Boost Auto is a dynamic player in the automotive accessories market, specializing in high-quality accessories for auto modification enthusiasts. Founded by Adam Wolfe in 2015, the company still operates by a single guiding principle: if a product isn't good enough for Adam's personal truck, it won't be sold under the Boost Auto name.
Since those early days in Adam's basement, the company has experienced major growth. They’ve done it organically, offering helpful DIY install videos, providing unparalleled technical support, and leaning hard on Shopify’s intuitive platform and app ecosystem to sell in ways that match their passionate ethos.
With Shopify, Boost Auto has:
- Turned a modest $5K investment into $1 million in sales within just 24 months
- Expanded the team from 1 to 30 employees
- Diversified product offerings, shifting from 100% dependency on towing mirrors to generating 40% of revenue from additional product lines
- Maintained advertising costs under 1% of revenue by leveraging organic channels and Shopify’s SEO features
Challenges: Learning how to sell online
From the start, Adam Wolfe, CEO and founder of Boost Auto, has been clear on his love for two things: tricking out his truck, and helping other auto enthusiasts do the same. It all started in his senior year of college when he wanted cool side mirrors for his GMC Sierra for Christmas.
Simple enough, right?
But when his girlfriend asked where she could get them for him, Adam realized that even with his own experiences in the aftermarket car parts business, he couldn’t think of a good place to recommend.
That’s when this entrepreneur did what entrepreneurs do best.
“I’m just going to figure this out myself,” he said to himself. “I’ll figure out the supply base, figure out how to make our product better, get samples, tweak them, and sell these online.”
He had a lot of passion. And the logistics aspect of things, well, he could figure that out.
What he didn’t have much of was experience selling online. With no budget for a developer, he researched Adobe Magento as a way to get him started. But, as Adam puts it:
It was pretty clear I needed to go with Shopify. It was what felt right for long-term success, and it was just so intuitive.
So, he bought a photo cube for $20, snapped product shots on his iPhone, and loaded them onto Shopify.
"I had no experience at all,” says Adam. “Within a couple hours I was alive and selling.”
Two years later, Boost Auto was doing a million dollars in sales.
Solutions: Growing with the platform
The intuitive nature of Shopify’s out-of-the-box platform got Adam going—but that was only the start. What really took things to the next level were the apps available in Shopify’s app ecosystem, which helped Adam create the many custom features and flows he needed for a very custom product with many inherent complexities in terms of selling.
Tapping into the Shopify app ecosystem
“When we started out, it was just me and the app ecosystem,” recalls Adam. The capabilities that were available with just a click of the button enabled Adam to build a store that felt on par with “the big guys,” as he puts it.
I was able to have a small store, download apps, and hit the ground running. This was critical to our early success.
One of the most important early features Adam brought in from the app ecosystem was the ability for customers to search by make and model of vehicle. When shopping in a store with so many different items and elements for customization, being able to immediately find the right make and model instead of bouncing around the site significantly streamlines the journey for customers.
Boosting cross-selling and product discovery
For several years, Boost Auto grew just fine on the free Shopify theme they were using. But by the time Shopify 2.0 was released, Adam and his team felt strongly it was time to take the next step with a paid theme.
“Now we were able to take a lot of those apps that we were working with and bring it all in natively, getting rid of the app costs,” says Adam.
With more robust native features, Boost Auto implemented intelligent cross-selling capabilities on the cart and product pages, using search discovery tools to map out relevant products to recommend to increase average order value. Personalization is at the forefront, with suggestions tailored to customer behavior, ensuring a seamless shopping journey.
Shopify’s search capabilities have transformed our customer interactions, making it easier for them to find exactly what they need quickly and efficiently.
Ultimately, the Boost Auto team made the move with unification in mind: unifying the customer experience on the front end, and unifying operations on the back end.
Dynamic cart customization for personalized builds
On the front end, the goal was to provide a custom experience without ever making the customer feel like it was pieced together or “janky.”
“The number one goal was to make it all flow,” says Adam. “We use native Shopify for things like the first three color options and functions, for instance. After that, we get into a custom solution that was built for us.”
That custom solution, built by partner Teifi Digital, allows Boost to insert products into the cart as customers customize their build. This, combined with Shopify’s underlying structure of fields and metaobjects, is what allows customers to configure their mirrors with thousands of options. Conditional logic is built into the experience, so the system knows to ask customers questions based on what they’re choosing. For instance, if someone orders a power folding mirror, the assembly team needs to know if the vehicle originally had this feature so they can assemble the mirror to function properly. And so, the system asks the customer that question, as simple as that—all thanks to a functionality developed by Teifi that leverages Shopify’s metaobjects.
For the customer, their customized build appears in the cart with the correct total price, with sales tax compliance across all 50 states.
Streamlined order fulfillment and B2B efficiency
On the back end, the picture is different. Each new customization is broken out as a line item, so the assembly team knows exactly how to build the piece. The conditional logic is complex, but the customer experience is simple—and just what the shopper ordered.
Likewise, Shopify’s back end ensures that the complexities inherent to fulfilling an aftermarket auto part order are addressed with maximum efficiency, creating automated routes for orders based on whether they’re custom-made or ready to go. Integration with Boost’s ERP system ensures a smooth flow of orders and efficient shipping. This remains true even when their products are sold through another company’s website.
