WomenWithWheels.com

Bustled Knuckle Garage
For Anyone Who Has Ever Worked on a Car

Susan Frissell
Women With Wheels

What a great name for a business: Busted Knuckle Garage. Not only does the owner Warren Tracy have an innovative idea, he’s got a sense of humor, to boot.

I came across Tracy’s web site BustedKnuckleGarage.com recently and had such a good time looking over all that’s available, I emailed the Head Wrench, as he refers to himself, right away. His response was just as quick, and in a matter of a couple of days, I received a letter and some samples of his product.

It appears that Tracy runs the whole show, from writing his own press releases, to compiling the business’ materials, to designing Busted Knuckle Garage’s logo. In fact, it was the logo, says Tracy, that came before any of it. In the middle of one night in 1996, Tracy awoke with the image in his brain. Drawing it out on paper, he realized he had something. But what? After designing the logo, he came up with the words Busted Knuckle Garage. His logo and catchy name were so unique he trademarked them before even deciding on a business to go with them.

A car lover from way back, Tracy designed a hand with a wrench in it and a bruised finger with a bandaid tied around it. Having worked on many a vehicle, Tracy was more than familiar with the fact that bruising one’s hands and fingers comes with the territory.

At the time the idea Busted Knuckle Garage was beginning to creep into his consciousness, Tracy was the manager of Phantom Ranch, a lodge and overnight cabin and dorms at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Managing a staff of 16, his crew was responsible for serving breakfast and dinner to those who were brave enough to navigate the Canyon on foot, by mule or by a 100-mile raft ride. Every 10 days, Tracy hiked two-and-a-half hours out of the Canyon for a four-day holiday. It was during those hikes that he would think about his logo and what business he could create to go with it.

Tracy eventually met a signmaker in Santa Fe who agreed to put the logo on an antique Western sign with the words "Repair and Despair Under One Roof." He then placed an ad in Hemmings Motor News and sold 100 signs at $100 a piece. He also placed his signs in the Canyon ranch gift shop, along with t-shirts. Tracy’s clever marketing and copywriting, such as "to hide the grease" for the black t-shirts, no doubt, helped sell his products.

Weekend car shows were next for Tracy. He would rent space at the shows, by then calling himself "Head Wrench," and sell his signs and t-shirts. According to Tracy, his Busted Knuckle Garage signs acted as magnets to bring fellow car buffs and mechanics over to his booth. People would stop and read the sign out loud, says Tracy, and give him a thumbs up. An emotional trigger was being tapped in those who had ever worked on a car. "That is everybody who ever worked on a car," one man told him, pointing to the logo.

Fast forward to 2001 and Tracy’s Busted Knuckle Garage business is a hit. He has left his Grand Canyon job and continues to build his small business. With gross revenue of six figures for 2001, Busted Knuckle Garage products have moved into major retailers such as Target stores. He still sells at auto shows such as the National Street Rod Association show in Louisville and enjoys the personal contact and story swapping with customers.

In 2003, Tracy’s Busted Knuckle Garage won the Success Award from Yavapai County in Arizona. The three-year-old wholesale and retail business has benefited from help from the Yavapai College Small Business Development Center (SBDC) who assisted in development of his web site. Tracy meets with a counselor from the SBDC once a month and sticks to a strict agenda that outlines accomplishments and challenges.

If you’re searching for an unusual gift–a rustic sign, neon wall clock, bullet garbage can–or just any gift for a gearhead, look up Busted Knuckle Garage. We’re sure you’ll have some fun, and a few laughs.