Turn5 alums built their own niche site for souped-up European cars

Similar to how Ticketleap was a breeding ground for a string of startups over the years, ecommerce company Turn5 was where the story of West Chester’s Modded Euros began.

Cofounders Sean Dawes, Jim Bianco and Nate Edwards made up the bulk of Turn5’s paid search marketing team back in 2011. Two years later, they quit en masse, in the hopes of starting an ecommerce company of their own.

At first, they worked as marketing consultants, stashing cash aimed at fueling the real project: a website for vehicle modding enthusiasts, but in the European car sector. By 2014, the company was in the black. Currently a team of four, Modded Euros is doing annual revenues in the millions, according to Dawes.

The site focuses on offering a catalog of 8,000 parts for two auto brands: Audi and Volkswagen. BMW is in the works, Dawes said.

Much like RevZilla and Turn5’s trio of sector-specific brands, the company runs its own YouTube channel for VW and Audi enthusiasts. Here’s cofounder Jim Bianco walking viewers through a turbo install on a souped up Volkswagen MK7 GTI:

Dawes, 31, of Glenside, said the Modded Euros team is friendly with Turn5 founders, brothers Steve and Andrew Voudouris.

Was there some animosity after they left to start a company in a similar field?

“Obviously, no company wants you to quit,” said Dawes of Turn5, “But the environment was conducive [to] entrepreneurship. … What often times gets overlooked is the education you receive as an employee. If you really put yourself into a company, you get ideas to do something similar.”