Many of us might feel a bit timid when meeting a new person; especially if we’ve heard stories about their strong character. Before facing them, we might roll our shoulders, try to stand taller and push through the inevitable moment of truth.
I walked into EuroLux, a luxury automobile shop tucked cozily in the beautiful roads of Surrey, with my usual trembling smile. I had been right on time; the sun was up in the sky and the drive down to Surrey had been a blast; the day looked promising.
It’s not every day that you get the chance to meet someone like Hooman Rafie, EuroLux’s general manager and lead technician. His warm, laid back smile and colourful Hawaiian shirt immediately melted my initial shyness, and I just knew that all the stories I’d heard about him had been true.
So, on that gorgeous Saturday morning, he and I sat together, joined by Hooman’s girlfriend Stacey, and talked about his journey in establishing EuroLux and what it means to live for your dreams.
“I’m a straight shooter,” Hooman said, when asked how he would describe himself, “If I like you, I’ll say that I like you; and if I don’t, I’ll just say I don’t.”
Stacey ended his description by adding: “He’s so honest and caring and he really has a way with people.”
EuroLux, though modest in façade, is not your typical everyday automobile shop. The waiting area is decorated with a glass shelf displaying mini cars, caps with the shop’s logo and one very special mini open wheel car. The walls are a combination of white and red (the shop’s main colour scheme) and I am specifically in love with the collage of comic pages on the wall of the kitchenette. The leather chairs Stacey and I are lounging at are comfortable and the company of the couple is much cooler than what I had expected.
“I wanted to become an architect. I liked designing homes. But then I came to Vancouver and thought that it wouldn’t be something that I’d be successful in. Because houses here are like shoe boxes. They’re not designed by architects.” Hooman said.
“How did you end up here?” I asked. “And more importantly, why European cars?”
He explained that back in the day when he worked at his father’s automobile repair shop, they rarely ever worked on European cars. “We always fixed domestic cars (American cars), and I got sick and tired of it. I don’t have passion for American cars because I never grew up with them.”
On their website, there is a short passage about Hooman’s first encounter with a luxury European car. But, of course, Hooman proves to be a much better storyteller than the descriptions on the website.
“In the late 90’s, my friend Mike bought a Ferrari F355, and asked me to fix it. It’s like the ultimate thing you got to do. So, I did that, and I fell in love with the car and the design of it; and the attention people pay, and the respect people pay you for fixing this car and the whole thing just snowballed after that.” Now Eurolux is one of a very few go-to mechanic shops in Greater Vancouver fixing Exotic European Cars.
On the other side of the interior windows that separates the repair shop with the office, there are two Ferraris on the car lift. An Aston Martin is parked on one side and a Lamborghini on the other and I thought to myself that this place could be any car lover’s small paradise.
Hooman is a professional racer as well. He is a member of a private racetrack in Oliver, BC, where he spends his weekends racing with fellow enthusiasts.
“When I’m not racing, I’m skiing.” He explained that when the ski season starts, he spends almost all his weekends in the mountains.
What stands out most about him is his passion for life. In his book, hobbies are beyond simple pastimes, and he tries to excel in everything he does. This viewpoint on life is confirmed by Stacey who gushes over his cooking skills. He seems like a person who is comfortable in his own skin and does not see the need to please everyone all the time.
In a community where titles are admired and the dominant culture dictates people’s professions, it is refreshing to see someone who has the courage to not only follow his dreams, but to build something truly inspiring based on those dreams.
If someone asked me to describe Hooman in one sentence, I would probably use one of his own quotes.
As he talked about his ideal vacation down the beach in Hawaii, he showed me a picture of a small plant blooming within a volcanic lava flow. “I just love that area, and look at this, isn’t it amazing? I really believe that destruction is the beginning of construction.”
And I think Hooman Rafie’s journey in life is tied to how he sees the world. Nothing is beyond reach; you just need to extend your arm a little more and welcome the unknown.
