Master Vehicle detailer, Gideon King is the Chief Executive Officer of Big Foot Detailing, an international vehicle detailing service center that specialises in automobile beautification, protection, enhancing and often times make cars look better than factory condition. His company has been an exclusive detailer for Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini for more than five years with its base in Qatar and other parts of Europe. In this interview with SEGUN ADEBAYO, King shares his knowledge of exceptional detailing and building an enterprise.
They call you master vehicle detailer, what exactly were you involved in before you floated your detailing company that is now well known and respected across the globe?
I used to own a security and close protection company in United Kingdom which entailed working with a select few Nollywood actors. This business covered private functions with Nigerian celebrities and musicians such as Kwam1. We had clients that brought over individuals like Yinka Quadri, Ogogo, Ayefele, just to name a few and my firm was contracted to protect these company owners and their guests whilst carrying out their social functions all over the UK. There is no real connection between that and my present business, after few years of this venture, I stumbled over the car detailing industry and saw a potential I hadn’t seen previously so I took a leap of faith and decided to pursue this opportunity and went ahead and set up a detailing company while I handed over the close protection company to my brother.
You were said to have been born in London before but your parents brought you to Nigeria. Could you let us into your background and how it shaped who you have become today?
I was born in South London and my Yoruba name is Abayomi. My parents took me back to Nigeria as this was a common practice for Nigerians that emigrated in the 50’s to the 80’s to instil the culture in their children. I believe this is one of the best decisions they could have made for me. I attended a boarding school where I learnt many important lessons which made me to be a tenacious, responsible and independent individual at a very early age. This also enabled me to discover the culture and my true identity as a Nigerian. I got to learn the history of successful Nigerian business dynasties which taught me how to dream big.
You are an exclusive detailer for Bentley, Bugatti and Lamborghini, these are international brands that have survived for years, how did you come in contact with them and what was the first job that convinced them?
I have acquired a lot of knowledge and skills as a professional to be able to identify the problems faced with the finishes of various vehicles. My experience allowed me to be able to offer practical solutions for restoration, enhancement, beautification and long-term protection in order to maintain their integrity and value. Even if they are brand cars coming off the production line, the wealth of experience that I have accumulated in such a short period of time in this trade, it was sufficient enough for me to be identify and magnify the defects and potential improvements to such clients cars and their service to their customer hence giving them edge over their competition. This boosted my visibility and my reputation within the industry. I was now presented with the opportunity to showcase my eye for detail and to take defect analysis, treatment and protection to new heights. One of the turning points in my journey to fame and stardom within the detailing industry was when I worked on a Bentley for the Bentley Dealership ,and a Bugatti belonging to a famous Piano player whose car was flown to Qatar and after seeing the results of my labour, all the rest became history.
You have been quite successful in the business over the years, what experience did you have in detailing before you gave it a shot?
I had no prior experience coming in to the industry and there is no amount of reading that can really prepare one for the real field application. However after a lot of reading and research about the industry I decided to attend technical training sessions by a twenty-year veteran in the game. It’s almost a decade now but I still remember it like yesterday! My trainer was an ex-military captain in the UK army, and with the excitement that I had clustered I told him I was coming to the industry to be known as the game changer and to take my profession to a whole new level. Guess What? Here we are today now offering education and training courses in Detailing and entrepreneurship globally and we have since trained individuals who fly in to us from the United States, Australia, Singapore, Norway and far beyond.
Your company, BigFoot Detailing is one of the biggest players in the automobile enhancement industry with professionalism and unrivaled results, how has it been running this kind of business for more than four years?
Detailing in the United States of America alone is a 17-billion-dollar industry. BigFoot Detailing and Mayvinci pinnacle on top of the food chain. It was always my goal to start an international company and I remained faithful to my ambition. With a lot of foresight, action and no talk, we now currently have detailing centres in Italy, Norway and France, Our Network is now in more than 10 countries in Europe, and some with also more expansion in the pipeline to South-East Asia. Running and staying ahead in the industry comes with innovation, understanding paints, climates and working closely with our partners in research and development, continuous improvement programs, understanding our client’s desires and going the extra mile to fulfil them. We are dealing with our clients’ pride possessions, so I would say we are in the ‘People’s business’ first and then detailing business second. This moto and vision has continued to add success upon success and we will hold tight to this way as it is the way of success for us from the past and also far into the future.
Coming into the business couldn’t have come easy, how have you managed to stay in the game for this number of years?
A saying comes to mind and pretty much drives our positive attitude, growth, innovation and therefore sustainability which encompasses the word, ‘Patienc’. It goes something like, “A man who masters patience masters everything else.” We patiently studied the market, I have a great team and the best business developers around me. We executed brilliant marketing strategies. We have a continuous learning attitude and incorporate science, chemistry and physics understanding to perfect our craftsmanship. I always believed that if one is in a business it is beneficial to be knowledgeable and skilled in it also. There are other contributing factors to our success and sustainability. It is our unprecedented support from the leading tool manufacturer from Europe who are a company with 70 years strong in innovation and over sixty recorded patents whom understood my vision, came on board and are now a lifetime partner.
I have constantly worked on the best cars to ever hit the road. This caught the attention of the industry to the point where I was getting flown in by clients to different countries to work on their vehicles, private jets, yachts and to also train their staff and conduct seminars. I truly believe that these were some of the elements that kept my business not only a float throughout the years but to grow rapidly beyond my expectations.
