All locked up

Paul Clinton

Almost a year has passed since the Slepack family rescued their

key and lock business from near oblivion.

Earlier this year, the Newport Beach family returned to take back

control of Balport Lock & Safe from an owner who had undone a decade

of work that established the shop as a community favorite.

“It was horrible to see it happen,” said Vince Slepack, who runs

the shop with his parents and other family members. “We took the

business back. We build it back in less than a year.”

It took more than a few 16-hour days, Slepack said, but now the

business is stronger than ever.

The family now keeps four service vans and has brought back many

of the corporate clients, including Fashion Island, Irvine Spectrum

and the Newport Beach Police Department. Police sometimes hire the

Slepacks to drill open safes at crime scenes.

Balport is also now the exclusive distributor for Mutual Safe Co.

in Newport-Mesa and many of the surrounding cities.

Right now, about 50% of Balport’s sales come from its core

business -- keys and lock for residents and commercial clients. About

a quarter comes from sales of a bevy of safes, displayed in a

showroom two doors away from the Mariners Mile shop.

The final quarter comes from a fast-growing automotive niche, in

which the shop sells ignition locks, transponder keys and other

security devices for cars and trucks.

Many keys in the newer-model vehicles are now equipped with

electronic devices called transponders, which are usually embedded

inside the plastic head of the key. These keys can cost $50 or more

to replace.

Threats of terrorism and the fallout from the Sept. 11 attacks

have also helped business at Balport. The shop has stepped up sales

to many new homeowners in Newport Coast and other wealthy

neighborhoods who are worried about their jewelry, artwork or other

possessions.

Most notably, Balport has found a niche installing high-security

doors and locking systems for panic rooms.

“It has brought more of an awareness of security to the whole

country,” Slepack said. “We’ve seen people get into a more

high-security mode.”

In 1996, the Slepacks sold off Balport Lock & Safe and moved to

Lake Havasu, where they had been running a similar key and lock

business.

The family first opened Balport in 1984.