Photos by Troy Harvey / Special to the Star Dave Tapie, left, helps his brother Nate Tapie with a Jeep. Their business offers auto customizations.

For the brothers who own Auto Obsessionz in Camarillo, good business is good fun, whether it's a custom stereo installation or a window tint.

"We're pretty much doing our hobby for a business," said Nate Tapie.

Davey Tapie said the two have been interested in cars since they were little, and it has been nice watching that interest grow into something profitable.

The Tapies started Auto Obsessionz about three years ago. Since then, the company, which offers window tints, clear bras to protect the paint in front of a car, vinyl decals and custom stereo and video installations, has about doubled its revenue each year.

Now, the brothers are moving to a new location with more traffic and more potential for walk-in customers. They recently signed the lease and plan to be moved into 578 S. Dawson Drive by early January.

There is increasing demand for the kind of work they do. According to research firm IMR Inc., about 30.2 percent of vehicles have brand-name speakers installed in the "aftermarket" — after a vehicle leaves the dealer. About 26 percent have a radio-tape player or CD player installed; 20 percent have high-powered speakers.

The brothers started Auto Obsessionz by combining their individual businesses. Nate was the stereo guy, who gets the biggest kick out of designing a custom stereo enclosure. Davey had a mobile detailing business and carried an eye for precision over into new things he learned, such as window tinting.

Nate, 27, and Davey, 24, didn't like having someone else set their schedules.

"I like to be my own boss. I've always been that way," Nate said.

Davey said, "We do whatever we want when we want."

The pair relied on their parents for expertise and some seed money when they started, their sister and girlfriends for help and friends and neighbors for referrals.

"The biggest thing has been marketing," Davey said. "If it wasn't for our parents, I wouldn't know what to do."

Mom is the company bookkeeper. Their father, Dave Tapie, knows what it's like to be self-employed. He works as a mortgage broker and Realtor. Being self-employed means the freedom to work as much as you want and make as much as you want, he said.

For Nate and Davey Tapie, that means putting in long hours when they want to and occasionally taking a weekend off to go to the lake with their boat.

Dedicated to the job

Dad Tapie said his sons are often at work until 8 or 10 p.m., sometimes working six or seven days a week. The pair often eat lunch standing up and then get back to work.

"It's amazing to see them get it done and get it done right," he said.

In a building with a small office, lobby with a pool table and bay in the back, the two handle jobs that vary in size and complexity. They work on vintage cars and cars just off the showroom floor; Honda Civics and Ferraris; $100 stereo installations and $15,000 boat stereo systems.

The business should bring in more than $200,000 this year. Besides the move to a new location, the brothers also are looking to expand their certification so they can tint windows in homes and offices.

Davey said he hopes the business grows to the point where they can hire somebody. The Tapies won't take on more work than they can handle, which means they are booked about two weeks out.

On a recent day, the Tapies' boat — complete with a 36-speaker sound system that has lured in business from other boaters — was sitting in the shop's bay along with a dune buggy scheduled for a navigation system installation. Davey was installing a truck step that would retract under the truck when not in use.

Meanwhile, Nate was taking a customer for a spin in one of his cars. The customer had seen him driving by and written down the Auto Obsessionz information off the side of the car.

He then counseled another customer on getting a clear bra, window tint and speakers installed — and how to take the silver Tahoe letters off the back with some fishing line.

The business draws in customers who have seen the brothers' work, and about 70 percent are repeat customers, Nate said. Over the years, the company has built connections with members of the Oxnard and Camarillo police departments, along with other business relationships that included doing vinyl graphics for local companies and clear bra installations for a local Lexus dealer.

Spreading the word

The brothers don't advertise much. The Tapies expect a lot of business will still come from word of mouth, which is their most valuable asset.

Customer Jason Baker is one of those spreading the word. Auto Obsessionz installed an audio system in his Audi.

Baker works on show vehicles as a hobby and side business. Some friends introduced him to the Tapies. He liked their work — and the way they worked.

"They way they're set up, it's neat because you get the one-on-one contact with the guys both selling and installing," Baker said. They are enthusiastic about their work and come up with creative solutions, he said.

Perhaps most importantly, Baker said he puts a lot of trust in them.

"The honesty is so refreshing," he said. "So many people these days are trying to sell you something you don't need ... That honesty and integrity seems to be lost in a lot of businesses today."

So what's it like working with your brother in a 50-50 business?

"There's a huge amount of trust because it's family," Nate said.

Nate said Davey tends to be the one who stresses a bit more when business is slow — he's more like Dad.

"I'm more like Mom: It will be fine,' " Nate said.

Both said that, as in any relationship, there have been tiffs and squabbles. But on the whole it's a good experience and has brought the two of them closer, Davey said.

On the Net:

www.autoobsessionz.com