In 1968, Mike Corbin quit his job as an
electrical engineer and sold all his tools,
parlaying the capital into what has become one of the most
successful custom motorcycle part manufacturing businesses in the
world.
In 1968, Mike Corbin quit his job as an
electrical engineer and sold all his tools,
parlaying the capital into what has become one of the most successful custom motorcycle part manufacturing businesses in the world.
Today, Corbin saddles, saddlebags, fenders, backrests, touring luggage, windshields and a host of other products are sold worldwide by more than 7,000 dealers. Although Corbin is widely recognized for making the best custom seat that money can buy, the company is also expanding into new markets, such as furniture and single-person automobiles.
The Corbin manufacturing plant in Hollister produces about 100,000 motorcycle parts each year, reaching every segment of the two-wheel market, from Harley-Davidsons to sport bikes and motor scooters.
Every part produced by Corbin is handmade by the company’s 180 employees and most of the products are one-of-a-kind. Today, Mike Corbin and son Tom Corbin run the business on the same model it was founded on: Quality.
“We’re going on our 40th year, and if you work hard at something for 40 years you get good at it,” Tom Corbin said. “We have a high commitment to quality and design.”
In addition to making high-quality motorcycle accessories, the seats, saddlebags and other products are designed with style in mind.
“We also try to make it look really cool,” Tom Corbin said. “When you’re riding a motorcycle, there is a certain ‘cool factor,’ so we make products that look good and are functional.”
Good-looking, high-quality products have earned Corbin thousands of loyal customers, from the infamous former leader of the Oakland Hells Angels, Sonny Barger, to custom motorcycle enthusiast and television show host Jay Leno.
“As far as I’m concerned, Corbin makes the best motorcycle seat in the world,” Barger said.
Barger, the most famous outlaw biker in the world, has been riding on Corbin saddles for almost as long as Mike Corbin has been in business.
The business started after Mike Corbin, 63, made a seat for himself in 1968. He took his bike at the time to a motorcycle rally, where somebody offered to buy the bike with the custom seat. Soon, Mike Corbin’s seats became so popular that he started his own business.
“He was so busy making seats that he didn’t have time to be an electrical engineer anymore,” Tom Corbin said.
Barger also remembers when Mike Corbin first started in the business. He was almost penniless and getting a lot of business from Barger and other Hells Angels.
“He’s never forgot the fact that we are part of the reason he’s a millionaire today,” Barger said.
The father-and-son duo have turned the once small business into the family-owned giant it is today.
“Family-owned businesses have a unique thing,” Tom Corbin said. “In America it would be hard to run a business like this if we were a big corporation. We are driven by passion.”
Corbin produces custom parts for just about every motorcycle, new and old, that is on the market. While Corbin produces motorcycle accessories for many different bikes, Tom Corbin said 40 percent of the parts they make are for the Harley-Davidson crowd. Corbin products range in price, depending on options, materials and design, from about $250 to more than $1,000.
Creating custom parts for new bikes is half the fun of running the business, the owners said.
“We end up riding all the different bikes,” Tom Corbin said. “We have about 20 at a time because we have to learn about the different models.”
When a new motorcycle comes out on the market, Tom and Mike Corbin usually try to borrow the bike from someone who has recently purchased one. Then they design the parts they think will sell, and make molds with a patented process that allows the parts to be made again and again.
“It’s a dream job,” Tom Corbin said.
Although the business has grown and branched out over the years, dozens of motorcyclists still ride to Hollister each day to have a custom Corbin seat built while they wait. It usually takes four to five hours for each seat, but so-called “ride-in” customers usually take time to tour the facility and check out the Corbin motorcycle museum and the Wizard Cafe, an on-site motorcycle-themed diner.
In addition to producing motorcycle parts and accessories, Corbin recently began manufacturing a custom line of furniture. The couches, designed with an automotive theme, are selling at the rate of about one per week, but are only a small part of the company’s business.
“My dad wanted ’57 Chevy couch, so we started making them,” Tom Corbin said.
The future is bright for the Corbins and their business.
“We’ve been very fortunate,” Tom Corbin said. “I think Corbin will always be a family business.”
