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Alek & Vitaly From JDMSupply.com EP.177

Alek & Vitaly From JDMSupply.com EP.177

Right Hand Drive Guys Apr 11, 2026 54 min
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About this episode

Alek and Vitaly from JDMSupply.com break down how they built a JDM-focused marketplace by blending tech, marketing, and car culture. After early auction attempts struggled with trust and short timelines, they pivoted to classifieds to grow traffic and an email list. Their first big win was Alek’s low-mileage Quick Silver Supra, which went viral. They discuss bootstrapping, affiliate revenue (not taking transaction cuts), and plans to regain auctions via influencer partnerships, better SEO, and event exposure. They also share how they acquired top-tier JDM Instagram/TikTok handles and debate what counts as “JDM” for left-hand-drive cars.

Cars: Toyota Supra
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Technical Too Afraid to Ask
Concept

right-hand drive

"Hey, and welcome back to the next episode of the right-hand drive guys podcast the podcast for guys who like right-hand drives"

Some cars have the steering wheel on the right side instead of the left. That’s called right-hand drive, and it’s common in places like Japan and the UK.

Concept

classifieds

"And then once we learn that we decided to hit it and get into the classifieds And then that's kind of where we've been focusing more just the classifieds on the goal"

Classifieds are like online car listings—cars are posted for sale and buyers browse them. They moved toward classifieds because it fit their audience and goals better.

Concept

cars and bids

"[288.8s] 2021 I would say right the tally. I feel like we launched a couple months after [294.1s] cars and bids [295.9s] Right. Wow. Yeah. Yeah, and the first car that we did was actually Alex's"

“Cars and Bids” is a website where people buy and sell cars, usually through auctions. The hosts are saying their site grew around the same time that kind of platform was getting popular.

Concept

unicorn

"[316.9s] And it ended up selling for I think over 200 on the platform. Yeah on your platform on our platform. Yeah, that's sick [324.9s] But it was like a unicorn, right and the quick silvers were [329.6s] Just what how many of them made I think"

“Unicorn” just means something rare that most people can’t easily find. They’re saying this Supra setup was uncommon, so it got a lot of attention.

Concept

organic hype

"[329.6s] Just what how many of them made I think [332.8s] 26 or something. Yeah, 26. So we got a lot of hype a lot of organic hype around it [338.5s] Yeah, so was that your was that a planned sacrifice on your behalf to"

“Organic hype” means people got excited on their own, not because the sellers paid for advertising. The rare color made more people talk about it.

Car

Supras

"Exactly. Yeah, because it's one of those Supras where it's not every day One of these goes up for sale and the fact that mine had 17,000 original miles"

They’re talking about the Toyota Supra. It’s a popular Japanese sports car, and here they’re saying one particular Supra sold really well because it was in amazing shape and had very low miles.

Concept

auction house

"Like the the trust factor is lacking space for like just the whole transactional thing and agreed Seven days is not enough to vet some of these cars as a as an auction house. Like you have seven days"

An auction house is where cars are sold by bidding. Here they’re saying the auction process needs enough time for people to check the cars so they feel comfortable buying.

Concept

seven days

"Seven days is not enough to vet some of these cars as a as an auction house. Like you have seven days Even if the listing is great"

They’re saying the process only gives about a week to check the car. They feel that’s too short to really confirm everything before buying.

Concept

JDM cars

"Yeah, and I feel like JDM cars. I don't know why but I feel like they get a bad rap [542.4s] specifically just because there's been"

JDM cars are cars that come from Japan. People like them because they can be special or rare, but the buying experience can be stressful if past sellers weren’t honest.

Concept

JDM stuff

"The biggest thing for us is that they have the audience that are interested in the JDM stuff... From the exotic to the European stuff"

JDM means “Japanese cars for Japan.” People use it to talk about Japanese car models and parts that enthusiasts import and buy.

Concept

title sponsors

"We need to put JDM supply as one of the title sponsors... But you're not paying title sponsor money because you're partners"

A title sponsor is the company whose name is used as the main sponsor for an event. It’s a big marketing spot, usually more visible than smaller sponsorships.

Company

JDMSupply.com

"Do you have the opportunities because I can imagine you're looking for exposure, right? That's the biggest thing is like people need to know who JDM supply is That's why we're talking right now."

JDMSupply.com is the website these guys run for JDM cars. They’re talking about ways to get more people to notice their listings and quality.

Concept

search engine traffic

"And I think the last like couple years like we our growth we've leaned so heavily on the on the search engine traffic and It's kind of been we've been kind of behind the scenes of it"

“Search engine traffic” is when people land on a website after searching on Google. They’re saying they’ve been getting most of their growth that way, and now they want to expand into other ways to reach people.

