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Australian business racks up global popularity
THE AUSTRALIAN Rhino is now becoming famous all over the world. Rhinoceros may never have native to Australia, but their hardy namesake, Rhino-Racks, are certainly earning a global reputation.
Knowing how tough roof racks had to be to measure up to the demands of the Australian motor industry set former tractor salesman, Richard Cropley, thinking about how to make these handy vehicle accessories better. 
Mr Cropley set to it 25 years ago and today he has turned the humble roof-rack into a multi-million dollar business.
In 1992 he began production of his first set of Rhino-Rack roof racks for his Sydney based business, Roof Rack City. Now stocked in hundreds of stores around Australia, as well as distributing internationally in the US, Europe, New Zealand and throughout South America, Rhino-Rack is Australia’s leading manufacturer of roof racks.
Mr Cropley’s focus on simplicity, ergonomics and reliability in design have helped make Rhino-Rack one of the world’s most reputable brands, while still retaining their Australian roots. Almost all of the production and manufacturing is completed in Australia with Australian materials.
With sales today approaching $50 million a year, Mr Cropley is striving to continue growing, entering new markets and holding onto the philosophy that “being an entrepreneur is a seven-day-a-week job”.
Born in Sydney and splitting his time between the city and the family farm in Goulburn, Richard Cropley spent most of his early career in the agricultural sector, selling tractors after a three year stint farming in Papua New Guinea. Never one to do anything in half-measures, he became the Queensland marketing manager for Versatile Farm Equipment and within a year established himself as the world’s number one tractor salesman.
His journey to become the king of roof racks began in 1987 when a visit to his brother in Perth put the brand Rola in his sights. Rola was a roof rack brand that was one of the biggest sellers in his brother’s yacht chandlery store, so together they bought the brand using all their savings and a bank loan. Within a year they quadrupled Rola’s turnover to $4 million a year.
After just a year, Richard decided to separate from Rola to open up the first speciality roof rack store in Sydney, Roof Rack City – a store he still owns to this day. Seeing hundreds of models of these racks and installing them himself, he had the thought that goes through every innovator’s head, “I can do better than this.”
Designing his own leg mounts and bar, Rhino-Rack Roof Racks was born in 1992. Within 24 months Rhino had contracts with Toyota and Telstra to provide all their work vehicles with Richard Cropley’s roof racks.
The biggest risk, he said, came with the move into international markets, which was hindered by an unforeseen event. The plan to open a hub in Denver was almost derailed by the Global Financial Crisis, which saw retailers of all levels cut back and avoid stocking new products. But Mr Cropley found new opportunities online, right as the boom of online shopping began. Rhino is now stocked on many online stores and close to 100 physical outlets in North America.
An insatiable drive to solve problems and be the best has made Mr Cropley take Rhino-Rack to where it is today.
“With any product, whether it be roof racks, computers or coffee mugs, there is always going to be a better design out there,” he said. “So always look for ways to innovate and change your product. That’s how we’ve kept our doors open while competitors have closed theirs.”
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