Honest Charley
Honest Charley was an American businessman and pioneer in the high performance automotive parts industry. Born Charles Edward Card Jr., he was known throughout the racing and hot rod communities by the trade name Honest Charley. In 1948 he created the Honest Charley's Speed Shop in Chattanooga, Tennessee in the United States. The company became well known for its unique and entertaining catalogs which were originally hand drawn. Honest Charley's also attracted the attention of the aftermarket parts industry for its innovative distribution techniques. He was a racing enthusiast, patron and sponsor. He was a USAC Life Time Member with member number 121 and early member of the Indy 500 Old Timers Club. In 1970 he became the second inductee into Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Hall of Fame.
Early years
Honest Charley's father was of Scottish descent and lived in New Jersey. During the reconstruction era following the American Civil War, Charles Card Sr. moved south and started a wholesale produce company which prospered for 48 years as Chattanooga increasingly grew as an industrial and manufacturing center especially during World War I. While working 17 years in his father's business, he developed a strong work ethic and a good sense for business, but it was maintaining the truck fleet that first interested him in customizing automobiles.His nickname
In 1940 he opened a restaurant on Chestnut Street in downtown Chattanooga just opposite the Read House. In an effort to increase profit he removed the cash register to make room for one more paying customer at the counter. When patrons would come out, he would ask them what they owed and collect from them as they had reported. People frequently commented "You sure are honest, Charley." He adopted the nickname and put it on his sign. Embracing a local colloquialism he also added the suffix "Hisself" and was often referred to as Honest Hisself.Founding the Speed Shop
During the '40s he spent many weekends driving to stock car races with his wife, Grace, and two daughters, Martha and Ann and a trunkful of racing parts for sale or trade. After several years of networking and getting to know the drivers and the market, he decided to take the next step, and in 1948 he started Honest Charley's Speed Shop along with his son-in-law Robert J. Espy as a partner. They began with a modest retail front of just 260 square feet at 2204 McCallie Ave.The catalog
From the beginning Honest Charley's was best known for its entertaining and unique catalog. The early issues were actually hand drawn by Honest and his daughters. He created a caricature of "Hisself" for a logo and always drew little cartoons in the margins. Aside from the entertainment value, the catalogs established Honest Charley's as the first coast-to-coast mail order distributor of high-performance aftermarket parts.Leader of a growth industry
Honest Charley's keen sense of business put him in the forefront of an industry which was poised for growth. After World War II, many returning soldiers had a great deal of mechanical aptitude after keeping GI vehicles running on the battlefield, and they had a need for excitement. Hot rods were made popular by magazines and movies. Hot Rod, The Fast And The Furious and Running Wild and other movies were in theaters. Pete Petersen began publishing Hot Rod Magazine with encouragement and capital investment from Honest Charley, who was also an advertiser in the first issue. As business grew, Honest Charley's Speed Shop moved to a larger 14,000 square foot store at 3813 Rossville Blvd. In 1964 Honest designed and built a state-of-art 30,000 square foot distribution warehouse at 108 Honest Street off Lee Hwy. near the runway of Lovell Field.While attending major races such as the Indianapolis 500, Honest established personal relationships with many of the West Coast manufacturers like Vic Edelbrock, Fred Offenhauser, Phil Weiand, Ed Iskenderian, Els Lohn, Willie Garner, Paul Schiefer, and George Hurst. Through this network he was able to influence output supply and avoid backorder problems which negatively affected other distributors. Also he was also able to have some products labeled as his own brand. In addition to retail, Honest Charley's sold wholesale to many small chains and independent stores. In the 1970s the company began franchising smaller stores across the southeast.