“When a customer orders our product on somebody else's website, that order just pops right into our system,” says Adam. “It can go through all our standard workflows.”
In this way, Shopify's native B2B functionality has simplified Boost Auto's wholesale program, enabling features like price lists and volume discounts.
Now we're utilizing the native Shopify B2B experience. The price list, everything like that, it's all done through our same stores.
Shopify’s streamlined back end has also made the product launch process more efficient with features like metafields, allowing for quick referencing of prebuilt sections.
“Launching new products is way faster,” says Adam.
Dominating search results with minimal ad spend
Shopify's built-in SEO capabilities have helped Boost Auto achieve high organic rankings without significant ad spend.
We spend next to nothing on advertising, like less than 1% of our revenue. Everything we do is native marketing. We've never hired an SEO agency. We use Shopify, read a couple articles, and we are the number one in search for most of what we want.
That’s remained true even as they’ve launched new product lines: within a month or two, Boost Auto’s new products are hitting the first page of Google search results, organically. Adam credits Shopify’s native functions, such as site speed optimization, as well as slight tweaks and A/B testing by his internal teams, which are easy to perform on Shopify.
Seamlessly integrated social campaigns
Building an authentic brand presence on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube has been fundamental to Boost Auto's marketing approach—and it’s easier than ever thanks to Shopify’s social media integrations. By showcasing dynamic product installations and engaging user-generated content, Boost Auto has cultivated a highly engaged community of auto enthusiasts who share and amplify their love for the brand.
"Social media allows us to connect directly with our customers, share their incredible builds, and inspire new ideas within our community," Adam adds.
Retargeting current customers—without the extra ad spend
Seamless integration with Klaviyo helps the team run highly effective data-driven campaigns that leverage detailed customer insights such as preferences and previous purchases to boost relevance and engagement. This strategy has been instrumental in engaging Boost’s existing customer base without additional ad spend, converting data into dynamic interactions that drive repeat sales. For instance, one customer might receive an email highlighting a new upgrade for their specific model, while another receives an email offering maintenance tips. This ensures that communication is always both relevant and valuable.
This targeted outreach not only strengthens customer relationships, but also reinforces Boost Auto's position as a trusted partner in the automotive accessories market.
"Our deep understanding of car data means we can suggest the perfect fit for each customer, driving both satisfaction and repeat business," explains Adam. “Klaviyo has a lot of really advanced targeting. We can filter down to something as specific as, ‘Okay, this guy drives an ‘05 Chevy Silverado. What other products can we get him?’ All the data flows over to Klaviyo to manage it over there. The sales just come in.”
Results: A sustainable business with measurable impact
The results of Boost Auto's partnership with Shopify have been nothing short of remarkable. Within two years of launching on Shopify, the company reached $1 million in sales and has since served over 340,000 customers.
“We employ 30 employees,” says Adam. “We have a 50,000 square foot building in Chicago. When I think about the impact, that for me, is a great feeling."
Expanded product offerings
It’s not just mirrors anymore. The company has successfully diversified their product offerings, with other lines now accounting for 60% of their revenue. They’ve “over-engineered the products,” according to Adam, to ensure that they’re getting their loyal customer base exactly what they need. They now employ a team of engineers in-house to design and validate products in the United States.
“We’ve seen that customers just love the brand," Adam explained. “They love the quality.”
A part of Boost Auto’s ability to innovate is Shopify’s own innovation. Shopify releases two new editions every year, which are chock-full of product updates from the thousands of Shopify engineers dedicated to innovations that are one step ahead of Shopify retailers’ needs. Adam spends a couple of days just looking through updates, then decides what he wants to roll out to the store.
A passionate customer base
Customers are also passionate about their unified experience in the Boost Auto store through Shopify 2.0, which has improved the shopping journey and reduced confusion, leading to fewer returns.
“Now it's one unified experience,” Adam says. “On the back end it's simplified a lot of management. Everything's in the back end in the product page, and we take that unification right to the customer.”
More than the numbers, though, for Adam and the Boost Auto team, it’s about the intangible impact.
“Every day I come to work, I just love what I'm doing,” says Adam. “I love being able to see the company grow, see employees who started at minimum wage buying houses and starting families. Now we don’t have anyone at minimum wage. That is just the most gratifying feeling, going from just this idea to now supporting 30 people.”
More acceleration on the road ahead
Boost Auto's journey from a college startup to a successful business is a testament to Adam and his team’s incredible scrappiness, dedication, and innovation. They credit Shopify’s ease of use, flexibility, and robust feature set for enabling Boost Auto to overcome initial challenges and scale operations effectively.
“I don't think I'd be here today if it weren't for Shopify,” says Adam.
Boost Auto continues to thrive in the competitive automotive and aftermarket accessories market, innovating and growing on Shopify. And they plan to keep doing exactly that, tapping directly into what their customers want, and engineering to meet their needs.
With a $20 photocube, a passion for aftermarket car parts, ingenuity, and drive, Adam Wolfe and his team of enthusiasts have navigated every bump in the road. There’s no telling where they’ll go next.
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