World domination is hard — just ask Vladimir Putin. What you have to do is pick a slice of the world to dominate. This is what I’m coining as the “Hagerty Method.” The company found its corner of the world — the automotive landscape — and decided they could (and should) have nearly all of it.
This morning it was announced that the automotive conglomerate has just acquired its latest target: RADwood. The throwback celebration of cars from the ‘80s and ‘90s now has a new home, and that home is in Traverse City, Michigan. It’s the latest of many purchases Hagerty has made within the automotive industry.
Hagerty was already a partner with RADwood, but now the two brands have become even closer.
“Taking stewardship of RADwood builds on Hagerty’s purpose to save driving and car culture while expanding and supporting inspiring experiences for automotive enthusiasts,” Hagerty wrote in a press release.
We all know what RADwood’s general vibes are: cool (and not so cool) cars from the end of the last millennium and period-appropriate clothing. It’s a car show for people who have seen one too many winga-dinga Chevelles. Luckily for fans of the event, Hagerty doesn’t plan to change any of that.
It’s all part of the company’s Cars & Community program. Hagerty started out as an insurance company, but has recently expanded to just about everywhere in car culture. They have a popular YouTube channel (that I enjoy immensely), sponsor or own numerous car shows and concourses (Amelia Island, Greenwich and California Mille), have a magazine and even appear in Gran Turismo 7.
RADwood’s founders, Art Cervantes and Warren Madsen, are staying on board to “provide continuity and help lead RADwood into the future.”
“As a lifestyle brand that celebrates automotive culture, we are beyond stoked to join the Hagerty team,” Cervantes said in the release. “We’ve been partners for years now and we know this will be a very natural transition for us. The Hagerty team are car people through-and-through, and we are very aligned in our passion for preserving the enjoyment of cars for generations to come.”
So, it looks like the RADwood many of us know and love will be sticking around well into the future, even though it’s now under the umbrella of a huge company.
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