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Our Company ProfileChris Mills founded Extreme Body Works in February 2002 at the age of 21. Chris always knew he was going to own his own shop. He got his first job in the industry when he was just 16. He walked into the small sign shop down the road from his house where he was hired on the spot. Two weeks later he was tackling a huge clear coat job. The job had hundreds of hours of airbrushing done on it, and with little experience just the few hours of spraying, at the local career center, he gave it his all. The job came out better than expected. Chris continued to work at the sign shop throughout high school and college. He excelled at his work and soon had requests to customize the vehicles of friends and family. Ever industrious, Chris built a paint booth on his parent’s property and started turning out award winning work. The vehicles he turned out were valued for the meticulous attention to detail and the high quality of work, he didn’t take short cuts or trim corners. These early years taught him many valuable lessons on how to run a successful business. When Chris finally realized his dream of opening his own custom body-paint shop, he hadn’t even completed college. During the last year of his 4 year degree in Auto Body & Automotive Heavy Equipment Management, he worked full time in his shop Lansing, MI and commuted 100 miles each way to Big Rapids, MI to attend classes. After graduating from Ferris State University, his complete attention was devoted to building the name and reputation of his custom body-paint shop “Extreme Body Works”. Those early years were character builders but Chris was steadfast in his devotion and determination. His commitment has enabled him to build a highly regarded business built on the reputation of quality workmanship and unparalleled creative design. This growth is about to propel Extreme Bodyworks to its third location in 6 years, each time getting bigger and better. The newest location will allow Chris to combine his passion for watercraft with his artistic talent for vehicle custom paint. Chris’ career began with road vehicles but his passion has always been on the water. He spent every summer and most weekends as a child on the shores of Higgin’s Lake where his grandfather lived. As a young boy he dreamt of one day having his own boat and being the fastest, coolest guy around. Grandpa Mills helped to fuel this dream when he bought Chris and his cousins their own 12 foot mini catamaran with a 25HP Johnson. As young man running his own business, Chris was able to purchase his own boat at the age of 22, a 185 Power Play. He now had a fast boat but he needed to make it the coolest boat so of course it had to have custom paint. It was then Chris realized how much fun painting boats could be. That large canvas gave him room to let his talent run wild. Chris’ formal introduction to the boat industry can be credited to his best friend, TJ Pipkens. Chris and TJ envisioned a future in the elite field of painting high-end performance boats. TJ’s background in off shore boat brokering lead to a contact with one of the fathers of the off shore boat industry, Peter Hledin, President and founder of Douglas Marine Corp / Skater Power Boats. Extreme Bodyworks is making waves as the new kid on the block. The plan is to keep this momentum going for years to come. We are ready to create your next work of art on water! ABOUT THE SHOP
Our current location is in Holland, MI after deciding to move from Lansing, MI. We now are conveniently located just 8 miles from Douglas Marine for ease of transportation, of Douglas Marine's new, used and or repaired Skater's. We set up a 10,000 square foot shop with the capability of painting up to a 46ft Catamaran or 50ft Vee bottom of any make or model. This also gives us the ability to work hand & hand with Douglas Marine Corporation, we already have the equipment necessary to lift boats off their trailers and on to a dolly to be painted or repaired. We also have all the equipment and artistry necessary to produce show quality paint jobs. We plan to expand to 16,000 square feet with in the next two years. This would give us the room to start restoration of the famous Douglas Marine Skater's. a start to finish with all the components available, a "so call one stop shop"
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