You might expect Revology Cars’ client list to include high-profile celebrities, CEOs, entrepreneurs, bankers, and Silicon Valley leaders, and it certainly does. However, today the company is attracting a wider spectrum of buyers who share the same enthusiasm for the company’s products, if not the same level of discretionary income.
“As we have grown and people have got to know us, our audience has expanded,” says Yoshi Amano, Revology’s director of sales and marketing. Now, with company approaching its 100th production car milestone, Amano reflects on the diverse character of Revology’s clients.
“We had our early adopters, mainly successful entrepreneurs who are car collectors and very tuned in to the hobby, who found us primarily through word of mouth,” says Amano. These clients typically were people who own or have owned many different types of cars, including exotic modern sports cars, but found the Revology Mustang even more special. Adds Amano, “When you’re driving a Revology GT500, everybody notices you and you feel like you’re a celebrity.”
Speaking of celebrities, the Hollywood actor and comedian Kevin Hart is one well-known personality who has acquired a Revology Mustang, a ’65 GT convertible. “Kevin was fun to work with, as you might expect, although he doesn’t joke around when it comes to his cars,” says Amano. “He is a serious enthusiast.”
Another notable Los Angeles area figure, with a Revology GT500 in his garage, is Jason Sinay, a top session musician. Sinay has had a stellar career as a guitarist, playing alongside legends like Keith Richards, Neil Young, Jackson Browne, Joe Bonamassa and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
Driving his GT500 around Los Angeles, Sinay says the car always causes a stir. “People just freak out,” he says. “I’ve had all these cool cars – Ferraris, Lamborghinis – but the cool factor of the Revology GT500 is so above other cars. People come up to me and say that’s the nicest car in LA.”
Although such high-profile clients helped put Revology Cars on the map, as the company grew and more people became aware of Revology, the level of trust increased. “We created a reputation of quality and credibility as a legitimate company,” notes Amano, “and that attracted people who are not necessarily super wealthy but wanted what we offer – a modern car in a classic car body.”
If someone is very wealthy, he or she may not mind taking a chance on a newly established company without a track record, especially if what they offer is compelling. However, most people aren’t in such a position, and do not want to make a mistake, points out Amano. “They need reassurance. After seven years, Revology is still here and making more cars than ever and doing really well, so people feel confident in our company.”
One client, Al Lightfoot, after a career as owner of an air conditioning company, decided to reward himself with a Revology Mustang. Al owned a 1968 Mustang in high school and drove it to college where he met his future wife. With a family on the way, he had to give up the Mustang. But when he retired, Al decided to ‘revive’ the Mustang memory and bought a GT Fastback in Acapulco blue from Revology.
“Al felt he could trust us and invested in our car. That’s really something. It’s an honor to be chosen by him.”
Al’s is a story echoed by many Revology owners. “These are people who have the original Mustang as a dream car,” says Amano. “They like the idea of driving a classic Mustang because it is just so much more interesting than modern cars, but they are afraid to go further because it’s going to be a hassle. They hear of someone who buys a $300,000 Shelby at an auction and can’t even drive it.
“These people like the idea of ‘classic design meets modern tech done right’. It’s a trigger for them but then there are too many stories of it not being done right.
And that’s where Revology comes in because we do it right. You are actually buying a brand new car.”
One striking aspect of Revology ownership is that while the cars are usually bought by men, their wives often end up loving the Mustang as much, if not more, than the husbands. “Unlike some classic cars, our Mustangs are easy to own and drive,” says Amano, “and that appeals to women.”
To underscore the point, a 1967 Shelby GT350 bought by one man so impressed his wife that the couple ended up buying a ’66 GT convertible as well.
Female owners do figure in the Revology owners’ registry, including a doctor who imported a ’66 fastback to her home in the Middle East.
As well as Middle East markets, Revology has also sent cars to the UK, France, Portugal, Canada, Japan, the Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, UAE, Botswana, Russia, South America and South Africa. “So we are definitely a global company,” says Amano.
Wherever the Revology Mustangs are headed, there is an emotional factor to their purchase. Amano says that every time a customer takes delivery of their car it is a special occasion. “Sometimes the clients are actually crying. They had the same car when they were young and now they have got it back. I cry too.
“I don’t think people are so attached to cars made today, but with our cars they are. For me, it’s a nice feeling. What I do is not just selling a car, it’s selling people happiness.”