Edelbrock, one of the largest aftermarket parts manufacturers in the industry, is leaving its Torrance, California headquarters and heading to a Mississippi facility. However, Edelbrock’s manufacturing plant will only be moving a short way away to San Jacinto, CA.
When asked about the timeline of the move, Edelbrock Group’s Chief Commercial Officer Chris Douglas said, “The transition has been in planning since last Fall. Employees were notified in October and many have accepted relocation opportunities in either San Jacinto, CA, Cerritos, CA or Olive Branch, Mississippi. The Edelbrock headquarters will transition to the same Olive Branch, Mississippi campus (300,000 sq. ft. facility) that has also housed the Edelbrock global distribution center since early 2020. The transition is expected to be completed by 3/31/21.”
The Torrance, California headquarters has been a staple of SoCal’s hot rod community for decades, and the name Edelbrock has been integral to the hot rod and performance scene since Vic Edelbrock Sr opened his first shop in Los Angeles, CA, and has continued with innovative manufacturing and design over the years. Edelbrock built countless relationships with its local customers, often offering shop tours of its facility, hosting it’s own local car show year after year, and venturing out into the neighborhood in test vehicles. Many familiar faces will no longer be seen at the local swap meets and car shows.
Following the initial news of the move, social media was flooding with misinformation, some people even claiming the end of Edelbrock which quickly prompted a direct response from Edelbrock’s blog; “EDELBROCK IS NOT DEAD” and a re-post from an article, BangShift Founder, Chad Reynolds, damning the spread of misinformation.
“The closure of the Torrance facility is to better align our physical locations with our goal of being a modern, multi-location portfolio of performance aftermarket brands (the Edelbrock Group). The competition for employees is fierce in LA County and land for expansion is very expensive. While it is bittersweet to leave the traditional home of Edelbrock, the transition is leading to millions in investment for our San Jacinto, CA facility that will now manufacture cylinder heads, water pumps and superchargers in addition to being a state of the art aluminum foundry. Edelbrock is one of the most respected automotive performance names in the world and this transition will provide the needed business foundation and scale for upcoming growth/expansion.” said Douglas when asked about Edelbrock’s short and long-term goals.
As sad as the move is for LA County residents, Edelbrock is far from dead. In a separate quote, Douglas told PRI, “We’ve got some announcements coming over the next few months that’ll further align us with this goal and get us back to our racing and performance roots, while continuing to serve the passionate hot rod community,” Douglas added. “We want to make sure that Edelbrock remains one of the most respected names in performance for the next generation of enthusiasts.”
Leave a Reply