Blake Liu — Founder of Tree Wheels

I graduated with an English degree in 2020 and stepped straight into international trade. No industry background. No connections. Just a willingness to figure things out.

For three years, I worked for other companies. And for three years, I watched the same problems repeat themselves — missed deadlines, weak after-sales support, slow responses, and clients left frustrated.

I kept thinking: if I were running this, I would do it differently. In July 2023, I resigned and went out on my own.

The Clients Who Trusted Me Before I Had a Company

When I first started, I had no registered business. Any payments from clients had to go through a third-party import-export agency. Honestly, I assumed most clients would walk away. Why would anyone send money through an agency for a guy who just quit his job?

They didn’t walk away.

One of my earliest clients — a UK company that sourced custom promotional gifts for corporate events — told me directly: “Don’t worry, Blake. We trust you.” They paid. On time. Without hesitation.

When I officially resigned, another long-term client called me on video. He told me I was the most reliable supplier he had worked with, and the easiest to communicate with. He said he hoped I would keep going and keep growing.

I still think about that call.

That kind of trust is not something you take lightly. It is also not something you can fake. Those clients did not trust my company — I did not have one yet. They trusted me as a person. That became the foundation I built everything on.

Why Forged Wheels

I did not go looking for the forged wheel market. It came to me.

Several clients from Europe and North America started reaching out, asking if I could help them source custom forged wheels from China. I started doing the research and visited factories. I quickly realized this was a serious market — high standards, real technical requirements, and a lot of room for a supplier who actually communicated well and followed through.

In February 2025, I founded Ningbo Tree Auto Parts Co., Ltd. and launched Tree Wheels as our dedicated brand for high-end custom forged wheels.

The factory I partnered with has over 20 years of forged wheel production experience. Their manufacturing capability is strong. What they needed was someone who could represent them to the global market, manage client relationships, and handle the full export process.

We aligned on that immediately. I invested in the partnership, and today I operate as their head of international trade. When you work with Tree Wheels, you are working directly with the production source.

What It Actually Looks Like to Work With Me

I want to tell you about a client from Poland. He owns several used luxury car dealerships. As his customers started asking more and more about custom forged wheels, he decided to find a supplier in China.

He had placed a few orders in China before, so he understood the product — offsets, brake caliper clearance, CNC processes, finish options. But navigating Chinese suppliers and managing technical communication across that gap was not his strength.

Our first order together was a set of deep-concave brushed wheels for a 2023 Porsche Macan.

Normally, we present one design per order. This client asked if we could produce two design options so his customer could choose. That is extra work — and honestly, extra cost. I decided not to charge him for it. He was building his business. I wanted to support that.

We sent the two 3D renders. Then he asked for 2D cross-section drawings to verify the concave depth. We provided those. Then he asked us to mark the X-dimension — the clearance measurement related to the brake caliper. We marked it. Then he asked for the exact concave depth measurement to be labeled as well. We labeled it.

By the time we finally confirmed the drawing and went into production, our design engineer had been through five rounds of revisions.

The next day, I went and bought him a pack of cigarettes and told him sincerely — I knew that was a lot, and I appreciated him staying patient through it. He had done his job carefully. That deserved recognition.

As for the client — I understood exactly what he was doing. He was not being difficult. He was being thorough, because he needed to deliver confidence to his own customer. Once I understood that, the whole process made sense. I was glad to support it.

Later, he asked for photos and videos of every step of the production process. A lot of salespeople hear that and think the client is being unreasonable. Production lines run on schedules — you cannot stop to document every stage of every order.

But I immediately understood what he actually needed. He was building content to show his own clients. He was trying to grow his business. So I told him: our standard process only includes CNC video documentation, but if you are looking for full production footage to use for marketing, I will arrange that for one or two orders specifically to support you.

He understood. He appreciated it.

That client now places over ten sets of wheels with us every single month. We talk like friends. When something goes wrong on an order — and sometimes things do — we work through it without drama, because neither of us wants problems, and both of us are focused on the long game.

Two Stories About Honesty

I want to share two situations that were uncomfortable for us. I am sharing them because I think they say more about who we are than any marketing copy could.

The 5-Axis Situation

A Swiss client ordered wheels that required 5-axis CNC machining. I submitted his design to the factory. They told me they could produce it exactly as specified. We proceeded.

After delivery, the client came back and told me the wheels had been machined on a 3-axis setup, not 5-axis. I went back to the factory. They confirmed it — and then told me the result looked the same, so what was the problem?

I spent time researching, speaking to people with more industry experience, and getting on a video call with the client. The conclusion was clear: 5-axis machining produces tighter tolerances and cleaner tool paths across complex geometries. After painting or brushing, the surface may look similar to an untrained eye — but the precision is not the same. They are not the same product.

The factory was not trying to cheat anyone. But they made a decision they had no right to make, and they did not tell us. That is a different kind of problem.

I took responsibility. I worked out a compensation arrangement with the client, apologized directly, and was genuinely relieved he had not yet sold the wheels to his customer — so the damage stayed contained.

At the same time, I immediately contacted a UK client who was about to finalize a 5-axis order with us and told him to stop. We had been in discussions for over six months. He was angry, and I understood completely. But I was not going to let him place that order until I was certain we could fulfill it correctly.

That cost us a short-term deal. It was the right call.

The Runout Standard

A German company ordered wheel blanks — semi-finished forgings they would machine in-house with their own CNC equipment.

After delivery, their quality control team flagged an issue. Our internal standard for radial runout is under 0.05mm. Their process required under 0.03mm. This had never come up during quoting or ordering.

Technically, we were not at fault. The specification was never stated. We could have argued that.

We did not.

Their team was able to rework the blanks to meet their standard. I asked how much the labor cost. They told me. I transferred the payment directly to their company account the same week — no waiting, no offsetting against future orders, no negotiation. One issue, one resolution.

That is how I want to do business.

What I Am Building

Tree Wheels is a young brand. We were founded in February 2025. But the manufacturing foundation behind us has been running for over 20 years, and the business values I operate by were shaped by every client who trusted me before I had anything official to offer them.

I am not trying to be the biggest supplier in this market. I am trying to be the most dependable one — for modification shops, for luxury car service centers, for enthusiasts who want something built specifically for their car, and for dealers who are growing their own business and need a partner who actually thinks about their success.

If you are looking for a wheel supplier you can rely on — not just for one order, but for the long term — I would like to talk.

Tree Wheels — Custom Forged Wheels, Built on Trust.