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THE BRAINS BEHIND BUILD-A-BEAR ARE BRINGING YOU CUSTOMIZABLE HOT RODS

By Kimberly Tchang

In a day in which consumers “design” their own stuffed animals, and companies boast of having bears on the executive board, why not a company that is headed by a ZEO, lets children customize their own cars and is, according to its Web site, loaded with “engineuity”?

Make way for Ridemakerz, a St. Louis–based, four-store chain that has been revving up a good deal of interest nationwide. Ridemakerz stores, decorated with flame-style graphics and wall racks of awesome hubcaps, have the edgy feel of a real, underground custom car shop. And that's precisely the point. Because at Ridemakerz, children enjoy the hands-on experience of transforming a basic model car or truck into a one-of-a-kind creation, complete with graphics, monster wheels and even sound effects.

If it sounds like the newest thing to hit shopping malls since Build-A-Bear, that is no accident. Ridemakerz' chief executive (the ZEO) is Larry Andreini, who points to Build-A-Bear as his inspiration. “We saw the success they had with retail entertainment and getting kids involved,” Andreini said. “We thought that applying that same interactive experience to another icon of childhood, the toy car, would really fill a void.”

The link to Build-A-Bear is even more substantial than that, however. Maxine Clark, Build-A-Bear's founder, chairman and chief executive bear, is a Ridemakerz shareholder. And Clark's company provides logistical support to Ridemakerz, including warehousing, distribution, and point-of-sale and inventory services.

Like Build-A-Bear, Ridemakerz stores feature seven zones, where youngsters (they are called “customizers”) can “chooze, customize, and cruize” one-of-a-kind vehicles, or “ridez.” Given all the options — body styles and colors, tires and wheels, lights and sounds, accessories and decals, remote control or freewheel — Ridemakerz estimates there are over 649 million possible combinations.

Industry observers say the concept is particularly well positioned, if for no other reason than that there is nothing else like it (with the exception of Build-A-Bear, of course). “What's the biggest problem in retail today? Commodities,” said Howard Davidowitz, chairman of Davidowitz & Associates, a New York City–based retail consulting and investment banking firm. “You have to find a way to distinguish yourself from everyone else. Ridemakerz is an idea that's unique, exciting and has great potential. It deals with the issue of differentiation, interactivity and really getting customers interested.”

A fully customized model car goes for about $40 to $50, and adding radio control costs $25 more. The accessories are interchangeable, so patrons can always come back and purchase those separately.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, several automakers have raced to get in on the action through licensing agreements. As a result, consumers can now “trick out” their very own Dodge Challenger Hemi, Ford Mustang GT, Mini Cooper or Toyota Scion XB, in addition to Ridemakerz' own selection.

Ridemakerz is cruising onto the retail scene at a time when the custom-car craze has gone mainstream, thanks largely to popular cable shows like The Learning Channel's Overhaulin'. (The host of the latter, car designer Chuck Foose, is an adviser to Ridemakerz.)

One thing is for sure: Developers believe the concept is a winner. “We thought this would be a hit right off, and it is,” said Pat Dowling, vice president of corporate communications at Burroughs & Chapin Co., a Myrtle Beach, S.C.–based developer that operates Broadway at the Beach, in Myrtle Beach. The 350-acre entertainment, dining and shopping complex launched the very first Ridemakerz last June. “Ridemakerz seems to have caught on fire immediately,” Dowling said. “They had over $1 million in sales just before Labor Day weekend, and they'd only been open since June 1st. It's a real multigenerational experience. Parents and grandparents and kids can come in together and enjoy the experience and leave with something that's completely individual.”

The concept has made an equally positive impression at Mall of America, in Bloomington, Minn. “Our consumers have been very excited about it,” said Anna Lewicki Long, a spokeswoman for the mall. “The feedback we're getting from them is that it's great to have a creative outlet that's geared toward boys.”

And yet Ridemakerz is geared not just to boys — that's a novelty in itself — but also to their dads and granddads. And those interchangeable accessories ensure multiple visits and add-on purchases. As part of its bid to become a destination, Ridemakerz offers custom birthday parties. And the idea has clearly caught on. “We're already seeing kids who buy a ride to commemorate their Little League season or their vacation,” said Andreini.

In addition to the Myrtle Beach and Mall of America stores, there are Ridemakerz shops in Spotsylvania Town Centre, in Fredericksburg, Va., and Castleton Square Mall in Indianapolis.

Ridemakerz is out to break no speed records when it comes to expansion, though. The first four stores all opened last year, and the company says it plans to open just eight new ones this year. But this kind of selectivity makes the concept even more appealing to developers, who like the cachet it could lend to their own properties. “They pull customers from a larger radius because there are fewer locations, so they're really a destination retailer,” said Richard Abruscato, a leasing agent at Federal Realty Investment Trust, in Rockville, Md., which wants to bring Ridemakerz into one of its lifestyle centers. “They're a unique draw for a center.”

The concept is skewed toward boys, of course, but there are girls who think cars are cool too. The company says that about 20 percent of the customers are female. About 70 percent of the customers are between 3 and 12, and 20 percent are 21 or over. “The place where our business isn't concentrated is teens — the 13-to-18-year-olds,” said Andreini.

Ridemakerz stores measure between 2,000 and 2,500 square feet on average. So far the concept is playing well in several retail settings, and Andreini says he is open to big-box and outdoor entertainment centers, regional malls and lifestyle centers and downtown urban locations. Ridemakerz is also pursuing store-within-a-store concepts at high-end car dealerships and car-customization shops. Andreini says the company definitely plans to have a presence in places with a strong car culture, like Southern California, Detroit and Indianapolis. He is also looking at the Carolinas, Florida, Georgia and Texas.

Andreini says the company hopes to have 250 stores in the U.S. and 100 abroad, though it is willing to wait about 10 years to work toward that. “There's no reason this concept can't be successful in places like the U.K., Europe, China and Japan,” said Andreini. “The market for toy cars is completely international and universal.” Besides, he said, “the great thing about kids is, there's always a new group of 8-year-olds.”