West Coast Choppers

West Coast Choppers
Company typePrivate
Founded1992[1] or 1993[2] in Paramount, California, U.S.[3]
FateIn Business
HeadquartersAustin, Texas, U.S.[needs update]
Key people
Jesse James
ProductsBranded clothing and other tie-in merchandise, choppers
RevenueUS$ 6 million[2]
Number of employees
50[2][4]
Websitewestcoastchoppers.com

West Coast Choppers (WCC) is a brand that began selling screen-printed T-shirts and stickers with the company's Iron cross/Maltese cross logo while founder and "master marketer"[2] Jesse James was finishing high school, packaging the accoutrements of the chopper lifestyle long before any actual West Coast Choppers customs had been ordered or sold.[5][6][7] Even after the company did begin building custom choppers, 60% of revenue still came from sales of WCC-branded marketing tie-ins such as clothing, beverages and tools.[2][8] Yearly sales of approximately 12–15[5] motorcycles at prices of around US$150,000 each[4] actually lost money for the company, but attracted positive attention.[1] Publicizing the names of celebrity clients, including Shaquille O'Neal, Kid Rock, Keanu Reeves, Ty Law of the Denver Broncos, wrestling star Bill Goldberg, actor Tyson Beckford, and NFL running back Jamal Anderson, was a central feature of the WCC marketing strategy.[1][2][5][9][10][11] The other key to this strategy was the star power of Jesse James, presented mainly through television on the Discovery Channel in the Motorcycle Mania series and the 2002–2006 series Monster Garage.[5][12][13][14]

The Long Beach, California headquarters of West Coast Choppers shut down in 2010, but later reopened in 2013 with a new headquarters in Austin, Texas.[15]

  1. ^ a b c Quick, Rebecca (July 26, 2006), "Chopper fame revs up business empire; Biker TV star Jesse James is rebel with a growing bottom line", On the Money, CNBC, archived from the original on March 21, 2014, retrieved December 26, 2009
  2. ^ a b c d e f Gajilan, Arlyn Tobias (March 1, 2003), "The Outlaw", CNNMoney, retrieved December 26, 2009
  3. ^ America's Intelligence Wire (December 17, 2008), Pine Avenue planters get 'chopped': LONG BEACH: City turns to Jesse James of 'Monster Garage' fame for new tree barriers.
  4. ^ a b Osgerby, Bill (2005), Biker: Truth and Myth: How the Original Cowboy of the Road Became the Easy Rider of the Silver Screen, Globe Pequot, p. 160, ISBN 1-59228-841-3
  5. ^ a b c d Lucas, Michael P. (July 10, 2002), "Speeding Beauties; His custom-built choppers have won over many celebs. Now Jesse Gregory James has attained star status himself in biking circles.", Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California, p. E.1
  6. ^ Marshall, Alexandra (September 21, 2003), "Born To Be Mild", The New York Times, retrieved December 26, 2009
  7. ^ Seate, Mike (2004), Outlaw Choppers, MotorBooks/MBI Publishing Company, 2004, p. 40, ISBN 0-7603-1849-2
  8. ^ Nygaard, Sandra (August 29, 2005), "Rebel on a roll; Jesse James branches out beyond choppers", Daily News Record, Conde Nast Publications
  9. ^ Bicycle Retailer and Industry News, vol. 14, March 1, 2005, p. 14
  10. ^ Gordon, Phil, "Schwinn Bicycle Collection – Schwinn Or Lose; Family Of Schwinn", Lowrider Magazine, retrieved December 26, 2009
  11. ^ Segal, Matthew (June 2003), "Worn to Be Wild", Los Angeles Magazine, vol. 48, no. 6, Los Angeles: Emmis Communications, p. 22, ISSN 1522-9149, retrieved December 26, 2009
  12. ^ Khuri, Elizabeth (April 9, 2006), "Men's Fashion; Jesse James Wants to Take You From Dork to Cool in 20 Minutes", Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California, p. I.30
  13. ^ "D.I.Y. Chopper", Popular Mechanics, vol. 181, no. 12, Hearst Magazines, December 2004, ISSN 0032-4558
  14. ^ Jesse James at IMDb
  15. ^ Hanson, Kristopher (October 21, 2010), "Cisco Burgers positioning to replace W.C. Choppers as LB's most famous export", Press-Telegram, Long Beach, California