What Automotive Art does

Automotive Art, founded August 1990 by Dereck Foster and Hugh Blades in Barbados, is the Caribbean's largest auto-care retailer of car enhancement products and services, claiming a presence in 65+ countries through a hybrid retail, franchise, and wholesale distribution model. The company manufactures its proprietary Automotive Art Paints refinish system through a 2012 joint venture with Poland-based Multichem Sp. z.o.o., and complements that with proprietary technology assets including the ADAM5 five-camera spectrophotometer and the cloud-based Motomix Plus Color Software for paint color matching, as well as the Motobase H2O waterborne mixing system.

The product portfolio spans automotive refinish paints, primers, hardeners, clear coats, fillers and putties (under the Automotive Art Paints private label and formerly Glasurit/BASF regional distribution), alongside multi-category aftermarket goods including wheels, tyres, batteries, oils and lubricants (featuring Valvoline, Mag 1, Castrol), safety equipment, accessories, and chemicals/car-care products. Retail operations include service centers providing wheel alignments, tyre installation, battery installation, and headlight restoration, anchored at the Wildey Industrial Park, St. Michael, Barbados headquarters and replicated across 15 franchise stores in 9 Caribbean territories (Barbados, Antigua, Cayman Islands, Guyana, Jamaica, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, Suriname) plus a Miami, Florida distribution center serving the Americas.

Revenue mechanics blend one-time product sales (paint manufacturing, multi-category retail and wholesale), franchise/royalty income from licensed operators, and professional service revenue from in-store service centers. Customer segmentation is horizontal, spanning collision repair and body shops (primary), automotive professionals and mechanics (primary), car enthusiasts and individual owners, fleet operators, and franchisees. Marketing leans on social channels, the annual SEMA trade show presence, the Valvoline Conference, community sponsorships (e.g., Rep Ya Ride 2025), and the SMARTCARD loyalty program, with deep distribution partnerships (Dekro Paints for Africa, Cuban distributors) extending the brand internationally.

Name

Automotive Art

Legal name

Automotive Art

Website

https://automotiveart.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Automotive Art, founded 1990 in Barbados, is the Caribbean's largest auto-care retailer, manufacturing its own Automotive Art Paints brand, distributing tyre, battery, lubricant and accessory products, and operating 15 franchise stores across 9 Caribbean territories plus service centers and a Miami US distribution center reaching 65+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Automotive Aftermarket Products

NAICS

Paint and Coating Manufacturing (325510), Automotive Parts and Accessories Retailers (44133), Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Retailers (4413)

SIC

Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods (2851), Motor Vehicle Parts & Accessories (3714)

akta.pro primary industry

Paint, refinishing & body shop supplies distribution (coatings, abrasives, tools, consumables) (CRAOANAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Collision Repair, Bodywork & Paint (Light-Duty) (TLAKAAAK)

Keywords

• Automotive refinish paints
• Automotive aftermarket products
• Wheel alignment services
• Automotive retail distribution
• Color matching technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Miami

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices18 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Paint Products Sales: Manufacturing and distribution of automotive refinish paints and ancillary products including primers, hardeners, clear coats, reducers, thinners, fillers, and putties. Sold through franchise stores, distributors, and directly to body shops globally.
2. Franchise Operations: Company sells franchises to customers interested in a total automotive aftermarket solution for their respective territories. 15 franchise stores operating in 9 territories.
3. Retail Products: Sale of automotive aftermarket products including wheels, tyres, batteries, oils, lubricants, accessories, chemicals, and car care products through company-owned and franchise retail stores.
4. Service Centre Revenue: Automotive services including wheel alignments, tyre balancing, battery checks, headlight restoration, and wheel/tyre installation offered through service centres.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Automotive Art manufactures and distributes its own Automotive Art Paints brand of automotive refinish paints (produced in its Poland factory through a joint venture with Multichem Sp. z.o.o.), and operates the Caribbean's largest auto-care retail chain offering wheels, tyres, batteries, oils and lubricants, chemicals, safety products, and accessories alongside in-store service centres for wheel alignment, tyre installation, and battery services. The company combines proprietary color-matching technology (ADAM5 Spectro and Motomix Plus Color Software) with a 15-store franchise and direct retail network across 9 Caribbean territories, plus global distribution in 65+ countries.

