Ride in Style Podcast: How Skyjacker Suspensions Is Carrying a 50-Year Legacy Forward
For more than 50 years, Skyjacker Suspensions has helped drivers build vehicles ready for the trail, the mud, and the next adventure. Behind that product legacy is a family business still working through the same challenge every enduring company eventually faces: how do you honor what built the brand while continuing to evolve?
On the Ride in Style Podcast, hosts Josh Poulson and Jesse Stoddard spoke with Malerie Pike, director of marketing and a third-generation member of the Skyjacker family. Their conversation explored the company’s beginnings in West Monroe, Louisiana, the realities of working across three generations, the rapid shift from wholesale to e-commerce, and why personal relationships remain central to the brand.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the conversation.
A Better Bronco Started the Skyjacker Story
Skyjacker’s story began in 1974 with a practical off-road problem. Founder Lonnie McCurry Sr. loved mud racing, but the thick Louisiana terrain kept getting the better of his Bronco. He needed larger tires, which meant he first had to create a way to lift the vehicle.
The solution worked. Soon, neighbors and fellow enthusiasts wanted the same kind of modification. What started as hands-on fabrication grew into a shop and eventually became Skyjacker Suspensions.
Malerie described her grandparents as a complementary team. Her grandfather focused on building and fabrication, while her grandmother ran the business and became one of its strongest decision-makers. That partnership established more than a company. It created a family legacy that now includes five third-generation family members working in the business.
Today, Skyjacker operates from an 80,000-square-foot facility in West Monroe. The scale has changed, but the company remains connected to the same off-road culture that inspired its first products.
The Opportunity and Pressure of a Multigenerational Business
Family ownership creates an unusual kind of strength. When everyone shares the same purpose, Malerie said it can feel like the team can “move mountains.” But working across generations also creates tension around communication, expectations, and the definition of hard work.
Earlier generations may associate commitment with being physically present from early morning until late evening. Younger leaders are more accustomed to working through laptops, phones, flexible schedules, and distributed responsibilities. Neither view automatically solves the company’s current challenges, so progress depends on honest communication and a willingness to adapt.
That balance is especially important as third-generation leaders begin taking greater responsibility. They are not trying to erase the company’s history. They are trying to earn the opportunity to carry it forward.
For other family-owned aftermarket companies, the lesson is clear: succession is not simply a change in names or titles. It requires trust, shared decision-making, and a structure that allows the next generation to contribute before the transition becomes urgent.
COVID-19 Accelerated a New Business Model
When Malerie first moved into Skyjacker’s marketing department, the company was still primarily wholesale-focused. Its website functioned more as an information resource than as a modern shopping experience.
The pandemic changed that quickly. Small-package volume jumped dramatically, forcing the team to improve product data, images, website content, fulfillment processes, and internal coordination. Skyjacker expanded its direct-to-consumer capabilities while continuing to support wholesale partners.
That shift could have created channel conflict. Instead, Malerie said the company learned that direct sales and wholesale relationships can coexist when pricing policies are respected and partners are treated fairly.
The larger lesson reaches beyond e-commerce. Market disruptions expose outdated systems, but they also create momentum for improvements that might otherwise take years. Skyjacker responded by modernizing how it sells and communicates without abandoning the dealer and distributor relationships that helped build the company.
In-House Manufacturing Protects a Deep Product Legacy
Skyjacker is known for suspension products such as shocks, leaf springs, lift components, and parts for Jeep and truck applications. One of the company’s most distinctive practices is its commitment to supporting older vehicles.
Malerie explained that Skyjacker does not readily discontinue older products. The company still retains manufacturing jigs dating back decades, allowing it to produce parts for applications that many competitors no longer serve.
That long-tail product support became especially valuable when more enthusiasts returned to garages and older vehicle projects during the pandemic. Because much of the manufacturing is handled in-house through SJ Manufacturing, Skyjacker had greater control over its ability to keep producing and serving those customers.
Keeping legacy applications available is not the simplest inventory strategy, but it reinforces an important promise: enthusiasts who preserve older vehicles still deserve access to the parts that keep them on and off the road.
Staying Relevant Requires Staying in the Field
One of the most candid parts of the conversation focused on complacency. Skyjacker was built by people who raced, fabricated, traveled, attended events, and spent time with the enthusiast community. As a company matures, however, daily operations can crowd out the activities that originally made the brand visible.
Malerie believes the next generation must keep Skyjacker active in both product development and industry participation. It cannot be a choice between engineering new products and showing up at events. A lasting aftermarket brand needs both.
She pointed to periods when the company became less active and later found it harder to regain lost sponsorships or market position. Looking back at Skyjacker’s 50-year history made the contrast visible. The brand’s strongest eras were built through consistent presence, experimentation, and relationships.
The takeaway is simple: relevance must be maintained. Companies rarely lose it all at once. They lose it when they stop showing up, stop listening, or stop investing in what comes next.
“We Go Where the People Are”
Skyjacker describes itself as a people brand. For Malerie, strong industry relationships are not secondary to the business. They are part of how the company decides where to invest, whom to support, and how to build partnerships.
“We go where the people are.”
Products can improve over time, but trusted relationships are much harder to replace. When valued partners move to new companies, Skyjacker often maintains those connections because loyalty belongs to the people behind the brand, not only to a corporate logo.
That philosophy also explains the family’s determination to preserve Skyjacker’s identity. The team has watched established brands lose momentum after ownership changes separated them from the people and stories that made them meaningful. Skyjacker wants growth, but not at the cost of the culture and personal connection that distinguish it.
Better Processes Create a Stronger Culture
Legacy and relationships need operational support. In recent years, Skyjacker has introduced more consistent weekly, quarterly, and board meetings. The company has also focused on warehouse improvements, staffing support, employee incentives, and opportunities for team members to get out of the office and into the field.
Those changes may sound less dramatic than a new product launch, but they solve a problem that can quietly limit any growing company: communication gaps. Regular meetings help departments understand priorities, identify where support is needed, and coordinate around shared goals.
For a team of roughly 50 people, including many long-tenured employees, morale and clarity directly affect production and customer experience. Malerie’s view is straightforward: when people feel valued and connected to the mission, they are more likely to do their best work.
Carrying the Torch Into Skyjacker’s Next Chapter
Skyjacker’s history is rooted in solving real problems for off-road enthusiasts. Its future depends on applying that same resourcefulness to a changing market.
The company is adding engineering capacity, improving internal systems, rebuilding its YouTube presence after losing its previous channel, and finding new ways to reconnect employees with the adventure behind the products. At the same time, the third generation is asking for the opportunity to lead, test ideas, and prove what comes next.
For family-owned automotive businesses, Skyjacker’s story offers a useful model. Preserve the craftsmanship. Respect the people who built the company. Modernize the systems. Stay close to customers and industry partners. Most importantly, keep showing up where the community gathers.
To learn more about Skyjacker Suspensions, explore its products, and watch the documentary celebrating the company’s 50-year history, visit skyjacker.com. Follow Skyjacker on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and its rebuilding YouTube channel for product updates and a closer look at the family behind the brand.