By David MacDonald M aking the move to Ecommerce in early 2011 was another leap in Scott Harper’s life that required a lot of lead-up. His childhood passion for dirt bikes, racing, and all things mechanical prepared him for his post-secondary journey at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Management and an associate’s degree in Aviation Maintenance. His accredited and honed mechanical prowess paved the way for a nine year career with Bombardier in Wichita, Kansas working on the Learjet family of business aircraft. His familiarity with aircraft mechanics, coupled with his need for speed, lead him down a path to become a pilot and experi- mental aircraft enthusiast with more than 200 hours total flight time – not to mention an accomplished skydiver with over 2,500 jumps across the US. But there was still something missing in Harper’s life. “During that period, I raced off-and-on,” he explains. “Even then, I wanted to be in the motorsports industry. I wanted to use my Management degree and do what I love. But it’s hard to quit a really good job. Years later, the company moved my position to Dallas, Texas after a reshaping and my wife and I didn’t want to move. So, I took a voluntary layoff and did something I’d always wanted to do: I started my first company, Harper Cycle Works.”
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS • JUNE 2016
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