PRO named Nia Body Kits as the council's newest spotlight member. Get to know the story of the company in SEMA's interview with NIA Body Kits president Kevin Abril, below.
SEMA: Tell us the story of your shop.
Kevin Abril: It started out as a hobby making a custom body kit for my personal high school car. I wanted something different and went to a local manufacturer with some sketches and started sculpting it. I got hooked and started designing body kits for friends' cars and started selling them online. Little by little I started investing in machinery, hiring people and now we are able to scan a vehicle, create a mold on our 5-axis machine, produce the kits in our vacuum forming machine, color match them to a vehicle's OEM color, and ship them to a customer's doorstep anywhere in the world.
SEMA: What was your breakthrough moment?
KA: There were so many, but the one that is most memorable is when a local Scion dealership used our body kit in their showroom vehicle when we were barely starting. That gave us the confidence we needed to keep going.
SEMA: Tell us about your business in 2022 and projects that you are working on.
KA: In 2022 we are planning on making our kits in carbon fiber in-house. It will be a long road but we are hoping it will be perfected this year – along with getting into more German vehicles like BMW, Mercedes, etc.
SEMA: Tell us about a package/product that you are proud of.
KA: We offer a full body kit for the 2021+ Lexus IS350, which includes front, sides, rears (and coming soon a diffuser) available with all the hardware and color matched to the vehicle.
SEMA: What advice do you have for young professionals contemplating a career in the automotive aftermarket?
KA: It's a small niche market; use that to your advantage. Learn your craft, perfect it and put yourself out there. Businesses will compete for your talent.
Fill out a PRO member spotlight form to highlight how you or your company are contributing to the automotive restyling industry. Selected candidates are eligible to be featured on PRO's social media, SEMA News and future PRO-member updates.