Concept

JDM space

"But there's this opportunity now like JDM the whole JDM space is so It's like a social network like everybody With JDM cars is on social platforms."

“JDM space” means the whole world of people who are into Japanese cars. The hosts are saying it’s not just cars for sale—it’s also a community that lives on social media.

Concept

Instagram

"groups we have a section that are where people can buy and sell Instagram And one day I was browsing so maybe 2019 2020 and I saw someone post like hey"

Instagram is a social media app where people share photos and videos. In car communities, people use it to promote cars and parts, and sometimes to sell account names.

Concept

ROI

"I worked with several different other JDM accounts and try them out and you know See which ones would give me the best results as far as my ROI And then I just kind of like ran that until I hit 10,000 followers"

ROI is basically “did it pay off?” If you spend money on shout-outs, ROI tells you whether you got good results for what you paid.

Concept

jdm.com

"So jdm.com is next for us. Yes [1527.4s] That's cool."

They’re talking about getting the website address “jdm.com.” A simple domain can bring more visitors because people can type it directly from memory.

Concept

affiliate partnerships

"Right now we have just affiliate partnerships with like carvax and The financing companies and our whole shipping module that you can get your car ship"

An affiliate partnership is when a company gets paid for sending you to another service. For cars, that can be things like financing or shipping.

Concept

Facebook Marketplace

"With the market like our biggest competitor. I would want to say is probably facebook marketplace or the groups the facebook groups"

Facebook Marketplace is where people post cars for sale. It’s popular because it reaches a lot of people and doesn’t cost the seller.

Concept

google search traffic

"So that's where yeah, that's where we're getting that opportunity like on the google search traffic is when people are searching"

Google search traffic is when people find you by searching online. They’re saying that some JDM buyers show up through Google searches instead of social media.

Concept

lead quality

"They come to our website. They already have like an intent to purchase the vehicle. So the lead quality is much higher for us"

Lead quality just means how serious the people contacting you are. If someone is already looking to buy, they’re a better lead than someone just browsing.

Concept

bootstrapping

"our bootstrapping are just So passionate about the culture that they can't help but Want to have a solid piece in it."

Bootstrapping means building a business without a lot of outside money. You grow it by using what you earn and working hard.

Concept

Fuji Speedway

"They had me at fuji speedway twice to you know be able to enjoy the car on a legitimate japanese track and uh, we both got to drive it on track, you know, so"

Fuji Speedway is a well-known Japanese racing circuit used for motorsport events and driver track days. Mentioning it signals the car was driven in a real performance environment, not just around town.

Concept

JDM tourism

"Yeah, that whole thing it just kind of like opened my eyes. I'm like, oh, maybe we should start offering like something like JDM tourism on the side here where we could take guys out, you know, show them their car that they're buying and you know"

JDM tourism means going to Japan to see the exact car you’re thinking about buying. Instead of only trusting photos or listings, you can check it in person.

Concept

drifting

"[2392.4s] Yeah, I mean it's it's cool. We got to go to fat five land with digocytoh and [2397.7s] He was drifting. Yeah, and it that was a really cool thing as well."

Drifting is when a driver intentionally slides the car sideways while still controlling it. It’s a popular style of racing and a big part of the JDM scene.

Concept

left-hand drive cars

"I am for sure allowing Left-hand drive cars to be sold because I want that exposure and I'm not selling a cavalier"

Left-hand drive just means the steering wheel is on the left side of the car. That’s the layout most people in the U.S. are used to, so it can make a car easier to live with or sell.

Concept

usdm section

"...instead of Say like kind of pushing away those people that hey, they love supers just prefer left hand drive You know what I mean needs a usdm section"

USDM means the car was originally sold in the U.S. They’re saying the site should organize listings so people who want U.S.-market cars don’t have to sort through right-hand drive imports.

Company

eBay

"Yeah, like ebay, but for just used used jdm parts. Yeah, I was gonna say that earlier But I just didn't want to throw too much at you."

eBay is referenced as the comparison point for an online marketplace. The hosts imply that their platform would improve on the typical eBay experience for JDM parts by emphasizing trust and reducing common issues.

Concept

approval process

"Input the bin number upload a couple photos and then boom it goes into an approval process [3143.8s] We get notified that a listing has been added [3145.9s] Then we just go through it and accept it"

After you submit a listing, the site reviews it before it becomes visible. It’s basically a quick check to make sure everything looks right.

Company

youtube

"Those are those are the good ways. Do you guys have a youtube or like anything like that? [3193.3s] We do have a youtube but we just kind of kind of primarily use it to post like videos that users have sent us to embed [3199.3s] Okay, but that is one thing that we do want to also focus on this year is getting our faces out there on our youtube channel"

They have a YouTube channel where they share videos, including clips from users. They’re planning to record more of their own trips and sourcing content.

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