American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 251 June 2020 | Page 28

Ton Pels has won multiple European Super Twins Top Fuel Championships
and set records that still stand to this day.
Zodiac is the only V-twin parts and accessory distributor in Europe with
its own fully equipped workshop and machine shop.
"What became the Zodiac we know
today started as a business called FISD,
Franklin International San Diego,
before becoming known as Zodiac. We
started out with wheels and
components we were buying from
factories that Tom was already doing
business with in Taiwan, and his
partner in Zodiac was Rick Weil - he
and his family are still the owners of
Zodiac today.
"In 1972 we bought Invader Wheels in
Los Angeles, which didn't work out too
well, and we realized that we needed
'Ton had his
own Harley
dealership in
the 1970s'
strong relationships with customers
who could buy serious volume, so we
started to work more with distributors
- including Rocky Cycle, which
eventually became Tucker
Rocky/Biker's Choice and now, Tucker
Powersports.
"Rocky Cycle was about the largest
distributor of motorcycle parts at the
time. Tom and Rick did a deal with
Zodiac, but after a couple of years Tom
and Rick severed their links with Rocky
Cycle and it was clear that we had to
be in Taiwan ourselves to have control
over production and quality. It was
decided to set up our own facility there
so we could control the quality, service
and tooling in a factory of our own.
"At that time there were many
manufacturers and distributors in the
motorcycle business who bought and
had things made in Taiwan, but most
of the stuff that came from there was
junk, so we hired Steve Fisk and he set
up our office in Taiwan.
"It was not long after that time that
FISD became Zodiac Enterprises Ltd -
the reason for the ZEL parts numbering
series that you still see on some
product today. In 1985 I sold my share
of the business to Rick and moved to
Mexico, where I lived for about 15
years. Eventually Tom Fairburn sold out
to Rick too."
Meanwhile, having started at the age
of fourteen at an engine overhaul and
repair company in Amsterdam, then a
period as a machinist at sea, Ton Pels,
a passionate drag racer, had opened
his own motorcycle dealership in 1974
(Promotor). After a period as a Harley
dealer he closed it in 1979 and went
instead to work for another
Dutchman, who at that time was
developing a mostly metric custom
parts brand. Ton first met Rick Weil and
Joe Phillipson in the Netherlands when
they were on a sales tour to Europe
and pitching his then boss.
Disappointed that the Taiwan deal
didn't happen, and having built a full
order book for that brand, he decided
to look for something new.
It was actually Marianne, Ton's wife,
who suggested he renew contact
with Zodiac in Taiwan. Marianne
Pels remembers that time well: "It all
happened quite quickly. After the first
contact with Taiwan, Ton was on a
plane within a week and after that
everything just came together really
easily. Parts were ordered and our first
container came within weeks.
"Initially Ton rented a 200 sq m
warehouse in a small town,
Kudelstaart, where Henk Vink, who
had a successful GP racing team in the
sixties and seventies, had his Kawasaki
importership. As soon as we were in,
Rob and I started to build scaffolding
for storage and Ton was immediately
on the road making his sales rounds."
Ton Pels recalls: "Our camper van was
our office and our first employee was
Rob Pannekoek - he ran the
warehouse and shipping and
Marianne did the bookkeeping.
"I knew most of the custom shops and
Harley dealers in the Netherlands from
28 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - JUNE 2020 www.AMDchampionship.com