Fabristeel had booked space at the International SAE show and their initial plan was to display their range of self-piercing nuts and bolts on eight foot tables. They wanted to ‘increase sales’ and explained that the owners wanted to take the company global.

Over the years, we have had the honour of working for some of the world’s largest Corporations, Associations and Trade Consulates. However it might be more meaningful to tell the story of how we helped FabriSteel, a small Detroit based manufacturer of nuts and bolts, increase sales and go global.

When the entire FabriSteel sales team visited Facet, they didn’t really have a clear idea of what ‘marketing’ was all about. They had booked space at the International SAE show and their initial plan was to display their range of self-piercing nuts and bolts on eight foot tables. They wanted to ‘increase sales’ and explained that the owners wanted to take the company global.

Founded in 1920, we discovered that FabriSteel’s self-piercing nuts and bolts had been installed on many of the world’s iconic vehicles. We decided to focus on the vehicles and not the nuts and bolts. We developed a campaign ‘Fasten It, Drive It’ and video featuring fast paced vehicle footage. The booth displayed large format vehicle graphics and center stage we displayed an immaculate 1950s red pick-up truck. Visitors were invited to guess how many FabriSteel parts were on the truck. The program was such a success, that FabriSteel won a $6m order for front passenger seat bolts. The order was traced directly back to an inquiry at the show.

FabriSteel’s next goal was to target the white goods industry. We researched the best show and adjusted the campaign to “Fasten it, drive it. Take it for a spin.” This was another success story and FabriSteel went on to provide bolts for front load washing machines and dryers. This success caught the attention of Whitesell Canada who acquired FabriSteel. We also developed a program of Supplier Technology Reviews at Toyota, Nissan and Honda and the video was translated into multiple languages.

Whitesell also invited Facet to design an Innovation Suite in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The suite included product displays of all the automotive components offered by the Group and included hospitality and training facilities. Whitesell Canada continued to take the business global and more recently was acquired by Penn Engineering.