Former racers partner to acquire Ducati Detroit

Ducati Detroit opened in Birmingham, Michigan, in 2013 and immediately took its position as a top performer in sales. “For 10 years in a row, starting with our first full calendar year in business, we have won an award from Ducati for top sales volume in the Midwest,” says Kevin Callaway, co-owner of the dealership. He shares that the dealership consistently ranks in the top 10 in the country in sales volume as well.

“Working hard on the sales side of things and building a rapport with clients, that was always one of our targets when opening Ducati Detroit,” he says. “But then to maintain that sales volume and loyalty is something we’re pretty proud of.”

Callaway on the track

Callaway was part of the original staff when the dealership opened over 10 years ago and acquired it with his partner, Jim Blasius, in September 2024. When he joined the Ducati Detroit team, Callaway transitioned with 20 years of business management experience from a family-owned sporting goods company and a name in motorcycle racing.

His father, a fan and rider of European and Japanese performance motorcycles dating back to the early 1960s, was a street rider and built café racers. He taught Callaway the ins and outs of motorcycling and bought him his first bike when he was eight years old. Although Callaway’s mother did not let him race as a kid, he started racing motorcycles in his late 20s.

“I spent a lot of my childhood in the 80s as a racing fan, going to AMA professional road races at Daytona, Mid-Ohio and Road America,” Callaway says. “We also went to a lot of pro flat track races around the region. Kenny Roberts, Bubba Shobert, Eddie Lawson, Jay Springsteen – these were common names discussed in our household.

“I eventually won about seven road racing national championships,” he continues. “It’s something that I was also able to enjoy with my father as he traveled around the country with me while I was racing.”

Now, he has raced for almost 20 years, and in addition to regional and national roadracing championships with WERA and AMA, he won the AMA Senior Roadracer of the Year award in 2020. He still races occasionally with WERA and AHRMA and has coached at The Mid-Ohio School for eight years.

Blasius in the industry

I met [Callaway] at a soccer field,” Blasius says. “My eldest was a pretty competitive soccer player, as was [Callaway], who was coaching. That was my first introduction to [Callaway], and we got to know each other.”

“We became reacquainted through motorcycles and [Blasius] became one of Ducati Detroit’s top clients,” Callaway says. “When the opportunity came this past winter to possibly acquire Ducati Detroit, [Blasius] and I were a natural fit to partner in the venture.”

Like Callaway’s introduction to the sport, Blasius got his first motorcycle when he was eight years old, and his father was also a motorcyclist. “I was a fan of all things racing, whether it was two wheels or four. If it had a gasoline powered engine and went fast, I was all in,” he says.

He started his racing career in AMA Amateur Motocross then transitioned to semiprofessional and professional AMA flat track racing, eventually riding for Yamaha Motor Corporation.

“That went on until I realized that I wasn’t going to make a lot of money in the motorcycle racing field, and I got into the construction field and became a land developer,” he says. He was 24 when he entered the construction industry, already having worked as a mechanic at multiple dealerships to support his racing career.

“Later, I decided that I wanted a new adventure and moved into automotive financing,” Blasius says. “I’ve been in that career for 30 years now.” His company, Automotive Credit Corporation (ACC), was established 33 years ago and now has 230 employees and is used in 36 states.

As he built his career, Blasius collected motorcycles and continued to ride on the street. He returned to the track in the 2010s. “[Blasius’] youngest son has been a very successful motorcycle racer and has won some strong accolades,” Callaway says. Joseph Blasius has won the Nicki Hayden Horizon award and has raced for several MotoAmerica teams. “[Blasius] was very instrumental in helping support and advance his son’s racing career,” Callaway says.

Blasius has also won regional and national road racing championships in recent years, and now actively rides at track days. As a co-owner of Ducati Detroit, he is focused on adjusting his schedule so he can be in the store more often alongside Callaway.

Dealership and lineup expansion

“Currently, we are looking at doing some pretty great things with the store,” Blasius says. “We’re looking for a new location or to expand. We’re not looking to geographically move very far. We want to continue to serve our customer base.”

The new or expanded location will have a viewing room with a coffee bar and TV so customers and friends can hang out. The dealership is currently 6,500 square feet, and by the Spring of 2025, its square footage will be more than doubled. Blasius says Ducati’s forecast looks good as it expands its lineup, so there are opportunities for the dealership to grow as well.

“It’s always pretty monumental when Ducati comes out with a new superbike,” Callaway says. “They just unveiled one and they’re scheduled to hit dealers at the end of November. Anytime that happens in the world of Ducati, I know it makes ripples around the entire industry because it’s usually the pinnacle of technology.” The owners also highlight Ducati’s motocross bike. “It’s very exciting for Ducati to enter a new segment,” Callaway says.

He shares his excitement for the potential market growth of new riders and female riders. “We cater to these clients and look forward to increasing our local presence with different riding groups specific to new and female riders,” he says.

Comradery

The owners prioritize team building activities to create comradery and keep employees engaged. “Whether it’s at the dealership or outside of the dealership, doing things together as a group. Whether it’s involved around motorcycles or just sharing a meal,” Blasius explains.

Callaway and Blasius also sit down with employees to listen. “Giving people a say and a voice makes them care more about the business. When they do that, they care about their customers,” Blasius says. “Our goal is to make sure that we hear our customers and the best way to do that is making sure employees care about the store, the brand and the customer.”

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with all the different facets of the Ducati franchise itself, Ducati North America and their financing team,” Blasius continues. “They’re incredibly talented, very dedicated, and very helpful in making sure you understand what their mission is. We’re very much aligned with them. They are very focused, as are we, and we’re just excited to continue to move this thing forward and continue to grow with them.”