In the game Chess, the king is the most important piece on the board, and the last king standing wins. To take the game, one must have a better strategy, patience and ability to make the right move at the right time. George and Jack Keshishyan of Platinum Motorsport are celebrating 10 years in the industry, a tenure due to a solid strategy, patience and making the right moves at the right time.

Be a student of the game.
Starting Platinum Motorsport while still in high school (George had just graduated while Jack was still in his sophomore year) as a way to stay out of trouble and the streets, the brothers were no strangers to the business. “Our father has been in the automotive industry business for more than 30 years, as far as a regular mechanic servicing and repairs, and we turned his old shop into Platinum Motorsport’s main location and started focusing on more of a higher-end market,” Jack says. “It has been 10 years now, and we have since then expanded our company in many ways and have made Platinum Motorsport a lifestyle brand in the high-end market.”

Know your competition.
“Honestly, I put this out there with no disrespect to anybody, but we really, at this point, don’t feel as if there is competition for us,” says George. “What we offer and what we do is completely different from anybody out there. I can’t say that four or five years ago that there wasn’t competition—there was quite a bit more shops at that time—but in today’s marketplace, I don’t really see us having anyone to compete with in our part of the market.”

“This isn’t a hobby for us, it’s what we do, live and breathe day in and day out,” Jack comments. “It’s something where we’ve taken fashion, nightlife, cars and mixed it and made it into a lifestyle. We just feel it’s not just a regular ‘mom and pop’ automotive thing.”

Observe and plan several moves ahead.
Besides being one of the most notable and trendsetting shops in the nation, the Brothers have also expanded the business to include various entities that fit with their unique lifestyle market and their equally unique clientele.

“There was a high demand that led to the creation of Worldwide Rent-A-Car segment,” says Sam Telikyan, Platinum Motorsport’s Marketing Director and Managing Director for the Worldwide brands. “Clients would come and drop off their cars at the collision center for repair and would obviously need a replacement car in the meantime. And these cars would typically be S550 Mercedes-Benzes and Bentleys, to Ferraris and Lamborghinis. At the same time, high-profile clients, such as artists, athletes and celebrities, started coming to us to borrow vehicles while in town, so it made sense to create this part of the business” Offering luxury and exotic rentals, Worldwide Rent-A-Car also gave way to Worldwide Picture Cars, which lends out their prestigious rides (as well as unique others like fire trucks, boats, ice cream trucks and more) to movies, music videos and commercials. Three recently added services include Worldwide Executive Protection that offers personal security, Worldwide Limousines and Chauffeurs and Worldwide Concierge which provides clients with everything they need to make their stay in L.A. a truly VIP experience.

“As our business grew, we felt that there were areas we could cover instead of outsourcing, which is not about being greedy, but actually about being able to provide clients the service they need, exactly when they need it,” George says about their new Worldwide segments. “Whether it’s a rental car, chauffeur service or protection, it still falls under our automotive lifestyle.” While the Brothers treat all their segments of the business with the same passion and energy as the next, George explains that the exotic rentals, chauffeur services have taken off really well. “Another one we feel is going to be huge is Worldwide Executive Protection,” he adds.

“One client can use several of our services,” Sam describes. “A client comes in from the airport so they’ll use our limo services. They’ll then want a rental car to drive around town in. If they’re new to L.A. or don’t want the hassles of setting up dinner or club reservations, they can use our concierge services and we’ll set everything up for them. If it’s a high-profile client, they might want security around them and opt for our protection services. We’re thinking outside of the box, not just about cars.”

Be open and ready for change, but always stay focused on the goal.
While all these new Worldwide segments greater expands Platinum Motorsport’s reputation and lifestyle services, Jack admits that none of this was originally planned when they first sought out to start the shop. “I can’t stand here and lie and say, ‘These were our expectations from day one…’ because there weren’t any,” he says. “It was a way to keep us focused and positive. There were a lot of negative things happening when we first started the business, and we didn’t want to get caught up in any of it. Luckily, we have a great father who guided us in the right direction and gave us a great work ethic. One thing has just lead to another. I don’t think any of us had an idea of it growing into such a beast, which is what we call it. Knowing that our father came to this country to live the American Dream, and here we are doing it and making it better; it gives us the motivation to achieve bigger and better things.”