal, even though it cost us monetarily.
When you make a promise you follow through, whether it’s with your customers or your vendors. I go to a lot of work and effort, often staying up until 1 or 2 AM to navigate tariffs and parts shortages. I bring in whatever I can globally to be able to keep offering our customers the best value we can on parts.
Consequently we have not built the business on being cheap. Anyone can source a cheap part that will fail quickly. But by cultivating a culture of frugality, we can bring in the best value for our customers. We’re VW/Audi, BMW and Mercedes enthusiasts. We are one of a handful of companies that also specialize in euro diesels. I have received the Patriotic employer award from the Department of Defense. We support our military with military discounts. We have supplied engines for special government projects as well as mining, aviation and marine applications. Lots of cool things that are different than what you would see from a typical parts store.
I love to hand deliver parts when I travel. Whether it is a customer in Fairbanks, Alaska that calls up on a Friday afternoon saying he has a race the next week and wonders how fast I can get a part to him – to which I reply that I’m actually leaving for the airport in an hour to fly to Fairbanks, so I can bring it with me at meet him at midnight for a same day delivery. To the customers I’ve met in San Diego, Salt Lake City, New York, Ottawa Ontario, Reykjavik Iceland, Germany, and dozens of places in between… It’s fun to have a personal touch and connect with the customers.
Ultimately, my wife and three kids are what I am the most proud of. They give me the boost to want to keep going when the times get tough. Having the perspective that bad days will pass helps give one the drive to persevere despite what challenges will arrive. I’ve always told my kids my 3 (+1) keys to a successful life.
1) Stay close to God – whatever that means for oneself
2) Work hard
3) Be kind to others
3a) Look for opportunities daily to bless someone else’s life. When you do that you’re looking outward towards helping those around you rather than inward at oneself.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Begin with the end in sight by building a business that is scaleable. This was one of my greatest mistakes. I learned as I went though, I built the business where for the first 10 years or so it was just myself and my wife running it. As such we did things that worked for a team of 1 or 2. Later as she worked to raise our children at home and I added employees we found that I was the major bottleneck because I had not built the business to be scaleable. I am still a major bottleneck, but it’s getting better.
Build a good team, and then be willing to trust them.
Be active on social media, it’s amazing how much business comes because of it.
Solicit advice and don’t be afraid to purge what doesn’t work and focus on that which does work.
Beware of partnerships, they rarely work out. As you gain success everyone will want to come and spend your money for you. The “greatest latest idea” is a fast way to lose money.
The phrase pennywise and pound foolish exists for a reason – don’t chase every penny and miss the dollars.
Pricing:
- Many of our parts are available at www.cascadegerman.com
- If someone needs a part and can’t find it they can email us, info@cascadegerman.com with a part number and we can look it up for them
- We post a lot of fun new parts first on our Facebook page, like and follow to see new and cool things from Europe: http://facebook.com/cascadegermanparts
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cascadegerman.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cascadegermanparts/
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/cascadegermanparts
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@VWDiesel