How did you survive the teething problems that are usually known with starters in the business?
Surviving the early stages came with understanding the industry. I was a student of a new profession and now considered by many as a Master Detailer. I had previous experience in running businesses as a young man, early as 17, and I believe these experiences I had growing up, the continuous wisdom given to me by my mother and my patience and untethered drive and focus played an important role in getting my detailing business off the ground.
Can you tell us the first job that paid you the first million?
Now that would be telling! I don’t want the tax man at my door the morning after you publish my article…lol… It would be fair to say that my clients love the work and services that we provide and we consider these to be confidential to them to a certain degree, however I can leave it to your imagination by sharing that we perform many jobs, not only in Qatar, but also around the globe, we work with a lot of cooperation’s and institution’s, so now you know the detailing industry is a very big and lucrative place to be, especially at the top!
How would you rate the success of the company over the years and who are your clientele?
Success can be looked at in many ways. The Bigfoot and Mayvinci brand is a synonym to the most exquisite name and system used in the detailing world today. And now for us to have created a Centre of Excellence and then named it, “The BigFoot Detailing Centre” is an honour in itself. Starting from Qatar we have managed to take it global with enquiries for our centre coming in great numbers. We have had the Europeans, Australians, Americans and people from far east visit our centre, so to be able to use our platform to inspire others to do great things is satisfying without limits, and receiving frequent messages from detailing and non-detailing individuals that our drive, our model, our business and growth, inspires them to want to achieve similar goals cannot be summed up in my words. Teenagers and young men alike being coached and nurtured towards entrepreneurship, this is success for us!
Your services include paint correction, consultation, smart repair, international seminar, post production among others, what inspired your decision to take up such line of business and how challenging has it been?
Ultimately, my reason for entering this industry was purely financial gain at first and this is where I saw most potential for earnings and where I saw the possibility that I could capitalise on this and get a piece of the cake. As most of us would relate and know that it is every man’s wish to earn and provide the best possible future for his family and live the short life we have comfortably as possible but remaining humble in my case. This is my main reason for entering the detailing industry and it was this industry that destiny presented before me to potential achieve my goals in life.
Why the choice of Qatar in the first place?
United States of America and China spend the most on supercars such as Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and the luxury type vehicles like Bentley and Rolls Royce. Studies show that there has been a great increase in purchases globally so it is a growing and lucrative market.
Are the Arabians the only people who love exotic cars?
Every country loves exotic cars I have always seen myself as a traveller. However at a particular point in my life I wanted to emigrate from UK and live somewhere else, and Qatar was on the list of the countries that I and my family agreed to sample first. On arriving here I felt the tranquillity, security, peace of mind and of course the business opportunity staring at me. I travelled back to the UK, discussed my plans with my family and few months later I had already moved here without any hesitation. If the reader is not aware, as per the small population, and small demographics, you see many top end cars here so all this business was available on a small landscape and at an arm’s length. So Qatar was the perfect place to start for my new adventure!
Can you tell us some of the companies you have worked with and the responses you got back from them in terms of service delivery and confidence in your work?
Some of the well-known names of companies that come to mind are Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, McLaren, Range Rover, Jaguar, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Ferrari and Maserati. Furthermore we also work on yachts, helicopter and private jets. Also one worth mentioning is the Nike store so it is right to say that we have satisfied customers and we are targeting other markets to venture into as well into the very near future.
You opened your detailing service centre in Doha, Qatar about 10 months ago and you seemed to have wormed your way into the minds of top brands in automobile. We learn that there are more 150 inquiries for your franchise worldwide, how did you come about this feat?
I am content and satisfied about where we are today based on our time plan we are on schedule, however I have many more self-motivating aim, targets and challenging plans yet to attain within this business. Also I would not say we wormed our way in as this sounds like we deceived our esteemed customers into our offerings. I would prefer to say that we demonstrated the value and service we bring to their businesses and their recognition of our alignment with their vision was well received and accepted. We are expanding all the time and receiving many enquiries from a lot of countries and we are studying them carefully . The team behind me are doing an excellent job in rolling out our clear plan that we laid down right from the beginning, which will enable us to stay strong and this is why it is important to have the right people on board giving us a great team that believes in the vision and executing it to the best of their ability.
With the breakthrough you have had on this job, are you not thinking of the African market, especially Nigeria where you moulded your identity. Have you ever thought of coming down to Nigeria to set up this business?
It is supposed to be a secret and my master plan but as you have asked I will share it with you exclusively. Wink, wink… Yes, Nigeria is in my horizon! Six years ago I spent six weeks over there where I made a market research and the results were mind blowing for me. I worked with a major car importer and dealership of premium brands in Lagos and also travelled to Kano where I worked on vehicles owned by some prominent figures in Nigeria. We plan to roll out the same model and service into Nigeria and we are currently working out the best strategy that will enable us to make a smooth transition into the Nigerian Market. Again, we are aiming not only for the detailing cars segment but also to cover all ranges of transportation such as motorcycles, yachts, planes alongside training and education centres. We want to contribute towards creating entrepreneurs, employment and building skills sets for Nigerians who can go on contribute to the economy.
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