If you’ve ever considered a career in automotive and specialty paint, now may be the time. In 1980, at the age of 4 years old, I got my first invitation into my dad’s paint shop to “help out”. I can still remember how that little two car garage smelled of lacquer and the way the [...]

As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, it is that time of the year for those living in cold climates to start thinking about storing your motorcycle away for the winter. Completing a thorough detail is one of the most crucial steps in preparing your bike for storage. Detailing everything will help [...]

At first glance, the shipping department seems straightforward; just packaging up motorcycle parts, throwing a label on a box, and calling it a day.  Not at CPV.  Our shippers are more than that, they are skilled inspectors of world-class motorcycle paint finishes.  After a part has gone through the entire paint process, we take the [...]

Now and then, you come across a book or a story that forces you to measure how you are doing in a certain area.  Not long ago, a friend recommended "Who Moved My Cheese" by Dr. Spencer Johnson, a powerful allegory for both life and business. The author uses cheese to represent the goal as [...]

Why is painting so much harder than it looks? Why do hobbyists struggle to get as good of results as a professional paint shop? Let’s break it down… Paint is a sticky liquid pushed through a mechanical device that breaks it into tiny particles and casts it onto a surface. While still wet, those particles [...]

Metallic Pearl Pearlescent Iridescent Flake Sparkle Xirallic Aluminum Paleochrome Chroma Crystal Glass Mica Pigment Candy Tri-coat Glossy Matte… Words used in the paint industry to describe color stir emotion. Some of these are scientific, such as "chroma," which is the purity of color, while others are generic such as pearl, which can be hundreds of [...]

If I offered to sell you my 2021 Harley-Davidson Road Glide at market price but you had no interest in owning a motorcycle, you wouldn't buy it. But if I offered to sell it for $1000, you would jump at the opportunity even if you had to call your friends, uncle, or neighbor to borrow the money. As a [...]

When I was in the 7th grade, I joined my junior high wrestling team. This team was led by Coach Herbrechtsmeier, whom we affectionately called “Herb” for good reasons. Herb was a principled coach and had led his teams for several years to be the city champions. My first exposure to the idea of establishing [...]

Curtis was a dishwasher before he hit the jackpot. It was 1982, and it felt like a typical night. Curtis bought a lottery ticket like he normally would. He may not have carried any expectancy that this ticket would be the one. Much to his amazement, Curtis went from living paycheck to paycheck to 5 [...]

I remember this like it were yesterday. A disappointed customer brought in a bike with a brand-new paint job. The gentleman had paid $2500 for the Ruby Red custom paint job in front of me. Although there were many notable aspects, the strengths of this paint job were eclipsed by one fatal flaw: the surface [...]

We can learn a lot about business when looking at machines. Most modern machinery is dynamic in its complexity. If you were to break open a laptop computer, you would quickly realize that it has many parts which are all vital to the right functioning of that machine. If one part breaks, it just might [...]

I was talking with one of my clients this week about cologne. We were conversing over dinner after a long day of working on a masking system project. He mentioned that one of his hobbies is trying expensive colognes. I was strangely fascinated as he described the ingredients that produce these scents. Noticing my intrigue, [...]

We’re taking a big step as a company! We’ve decided to write a monthly blog. “Why?” you ask? It's simple. We want to get to know you better! One of my greatest joys over the years has been connecting with our customers. That's why we want to extend a hand to you in relationship in [...]