Childhood passion fuels motor-sports business

OFF-ROAD, BUT THE RIGHT PATH: Justin Hoffler's business, Muff's Motorsports LLC, was one of eight businesses honored at the 2015 Small Business Week Awards. / PBN PHOTO/?MICHAEL SALERNO
OFF-ROAD, BUT THE RIGHT PATH: Justin Hoffler's business, Muff's Motorsports LLC, was one of eight businesses honored at the 2015 Small Business Week Awards. / PBN PHOTO/?MICHAEL SALERNO

When Justin C. Hoffler was in middle school he cut a deal with his parents: straight A’s on his next report card and they would buy him an all-terrain vehicle.

Hoffler hit the books, got the A’s and rode into his seventh-grade summer on a new ATV. From there, his passion for ATVs, or four-wheelers, would eventually lead him to the start of his own business – Muff’s Motorsports LLC – and last month being named Entrepreneurial Success of 2015 by the Small Business Administration of Rhode Island.

“He started in his garage as a hobby and in just a couple years he had an amazing business,” said Gregory A. Gould, lending-relations specialist at SBA’s Rhode Island office. “His reputation is phenomenal … his business has a lot of horsepower.”

Hoffler, like many entrepreneurs, didn’t know right away what his business would look like. But after reaching his junior year studying mechanical engineering at the University of Connecticut, he came to the realization that he could make money off of his passion for ATVs.

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“I dropped out of UConn,” said Hoffler. “I had that feeling that this is what I wanted to do and I kind of took a leap and just went with it.”

Typically, ATVs are not sold “race ready,” as the 28-year-old Hoffler described it, but rather come in their original form comprising less-advanced parts. Hoffler, who has raced ATVs for several years, said that when he took apart the ATVs to switch in the advanced parts for racing, he would sell the original parts on eBay and make his money back.

The simple exchange became the basis for what’s now a lucrative and growing business. He now buys used ATVs, dirt bikes and snowmobiles, breaks them down and sells the used and new parts online.

“It’s definitely worked out and it’s come a long way in the last few years,” Hoffler said.

He started growing his inventory and rented out a 1,600-square-foot warehouse in Westerly. He quickly outgrew that space and has since moved his inventory, which has doubled since 2010, to a rented, 20,000-square-foot facility in Hopkinton.

Hoffler, who started the business as a single-man operation, now employs seven people who help him with 24-hour online orders and shipments, in-house repairs, disassembly of ATVs and handling inventory.

“There’s only so much I can do myself and the extra help is pretty amazing,” Hoffler said.

The business sells some parts on the company website, but Hoffler continues to use eBay, where a large portion of his inventory is sold. He says about 15-20 percent of his inventory is sold internationally and that the regional market is strong in southern New England, mostly Connecticut.

“Our main market is online,” Hoffler said. “We do have some local customers, but the reach from eBay alone is pretty incredible.”

The SBA honored Hoffler, along with eight other R.I. small-business owners and businesses.

This year’s cohort was feted on May 13 during the 2015 Small Business Week Awards luncheon at the Alpine Country Club in Cranston.

“Justin’s level-minded approach to growing his small business in Rhode Island immediately stood out when considering candidates for entrepreneurial success,” said Mark S. Hayward, district director of SBA Rhode Island. “Selling to customers through the Web allows him to reach beyond the local market, connecting his business with potential clients from around … the world. His approach epitomizes how many aspiring entrepreneurs should be thinking about their businesses.”

Looking forward, Hoffler would like to continue his growth.

“I definitely have plans,” Hoffler said. “We’re still building a staff, but a long-term goal would be to fill this space like we did our last space. … I look forward to buying my own warehouse.” n

2015 SBA Rhode Island small-business winners:

n Entrepreneurial Success: Justin Hoffler, owner of Muff’s Motorsports LLC, Hopkinton.

n Financial Services Champion: Sandra Cano, vice president of business and community development, Navigant Credit Union, Central Falls.

n Home-Based Small Business: Patricia Raskin, owner of Raskin Resources Productions Inc., East Greenwich.

n Joseph G.E. Knight Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence: Rick Becker, owner of Garland Pen, Coventry.

n Minority-Owned Small Business, Rhode Island and New England: Oscar Mejias, CEO, Hernan Padilla, executive director, of HiTEP, in Providence.

n Rhode Island District Director Award: The Center for Women & Enterprise, Women’s Business Center, Providence.

n Small Business Person of the Year for Rhode Island: Chris Ciunci, founder and CEO of TribalVision LLC.

n Woman-Owned Small Business: Deborah Schimberg, CEO, Verve Inc., Providence.

n Young Entrepreneur, Rhode Island and New England: Jason and Lynsey Colgan, owners of A Child’s University in Cranston. •

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