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Upholstery, American-Made Materials, and Company Culture

18:05
38:52
139.2K views

At 18:05 in

Randy LaJoie's Former NASCAR Shop Turned Racing Seat Factory! (How Its Made: The Joie of Seating)

What happens here

Randy highlights the finishing touches, showing the upholstery room where seats receive their final fabric coverings. He proudly states that all materials, including tubing and aluminum, are American-made. He shares a past incident where supply chain issues with overseas materials nearly jeopardized his business, reinforcing his commitment to sourcing locally. He also introduces "Big Guy," his French Bulldog, who serves as the company mascot and provides entertainment by playing basketball. Randy explains that his shop also serves as a living space, with his family's apartment located upstairs, which hosts family during race weekends and occasionally becomes the venue for memorable parties for various NASCAR drivers and racing figures.

Goal: Explore the final stages of production and the unique family-oriented culture of the business.

Tools and materials

  • Basketball — Entertainment for the company mascot
  • Sewing Machine — Stitching upholstery covers
  • Upholstery Materials — Covering and padding the seats

What they say

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a swing for the grandchildren. So where the truck was, it was a setup bay. This was the finishing area. This room used to be the gear room earlier. It's the same exhaust that was outside. It was a gear room. Transmissions and gears were made here. That was the parts room. The Fab Shop was in the back. And the truck used to be parked outside. am. Yeah, we won our first championship , my first championship, we won it here. In the Bush series? Yes. am. Yes. So, in the second or third year, I built an apartment upstairs for the family because when the family came for the races and there were sisters and children, I couldn't sleep properly. So, I got an apartment which worked out quite well. am. Yes. All the relatives, in-laws and everyone else would come along and we have had many parties here. This seems like a good place for that job. You empty it out and you're kind of like, oh, there's a big room. I think the last time we had a jelly-shot party. It was my birthday during Bristol. Bristol night races were always my birthday weekend. And it started from our house. My wife and I and maybe four other couples. Well, all the men in those couples worked on race teams. So , the wives used to come to my house. By the way, I worked on Fridays and he worked on Saturdays. So, I apologize. So, the wives would come over and we would watch the races. Well, one of us came up with the brilliant idea of ​​drinking a shot every time a caution comes on. The liquor had run out at home. So, I thought, " Hmm." And we had a great time. So, once I made this , we brought it here. Jimmy Johnson is here. Jeff Green is here. Bodine three to one corner day. Ah, Parks. I mean, just the names of the drivers who have come to my shot parties. I mean, he even said it on TV. And it was a yellowtail and I ordered shots of Little Joe's. And we used to take them in the Safle Cup. I think last time we did about 2,800 yellow shots. Yes. And it was good because the girls had to catch them in their shirts. And she would catch them, you know. And it was great because it was a much harder shot at the beginning than it was at the end of the night. Because he gave you a lot of space. What do you look for when you fit a seat for someone? Like if people sit in a seat and they think they fit in, do they really fit in ? You are right. No, no, half of them do n't fit. Half the people are not. On your hips, if they're coming out of the seat belt holes , it's too small. If you have a half inch of space , it's…

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