Product overview

Automotive Art is the Caribbean's largest auto-care retailer operating a multi-category product and service business. The company manufactures and distributes world-class automotive refinish paints under the Automotive Art Paints brand (produced in their own Poland factory) and previously distributed Glasurit (BASF). Their technology offerings include the ADAM5 Spectro five-camera color matching system and Motomix Plus Color Software, which together enable precise paint color matching. The product portfolio spans automotive refinish systems, wheels, tyres, batteries, motor oils and lubricants, chemicals and car care products, safety equipment, accessories, and tools from numerous branded suppliers. The company operates service centers offering wheel alignment, tyre installation, battery services, and headlight restoration. Their SMARTCARD loyalty program provides points-based rewards to customers. The business distributes through company-owned stores and franchises across the Caribbean and globally in 65+ countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SMARTCARD: Loyalty rewards program offering points for purchases that can be redeemed for discounts

Products and services

• Automotive Art Paints World-class private label automotive refinish paint system (primers, hardeners, clear coats, reducers, thinners, fillers, putties) targeting mid-level, value-for-money bodyshop operations. Manufactured at the company's Poland facility through the Multichem joint venture.
• ADAM5 Spectrophotometer Five-camera color-matching device that pairs with Motomix Plus Color Software to deliver pinpoint accuracy for metallic, pearl, and xirallic automotive paint finishes. Designed to remove guesswork in fewer steps with greater accuracy and advanced color correction capability.
• Motomix Plus Color Software Cloud-based color matching software that allows users to scan a paint sample, select the appropriate formula, adjust it for best match, and mix paint. Designed to work with the ADAM5 Spectrophotometer.
• Motobase H2O Waterborne Mixing System Waterborne automotive refinish mixing system for environmentally focused water-based paint formulation.
• Automotive Art Service Centre In-store automotive service facilities offering wheel alignment, wheel and tyre installation, battery checks and installation, tyre balancing and repair, and headlight restoration. Available at Barbados (Welches and Wildey) and other Caribbean territory locations.
• Wheels Range of aftermarket automotive wheels including Drag Extreme Racing, Hijoin Racing Series, Tuff, Helo, Maxxim Alloy Wheels, König, XD Series, Traklite, Moto Metal, and American Racing brands.
• Tyres Automotive tyre retail offering brands including Falken, Dunlop, Pirelli, Kumho, and Sailun.
• Batteries Automotive batteries including Maximo Batteries (models 4D-150, DIN45, N70, NS60, NS70) and Interstate Batteries.
• Oils and Lubricants Motor oils and lubricants including Valvoline (20w50, 15w40 All Fleet, Premium Blue 5w40), Mag 1 (20w50, 10w30), Cyclo, Golden Supreme, Spray Nine, Castrol, and Permatex brands.
• Chemicals and Car Care Products Automotive chemicals and car care products including Cyclo brake cleaners, Surf City Garage (Clayzilla, Code Red), Presta All Weather Exterior Dressing, CRC Industries, Cristal, Armorall, and Detail Guardz.
• Safety Products Safety equipment including Gerson respirators, DeWalt, Azusa Safety, Ammex, Mechanix Wear, Northern Safety & Industrial, Protective Industrial Products, Radians, Ergodyne, and Gerson branded products.
• Automotive Accessories Automotive accessories including WeatherTech mats, Pioneer audio, Majic, Trico, S.M. Arnold, Draper tools, Rayovac, Bosch, Cowles Customs, Hercules Car, and Maximo branded items.
• SMARTCARD Loyalty Program Free loyalty card program where customers earn 1 point per $1 spent (with bonus points on selected products); every 100 points is redeemable for $1 off purchases. Available in Antigua, Barbados, Cayman, Jamaica, St. Kitts and St. Lucia.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95%+ first-time color matching accuracy achieved by distributors using ADAM5 technology
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• Samuel Jackman Prescod Institute of Technology (SJPI)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025Automotive Art signed MOU to provide ten $400 scholarships to continuing students in the Motor Vehicle Engineering Technology and Vehicle Body Repair programmes. Part of initiative to develop future workforce for automotive industry.
• ValvolinecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2024Valvoline is a key brand partner for Automotive Art. The company hosts annual Valvoline Conference events showcasing Valvoline lubricants and products, with special emphasis on fleet management and oil analysis. Automotive Art was proud to host the Valvoline Conference at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in August 2024.
• Multichem Sp. z.o.o.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2012Joint venture agreement with Multichem Sp. z.o.o., a manufacturer of automotive paint and ancillary products based in Poznan, Poland. This venture created vertical integration of front-end retail and distribution operations with production and R&D, allowing the company to control its own destiny in product development and branding.
• Dekro PaintsmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership with South African company Dekro Paints enabled Automotive Art to distribute products to South Africa, Angola, Zambia and six other neighbouring African countries. Dekro Paints launched the Automotive Art paint label in South Africa.
• BASF / GlasuritmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAutomotive Art holds regional distribution rights to the Glasurit brand (a division of BASF) throughout the Caribbean. This partnership brought new polyurethane and two-stage technologies to the Caribbean market and established Glasurit as a leading refinish brand.
• T&D MotorsportsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership with T&D Motorsports for automotive restoration projects and SEMA show car builds. Partner Doug Call led restoration of 1958 Chevy Corvette and 1970 Chevelle SS396 for SEMA Battle of the Builders competition.
• Barbados Tyre CentremajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcquired Barbados Tyre Centre in 1998, which catapulted Automotive Art into the tyre and tool business and cemented its position as the largest automotive aftermarket company in Barbados.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Repco: Australian and New Zealand-focused auto parts retail/service chain with franchise model. Comparable franchise/store-based automotive aftermarket retail operating model, but in a different geography than Automotive Art's Caribbean footprint.
• Halfords: UK-based retailer of automotive parts, accessories, and services with service centers. Comparable multi-category auto aftermarket retail + service center combination, serving a different (UK) geography.

