The automotive aftermarket took shape almost as soon as automobiles became part of everyday life. Early cars required constant attention, and independent mechanics depended on limited, locally sourced parts to keep them running. As vehicle production increased in the early twentieth century, this fragmented approach became unsustainable. Individual shops and distributors had little leverage with manufacturers and struggled to access consistent supply at predictable prices. In response, they began to form buying cooperatives, joining forces to place larger orders and secure better terms. The founding of the National Automotive Parts Association in 1925 marked a defining moment, turning a loose patchwork of independent sellers into an organized network built around collective purchasing power.

In the decades that followed, especially after the Second World War, these cooperative models matured and spread. Regional groups became national organizations, and by the late twentieth century, international alliances, primarily in Europe, known as International Trading Groups or ITGs such as ATR, Groupauto, and Temot connected independent distributors across borders. In recent years, Nexus Automotive International has grown to become the largest global buying group in the aftermarket, bringing together hundreds of members and suppliers worldwide and incorporating networks such as Amerigo International into its expanding structure. At their core, these groups exist to consolidate purchasing power, using scale to extract better commercial conditions from suppliers on behalf of their members. By coming together, they’re able to do and achieve what they would never have been able to do on their own.

In this week’s Torah reading of Vayetze (Genesis Chapters 28-32) we have a similar situation.

Jacob is on the run from his brother Esau and his murderous intentions as well as to find a wife. He leaves Beer Sheva and the land of Canaan and heads northward to his mother’s town of Haran, to the home of his uncle Laban. En route, Jacob has a fairly well-known dream where he sees a ladder that reaches heaven, with angels ascending and descending and God speaks to him, reaffirming the promises He has made to Jacob’s father, Isaac, and his grandfather, Abraham. God promises Jacob the land and great progeny as well as protection and a safe return from his current exile.

Jacob reaches the outskirts of Haran and notices shepherds with their flocks hanging out by the watering well. After asking and finding out about his uncle, he innocently asks the shepherds why aren’t they out shepherding? Why are they stalling?

They answer that they need to wait for all the shepherds and their flocks to show up in order to lift the enormous stone that covered the well. Only when all of them were present could they physically remove the stone. By coming together, they’re able to do and achieve what they would never be able to do on their own.

However, in a surprising show of incredible strength, when Jacob sees Rachel for the first time, approaching the well with her own flock, he singlehandedly removes the stone from the well and proceeds to water her sheep. It is love at first sight.

Jacob makes a deal with Laban to work for him for seven years in order to then marry Rachel. However, at the supposed wedding festivity seven years later, Laban has Rachel’s older sister, Leah, enter the darkened wedding bedroom that night, instead of Rachel. Jacob only discovers the switch the next morning. He confronts Laban and Laban innocently suggests that in their land, they don’t place the younger child before the older one (perhaps a backhanded accusation of younger Jacob who stole the blessing of older brother Esau). Laban suggests a new deal. He will give Jacob Rachel as a wife as well (after the week of wedding festivities are over) if Jacob will work for Laban and additional seven years (14 years in total for 2 wives, plus 2 handmaids that accompanied the wives). Jacob agrees.

This is when the sons of Jacob are born. Leah gives birth to Ruben, Simon, Levi and Judah. Rachel, frustrated that she hasn’t conceived, gives her handmaid, Bilhah to Jacob; Bilhah has two boys, Dan and Naftali. Meanwhile, Leah has stopped conceiving, and she gives her handmaid, Zilpah to Jacob. Zilpah gives birth to Gad and Asher. Leah gives birth to another two boys, Zebulun and Yissachar, and one girl, Dina. Finally, Rachel gives birth to Joseph. So that’s eleven boys and one girl (not the twelve tribes yet – Benjamin, the twelfth, will be born during next week’s reading).

Jacob decides the time is right to head back home. He makes a deal with Laban regarding his compensation. It’s an unusually esoteric discussion as to the spotted, speckled and streaked sheep that Jacob will hold on to. After six further years, where it seems Laban consistently reneges and changes the deal, somehow Jacob still becomes wildly successful. The relationship between Jacob and Laban gets chilly, with Laban’s sons claiming Jacob took Laban’s wealth. Then, God appears to Jacob and tells him to leave Laban and head back home to Canaan.

Jacob gathers his wives, children, servants and massive wealth of flocks and leaves without telling Laban. Rachel surreptitiously steals her father Laban’s idols. Laban finds out they left a few days later and chases them with his entire clan. The night before the imminent encounter, God appears to Laban and warns him against speaking to Jacob “from good to bad.”

Laban accuses Jacob of acting poorly by not allowing him to say goodbye and by stealing his idols.

Jacob responds that he was afraid Laban wouldn’t let him leave with his wives and children, and not only did he not steal any idols, but whoever did so and is discovered, would be killed. He didn’t realize his beloved Rachel had stolen then.

Laban proceeds to examine all of Jacob’s camp but didn’t check under the camel’s pillows where Rachel was sitting.

Laban and Jacob make a peace treaty of sorts, set up a monument to commemorate the treaty, have a meal and part ways.

As Jacob approaches the land of Canaan he perceives a camp of angels. Next week there will be some additional action and drama.