Malcolm Bricklin
| Malcolm N. Bricklin | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
March 9, 1939 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | University of Florida |
| Known for | known for his self-named automobile company, importer of foreign cars |
| Spouse(s) | Sania Teymeny |
Malcolm N. Bricklin (born March 9, 1939) is an American businessman, who is primarily known for manufacturing and importing cars.
Bricklin founded Subaru of America in 1968, in order to import and sell Subaru vehicles in the United States. He sold his interest in Subaru of America during the early 1970s, and founded a new company to manufacture his own car, the Bricklin SV-1. Built in New Brunswick, Canada, the Bricklin SV-1 was sold from 1974 to 1976, with less than 3000 vehicles sold. Bricklin re-entered the auto industry in 1982, importing and selling Fiat's X-19 and Spider convertibles under the brand name of Bertone. In 1986, he began importing the Yugo hatchback from Yugoslavia, selling more than 120,000 of the vehicles during the first three years of this venture. Selling his interest in the Yugo during the early 1990s, Bricklin has since made and marketed an electronic bicycle known as the EV Warrior. In 2004, Bricklin's company, Visionary Vehicles, made a deal to import and distribute vehicles made by the Chinese company Chery Automobile Co., but the deal later collapsed. Bricklin filed a number of lawsuits over the deal, winning a $2 million judgment against a former partner in the deal in 2013.
Bricklin began his business career by starting a chain of hardware stores in Orlando, Florida, called Handyman. He sold his interest in Handyman in 1960.
In the mid-1960s, after he sold his interest in the Handyman chain of hardware stores, Bricklin moved back to Philadelphia. When he was exploring establishing a network of gas stations that would rent scooters, he went to Japan to meet with the manufacturer of the Rabbit scooter, Fuji Heavy Industries, to arrange for the purchase and importation of their scooters. But Fuji was getting out of manufacturing and was concentrating on their car business.
At the meeting, Bricklin saw Fuji’s Subaru 360 mini-car, which got up to 60 miles to a gallon of gas and did not require federalizing in the United States because it was less than 1,000 pounds. Bricklin was able to secure an exclusive contract with Fuji Heavy Industries to import Subaru cars and trucks into the United States. He formed Subaru of America, and was described as ""one of the first auto industry mavericks to recognize that thrifty, inexpensive Japanese cars could be big in the United States."
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