Direct peers

• LKQ Corporation: Aftermarket auto parts distributor combining branded and private-label parts distribution. Closely analogous distribution/wholesale motion plus multi-territory operation, though at meaningfully larger scale.
• NAPA Auto Parts: Auto parts retailer with strong professional installer franchise network and multi-category aftermarket assortment. Analogous to Automotive Art's franchise-led Caribbean retail model.
• Axalta Coating Systems: Global automotive refinish coatings manufacturer competing in the same body-shop paint category Automotive Art targets with its private-label Automotive Art Paints and Motobase H2O systems.
• PPG Industries: Major automotive refinish paint manufacturer with established Caribbean distribution through multi-brand portfolios. Directly competes with Automotive Art Paints and Glasurit at the body-shop level.

Broad incumbents

• O'Reilly Auto Parts: US-based auto parts retailer with strong private-label product program and dual retail/DIY-professional sales model. Comparable to Automotive Art's mix of retail stores plus professional body-shop paint distribution.
• AutoZone: Largest US auto parts retailer with a multi-category aftermarket assortment and service offerings. Highly comparable operating model to Automotive Art's franchise/store-based retail + distribution model, though materially larger and US-focused rather than Caribbean.
• Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes: Division of Sherwin-Williams producing automotive refinish products. Competes with Automotive Art Paints in the body-shop refinish category the company has targeted since the 1990s.
• BASF Coatings (Glasurit): Parent of the Glasurit brand which Automotive Art distributes regionally in the Caribbean. Also competes more broadly globally in automotive OEM and refinish coatings, including versus Automotive Art's private label.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/autoart246
• Facebookfacebook.com/autoartfb
• Instagraminstagram.com/automotiveart
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/art-holdings-barbados

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Automotive Art