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Motorcar Parts of America history
Motorcar Parts of America company history timeline
Motorcar Parts of America was founded by automotive entrepreneur Mel Marks in 1968 as a full-line European and Japanese replacement parts importer.
Responding to an increasing demand for replacement starters and alternators, MPA acquired one of its exclusive suppliers in 1985 and began focusing on becoming the North American industry leader in remanufactured alternators and starters.
Mel's son, Richard Marks, became a director and Chief Operating Officer (COO) in 1987.
By 1993, thanks to a combination of aggressive marketing efforts and superior customer retention initiatives, MPA was able to triple its domestic production space — necessitating a move to a larger, more modern facility in Torrance, California.
MPAA's current CEO, Selwyn Joffe, joined the board of directors in 1994.
A note in the 1996 annual report disclosed that MPAA was doing business with MVR Products Limited ("MVR") and Unijoh Sdn, Bhd, which had facilities in Singapore and Malaysia, respectively.
The complaint notes that Richard Marks sold 150,000 shares of stock for nearly $2.5 million and Mel Marks sold 100,000 shares of stock for over $1.6 million in a November 1997 stock offering, implying a price of $16 per share.
According to the SEC, the younger Marks and CFO Peter Bromberg began committing accounting fraud in 1997.
Because of the falsified inventory accounting, MPAA had to restate two years and 3 quarters of financial statements and very nearly went bankrupt - a press release from October of 2000 noted that the company was in default on its covenants, but it was able to obtain a waiver.
As part of the same management shuffle, Anthony Souza replaced Mel Marks as CEO. Three years later, in February of 2003, Joffe replaced Souza as CEO but retained the title of chairman.
In 2003, to better reflect its role as one of the leading North American providers of aftermarket automotive components, MPA changed its name from Motorcar Parts & Accessories, Inc. to Motorcar Parts of America, Inc.
The second instance of accounting malfeasance was related to Fenwick Automotive Products Limited ("Fenco"), a company acquired in 2011 while MPAA was run by current CEO Selwyn Joffe.
Finally, in March of 2012, MPAA released its 10-Q and dropped a bomb on its shareholders.
In early January 2013, Joffe and Matrenec met with representatives of M&T seeking certain loan and covenant accommodations.
In FY 2014, the size of the inventory balance resumed its upward march, but the effect on inventory days was offset by an increase in net sales.
The 2015 10-K tells us that insiders at MPAA used the debacle as yet another way to pay themselves through related party transactions:
At the Wells Fargo Industrial and Construction Conference held in NYC in May 2017, BorgWarner's CFO Ronald Hundzinski had the following exchange with Richard Kwas, an equity research analyst at WF:
He has aggressively sold the shares he acquires through stock options and took his ownership of the company down to zero in June 2017.
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Motorcar Parts of America competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBB Industries | 1987 | $1.0B | 5,000 | 26 |
| Cardone Industries | 1970 | $514.4M | 300 | 37 |
| Standard Motor Products | 1919 | $1.5B | 3,500 | 23 |
| Meritor | 1909 | $3.8B | 8,200 | - |
| Venturi | 2006 | $1.1M | 25 | - |
| Englund Marine Supply | 1945 | $8.6M | 25 | - |
| Ca Motors | - | $1.4M | 4 | - |
| Greensboro Auto Auction | 1986 | $310.0M | 750 | 29 |
Motorcar Parts of America history FAQs
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Motorcar Parts of America may also be known as or be related to MOTORCAR PARTS AMERICA INC, Motorcar Parts Of America, Motorcar Parts of America, Motorcar Parts of America Inc and Motorcar Parts of America, Inc.