Bestop acquires PRP Seats

An exciting message from PRP’s President, Aaron Wedeking

Today is a big day in PRP Seats history.

On January 23, 2018, the assets of KAMM Industries, Inc. (hereinafter “PRP Seats”), were acquired by Bestop PRP, LLC. What this means, in non-legal language, is that PRP Seats products have been acquired by Bestop.

We plan to continue running PRP Seats the same way — continuing to do what we believe is best for our brand, our culture, and our business. We think that now is the right time to join forces with Bestop because there is a huge opportunity to leverage each other’s strengths and move even faster towards our long-term vision of growing PRP Seats here in Temecula.

We are excited about doing this for three main reasons:

1) There is a huge opportunity for us to really accelerate the growth of the PRP Seats brand and culture, and we believe that Bestop is the best partner to help us get there. As you may know, Bestop, Inc has supplied the original equipment soft top for the Jeep Wrangler since the Wrangler launched in 1986.

2) Bestop supports us in continuing to grow our vision as an independent entity, under the PRP Seats and associated brands, while preserving and growing our unique culture.

3) We want to align ourselves with a partner that values the premium performance, quality and innovation that PRP Seats is known for.

TOP BURNING QUESTIONS

Q: Do I still have an account?
As mentioned above, we plan to continue running PRP Seats as an independent entity. In legal terminology, PRP Seats will be a “wholly-owned subsidiary” of Bestop. Your account standing with PRP will be the same as it was before.

Q: Are your customer service policies going to change?
Just like before, that’s completely up to us to decide. We have no immediate plans to change how we work with our customers and dealers. The same sales staff is in place but we do plan on adding additional staff and resources soon to make the order and fulfillment process much smoother.

Q: Will you still be part of the team, Aaron?
100% Yes!  PRP has been a part of my life for over 20 years; it’s my passion and my life!  I am very excited about the future of PRP with the help from Bestop we will continue to grow and be able to provide the great products that make PRP what it is today. 

When I was looking for a partner to help take PRP to the next level I wanted to make sure I found a company that would give us the freedom to continue down the same rapid growth path we have been on. Bestop is a great match for PRP. They have been on a similar, but much larger path of growth and acquisition. Over the last 2 years they have acquired Baja Designs, Tuffy Security and Morris 4×4 Center, all great and well respected brands in the off-road community. Their resources, relationships, marketing expertise, and operational experience will give us the resources we need to greatly accelerate the growth of PRP, SpeedStrap and Status Racing to be awesome brands we are all proud to work for.

I will continue to be the President of PRP and I will continue to work hard to provide opportunity and a fun work environment for everyone that makes us great.

If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact Jason, Scott, Josh, or Victor and they’ll be happy to help you out.

You can read the full release from Bestop below.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Bestop Premium Accessories Group Marketing Department
303-465-1755

BESTOP PREMIUM ACCESSORIES GROUP ACQUIRES KAMM INDUSTRIES

Acquisition includes industry-leading brands PRP Seats, Status Racing, and SpeedStrap

LOUISVILLE, Colo. (January 24, 2018) – Bestop Premium Accessories Group (“BPAG”), a leading manufacturer in the automotive aftermarket industry’s premium Jeep®, truck and UTV space, today announced that they have acquired PRP Seats, Status Racing and SpeedStrap, all owned by KAMM Industries, based in Temecula, California.

PRP (prpseats.com) was founded in 1997 and is best known as the seat-of-choice for UTV’s such as the Polaris RZR and Can-Am Maverick X3. The company also manufactures seats for Jeeps, trucks and other UTVs. Status Racing (www.statusracing.com) manufactures a full line of highly specialized racing seats and offers a wide breadth of customization and personalization options. SpeedStrap (www.speedstrap.com), acquired by KAMM Industries in June 2017, is the maker of an innovative family of weavable recovery straps, plus premium tie-downs and accessories for off-road vehicles.

“PRP Seats, Status Racing and SpeedStrap are premier-quality names in this space and we are thrilled to work with them,” says John Larson, CEO of Bestop Premium Accessories Group. “The addition of these three brands to the Bestop Premium Accessories Group family further positions us as the leading provider of top-of-the-line off-road driving accessories.”

The acquisition follows Bestop Premium Accessories Group acquiring two other premium manufacturing brands in 2016: Baja Designs, widely recognized as “The Scientists of Lighting” for their ground-breaking LED light technologies that are “brighter, bolder, better”; and Tuffy Security Products, the leading manufacturer of heavy duty in-vehicle security boxes, cases and containers.

Bestop itself is recognized as the world’s leading manufacturer of Jeep soft tops and accessories worldwide, as well as exclusive OE soft top provider to Jeep for more than 30 years, including the new Jeep Wrangler JL.

“Now is the right time to join forces with Bestop because there is a huge opportunity to leverage each other’s strengths,” says KAMM Industries and PRP Seats Founder and CEO Aaron Wedeking. “We wanted to align ourselves with a partner that values the premium performance, quality and innovation that PRP Seats is known for, and Bestop is clearly the right choice.”

About Bestop and Bestop Performance Accessories Group

Born in the outdoor haven of Boulder, Colorado, Bestop got its start in 1954 with custom Jeep tops sewn together in a small upholstery shop. From those bootstrap early days, Bestop has grown into the world’s leading manufacturer of premium soft tops and accessories for Jeep® vehicles, and the sole supplier of factory soft tops on all Jeep Wranglers for more than three decades. Now 64 years young, the company is committed to providing the highest quality, innovation and durability to the consumer. Bestop is a portfolio company of Kinderhook Industries, which also owns Baja Designs LED Lighting and Tuffy Security Products. For more information, visit Bestop’s website at www.bestop.com  or call 800-845-3567.

About PRP Seats

PRP Seats has been in the off-road market for 20 years. Originally manufacturing customizable seats for buggies and Jeeps, the company’s product line has expanded into UTV products, harnesses, storage and various accessories. PRP now leads the way in aftermarket suspension seating for UTVs. For more information on KAMM Industries, PRP Seats, Status Racing or SpeedStrap, contact [email protected] or call 951-894-5104.

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