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You might think that staring at a blank white page and spewing out 1,000 words or so about what you love would be a fairly simple task, especially for someone that’s written more than 850 published automotive articles over the course of the last 15 years. But this time it’s somehow different. VERY different in fact, because the Op/Ed piece that lies before you is not just another light-hearted introduction column or some random thoughts about the latest project car, garage, or event shenanigans – nope, it’s much bigger than that this time. It’s about stepping out on the ledge and finally jumping! It’s about pursuing a lifelong dream to build a Publishing Company that produces high-quality digital magazines combining the very best attributes from both print and digital publishing.

So a mission statement comes first right? Well shareholders, profit, and bank loans aren’t part of our mission here at Slam’d. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

Temple-JapanGroup-japan Words: Mike Alexander

Our mission is simple:

“With a relentless focus on our three fundamental principles – quality, passion, and innovation – Slam’d Mag will provide high-quality content that is passionately produced and delivered with the most innovative automotive storytelling across today’s modern platforms. With a forward focus, we look toward tomorrow to preserve our custom automotive culture for generations to come.”

Back when Robert Peterson started Hot Rod Magazine and founded Peterson Publishing the magazine world was in a very different place. The very first issue of Hot Rod (January 1948) published with a print run of only 5,000 copies but quickly grew. Good ol’ Pete had the magic recipe of putting the cars and real automotive passion first. But as all good things eventually do, the publishing world has changed and had to evolve a lot since then (albeit kicking and screaming along the way).

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With the advent of things like the Internet, which gave way to Social Media, Netflix, Kindle, Amazon, and plenty more – places like Blockbuster have become obsolete and even our beloved book stores have gone by the wayside. It just so happens that as easy as it is for us to shop for car parts online for the latest bargains with free 2-day shipping right to our door, download new releases, and stream our playlists through “the cloud” – it’s also just as convenient to access all of the latest and greatest automotive information online at your fingertips. So what can we do to help keep magazines and our automotive passions alive for our kids and grandkids?

Issue01-outlinedHaving a deep-rooted love for print publishing and working at the helm of print pubs for almost a decade, my ultimate goal was to ensure that the sacred element of gorgeous professional photography wasn’t abandoned to create just another “automotive blog” pumping out regurgitated “content” for SEO consumption by the masses. Nope, rather we took a refreshingly different approach by creating the ultimate dream team of industry veterans: automotive photographers, editors, designers, videographers, and storytellers across the globe. Combining the things we all know and love about the print mags of yesterday with the advantages and speed of digital. Our talented team works hard around the clock and across the globe to produce elegant photography to bring to you in our high-end clean and modern large format layouts. This allows us to capture and share the automobile and tell the story the way that it’s meant to be seen (not just 640 pixels at a time). Partnering up with the automotive industry’s best photographers and videographers, we’re able to add a voice and share the personalities behind these amazing builds. Using both high-quality photography and editorial video elements combined we’re able to follow builds, produce shop tours, and tell the story that needs to be told. And best of all, with the support of our truly amazing partners and supporters we’re able to do all of this for FREE to our loyal readers worldwide!

I often look to history for inspiration and to learn from the past, and although some of my closest friends poke fun (yes, you John O’Neill), there is wisdom gained when learning from those who came before you and in these little bits of wisdom sometimes comes the inspiration needed to do battle. Theodore Roosevelt (TR) is one such inspiration of mine, and not just for business owners or those pushing the boundaries and taking the risk to do something great, many also admire Teddy for his steadfast and rock-solid foundation and belief system that he would never be swayed from. I’ll leave you with this quote, which sums up all we’ve worked toward here at Slam’d and truly captures the “American Spirit” giving recognition to those who DO:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” -TR

So are the sleepless nights all worth it? Well, you be the judge! I can’t thank our entire team enough for putting in all the long hours and helping to dig the trenches and build something we can all be proud of – something lasting for the next generation. As many of them have reminded me over these last few months – If you build it they will come! And as my amazing G-Ma always says, “The best is yet to come,” so stick around, we’re just getting warmed up over here!

See you next month,

MikeA-sig