PARTS iD is Creating the Ultimate Autoparts E-Commerce Platform

The digital commerce company looks to be the go to place for online auto part sales.

By Jim Pytell, Managing Editor On Oct 19, 2021

E-commerce has become a fundamental part of our lives, with consumers no longer thinking twice about opening their laptops or pulling out their phones to go shopping for things like food, household supplies, clothes and everything in between.

One area that has lagged in the digital commerce space has been auto parts, but Cranbury-based PARTS iD is keen to change that.

Founded in 2008, PARTS iD is a one-stop-shop automotive parts and accessories digital marketplace, but CEO Nino Ciappina views the company as more than just an online seller of car parts.

“We think of ourselves as a technology and data company first, and a retail organization second,” Ciappina says.

Unlike other products, car parts and accessories need to be specified with fitment data to help consumers know whether a part will fit their vehicle. This complexity and variety in the auto parts market has contributed to a slowed adoption of shopping the category online, which spurred PARTS iD to develop its own proprietary technology.

“None of those off-the-shelf platforms were going to be conducive in helping us achieve our goal of trying to eliminate as much friction in the shopping experience as possible,” Ciappina says. “So, we set out to build our own platform purpose built for selling complex parts online.”

PARTS iD currently consists of a variety of subcategory sites including: CARiD.com, BOATiD.com, MOTORCYCLEiD.com, CAMPERiD.com, and more.

“We [are taking] what we’ve perfected in the car parts space and are [applying it] to these other industries,” Ciappina says.

The company has experienced tremendous growth, highlighted by a second quarter 2021 net revenue increase of 14.5% to $130.4 million, compared to $113.9 million in the second quarter of 2020 – which, at the time, was one of the most successful quarters the company had in its history.

Ciappina says he plans to continue growing and expanding the company to make the user experience of buying car parts online as seamless as possible, and that includes branching out into the “do-it-for-me” segment of the market.

“We recently launched a beta test where a consumer can come to CARiD.com, shop for tires, and find a local tire installer near them and schedule an appointment,” Ciappina says. “We ship the tire to the installer and the consumer gets their tire installed on the date that they chose.”

This type of partnership is just one example of how PARTS iD is continuing to change the way that people view purchasing car parts online.

“Our ultimate vision is to create a customer-centric, one-stop-shop for purchasing car parts and accessories,” Ciappina says. “We want to be the smoothest and simplest place for a consumer to find everything they are looking for end-to-end.”

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