In a crowded market that has 12 body shops serving a population of about 160,000, that approach has been critical to the shop's success. "If you just think business will grow by doing the same thing every day, you're mistaken," Rajewski says. "Especially in today's economy, you have to diversify. It's the only way to grow."
Because Perry Legend is one of a few Missouri shops outside of major population centers that repairs large vehicles, customers bring equipment from rural areas miles away. Towing costs can be a major consideration for such customers and as Rajewski explains, "Instead of a $600 or $700 towing charge to Kansas City or Springfield, it may be a hundred dollar towing bill to us."
And although the profit margins are about the same on the big vehicle jobs as on more conventional vehicles, the average repair bill is considerably higher. "A Chevy pickup fender might cost $300 where an International hood will be $2,700," Rajewski notes.Perry Legend has been repairing large vehicles since its third major expansion in 1991. The shop got its start in 1986 when two car dealers in town, each in need of a collision repair facility, formed a joint venture and hired Rajewski, who already had 13 years experience in collision repair, to create, equip and run a shop. He became a partner four years later.
A 9,600-square-foot expansion followed in 1991, designed from the start to accommodate large vehicle repairs.
Since then, the company has gone through additional ownership changes and expanded one more time. In 2000, Rajewski and one of the remaining partners bought out the third; then in 2005, Rajewski bought out his final partner, becoming sole owner.
The expansion occurred in 2001, when the company moved to the 40,000-square-foot facility where it resides today, which also was planned from the start to be suitable for handling large vehicles. A 60-foot large vehicle frame machine, which was manufactured to Rajewski's specifications, is a key element. The company also has a 53-foot long spray booth.
Even when it comes to traditional vehicle repairs, Rajewski does not skimp on equipment. "Everything you ever wanted in a body shop, we have at least one of," he says.
The company has every kind of welder and features two stainless steel downdraft paint booths with forced hot air baking ovens attached at one end. "If you spray and bake in the spray booth, you spend half your time waiting for it to dry," Rajewski observes.
The company has two 14,000-lb. alignment lifts and two 12,000-lb. service lifts to handle large pickups or smaller vehicles. "If you've got to buy one anyway, why not buy a lift with ample capacity so you're not restricted in what you can do?" Rajewski asks. He notes, for example, that other shops in town are unable to do alignments on stretch limos and "there's a lot of those around."
Like the equipment, technicians at Perry Legend also are specialized. All structural work is completed on the frame machine. "The sheet metal people just do sheet metal, fiberglass and aluminum repairs on a non-structural basis," explains Rajewski.
"My equipment lasts longer on the frame and mechanical side because the person is dedicated," Rajewski continues. "He or she does it more often and becomes more well versed at it. If you do assembly line style repairs, the work flows through the shop much more efficiently."
An important final step in the repair process at Perry Legend is an inspection, which is completed by Rajewski or his assistant manager, and includes a test drive. "We road test for driveability, wind noises and to make sure the cooling system and air conditioning works properly," Rajewski says.
Perry Legend backs up its work with a lifetime warranty and gets very few claims, adds Rajewski.
The shop still does some work for the local car dealers with whom it was once affiliated, but Rajewski says that work has fallen off since automakers improved on their paint quality. The shop also gets some work through DRPs but is selective about the companies it works with. "The ones that are too much of a dictatorship or suppress our gross profit mar- gins – we're not on those," Rajewski says.
To help ensure that the company gets a steady stream of customers for its big-vehicle repair business, it has a dedicated salesperson who calls on businesses, municipalities, school districts and construction companies.
Perry Legend also does a lot of soft marketing through philanthropic activities. For example, engineering students at a local university have an annual project that involves building a racecar. Considering that nearly 40,000 students attend the university, the positive word-of-mouth advertising generated from that activity is substantial.
Perry Legend similarly does some small things that can make a big impression on customers. It operates a courtesy van to take people to work or wherever they need to go. And if someone who comes in for an estimate is unable to open the vehicle's front door, the company will pull the fender out at no charge, whether or not it gets the job.
"People being happy is the best thing you can have," Rajewski says.
