Joe Jebailey was at a crossroads in his life. A student at the University of North Carolina in 1970, Joe was so poor he found himself one day hovering over the stove in his apartment mixing hot water and ketchup for dinner. He decided on a bold move—he sold his late-model car and bought two used cars. One of them was strictly local transportation, the other one was a junker that needed major repairs. Joe went to work on both cars, sold them, and bought a few more. Before long, he was eating steak and converting used vans into luxury vehicles. From these humble beginnings, American Luxury Coach was born. Today, the company occupies 40 acres of prime real estate in downtown Florence, South Carolina, and employs close to 60 workers. Jebailey says American Luxury Coach is third behind Regency and Southern Comfort in total conversion van sales, and its product is found primarily on the East Coast.

A pleasant postscript: Joe Jebailey says, "Every one of my competitors in the conversion van business is a friend of mine. And I couldn't be happier about it."