Shop owners share X-factors that transformed their businesses

Feb. 1, 2019
Here are three such examples from members of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS). Consider how their stories could be rewriting your own.

Several years ago, ABRN profiled Warrensburg Collision and the steps manager Casey Lund took to turn around the fortunes of the once-foundering business. Lund took the reins of the Warrensburg, Mo. shop when his father fell ill. He quickly came up to speed on all the reasons his father warned him away from a career in collision repair. Money was difficult to make, and industry challenges created a bleak future.

In short, he woke up to the reality most shops face every day. For several years, he struggled mightily, and in 2012 realized he had to either make drastic changes. He poured over books on business improvement (he already possessed an MBA) and decided lean was the way to go for himself and his entire team. In fact, he focused his entire organization on continuous improvement. Fixing processes became just as important as fixing cars. A turnaround began. In three years, the shops managed to triple its revenue.

(Photo courtesy of Valet Auto Body) Put your entire staff to work speaking to and helping customers when they’re on-site. You’ll build the kind of satisfaction that pays off in loyalty and word-of-mouth advertising.

The collision industry is full of many such stories. Many thriving shops have been born out of failing ones. Unfortunately, there are still many more stories of repairers who are more content to tread water or make minor changes that keep their doors open for the time being (maybe until a consolidator makes an offer). That’s a shame since there are so many good obtainable and available solutions that can revive a business. There also are many repairers who want to share their own success stories of how an “X-factor”, a change or series of changes, transformed their fortunes and keeps them riding high.

Here are three such examples from members of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS). Consider how their stories could be rewriting your own.

X-Factor: Join industry groups and learn from your colleagues

Bruce Halcro, owner of Capital Collision Center in Helena, Mont., was already a successful shop owner with two decades of experience when he made a career- and life-changing decision 20 years ago. He became active in his local bodyshop association, the Montana Collision Repair Association, and then went nationwide with the SCRS.

His motivation: “I decided I needed to get outside my shop and start training myself on the things I didn’t know,” he says.

The associations provided just that training, along with a network of shops and shop owners Halcro could consult with. The great takeaway from this experience was the need to get more training for his shop.

“At the local level, Montana isn’t exactly a big area, but they still managed to bring in someone like Mike Anderson who could speak to what we need to be doing in our shops,” Halcro explains.

At the national level, Halcro says SCRS gave him access to a clearer view of what changes the industry would be experiencing along with the opportunity to speak with some of the best brains in the collision repair industry.

These experiences helped Halcro redirect his business with a greater focus on training, which today includes annual training requirements. It also gave him a better perspective of what was going on in the industry and ways to address change. “Before I wasn’t sure how to handle what was going on, but now with so many folks I can consult with, I know I can do it,” he says.

That sort of confidence and change in thinking might be most important transformations at the business. Halcro explains, “I remember my wife asking me what the value of SCRS was. I had to think about it. I couldn’t put a number on it since you can’t quantify it that way. I told her, ‘I know I’m better at what I do.’”

Have reservations about getting involved with shop associations? Don’t. Halcro says drop any notion that these organizations are simply “good old boy” groups.

“They’re very inclusive,” he says. “There’s a lot of commonality out there. Other folks are hammering with the same things you are and looking for the same answers.”

X-Factor: Differentiate and then build on your changes

Current SCRS Chairman Kye Yeung, owner of European Motor Works in Costa Mesa, Calif., has 43 years in the business. During that time, there hasn’t been a single X-factor that “catapulted” his business, but instead a series of decisions built around an effort to differentiate his shop from his competitors.

(Photo courtesy of European Motor Car Works) Kye Yeung continues to transform his business by changing focus to now work on aluminum substrates.

The following timeline outlines the changes he made to focus his shop’s work on British motorcars:

1982 - Took out a yellow page advertising the shop worked only on British vehicles. Yeung said no one else was making such a claim.

2000 – Accepted an invitation by Aston Martin to join its certification program, one of first manufacturer repair programs.

2001 – Went from leasing to purchasing the shop building.

2008 – Set a different rate for aluminum repair work.

2009 – Became chairman of SCRS, giving Yeung access nationwide network of repairers.

2016 – Changed shop’s focus to repairing aluminum composites on four vehicle brands.

Why the focus on British models, and not, for example, German ones? Yeung says he wanted to capitalize on their reputation for being difficult to work on. By giving customers a ready solution aimed squarely at that reputation he could build a steady stream of business in a one-of-a-kind shop.

Taking this path also had some other benefits, like giving him a business that was easier to manage. By concentrating on specific brand(s), he could better control the training employees needed for the work. It also made repairs easier since his staff was seeing the same kinds of work again and again. Knowing exactly what work his shop would be doing also allowed him to order parts in volume and stock hard-to-get items, which cut costs and increase work efficiency.

Such a business model isn’t going to be the proper fit for many shops — at least now. Yeung says those that are interested should research their markets to see if such an opportunity exists.

He also says there’s another important lesson here. Each decision he made, each stepping stone, made the next decision easier. Yeung says that’s what repairers need to keep in mind as they build their own businesses. They’re building a brand piece by piece, which means continually taking constructive steps. Sure, there’s some risk, but standing in place often is a bigger and more dangerous one.

X-Factor: See through your customers’ eyes

Familiar with a ride-sharing business called Turo? It’s the Airbnd (room sharing enterprise) equivalent for cars. It’s also become extremely popular. Not one to miss a trend, Trace Coccimiglio, owner of Valet Auto Body in Draper, Utah, has jumped right in. He owns a small car rental company with 30-40 vehicles that he fits with snow tires and ski racks, so tourists can pass through snowy Rocky Mountain canyons. He markets it through Turo, giving customers an option they couldn’t find through major car rental companies.

(Photo courtesy of Valet Auto Body) Owner Trace Coccimiglio came into the business with no collision repair experience but put his shop on the path to success by rethinking customer service.

Finding new ways to reach and please customers is something Coccimiglio has built his reputation on. Nine years ago, with no experience in collision repair, Coccimiglio joined a partnership to open a shop, Valet Auto Body in Draper, Utah. Four months later, the partnership dissolved, leaving Coccimiglio to run the business and looking for ways to build the shop.

He needed customers so he set about seeing his business through their eyes. “I realized right away I didn’t want my customers thinking about what I was doing. They needed to focus on getting back to their lives, which they couldn’t do if they were having to do things like ask for rides or take the bus,” he says.

Coccimiglio’s answer was to buy some loaner cars and simply “give” them to customers if they gave his shop the repair work. With liability frequently as issue, he says customers can be reluctant to rent a car if they don’t believe their insurer will cover the cost. If he offered them one up front he accomplished two tasks. He helped normalize the lives of his customers (building their satisfaction) and grabbed a job. The strategy cost Coccimiglio very little. He says nine time out of ten, the insurance company paid. If they didn’t, the costs to him were little since he already owned the vehicles.

From there, he instituted other shop rules aimed at empowering customers and keeping the repair process as stress-free as possible:

  • The phrase “Can I help you” is banned at the shop. It should be pretty obvious why someone shows up at a shop, says Coccimiglio. He instructs his staff to greet customers with, “Hi, how are you?” and “I’m sorry about the accident” (the latter is something he says they probably haven’t heard from the police, insurer, etc.). Coccimiglio says when customers are greeted warmly and given the chance to explain what happened “you can practically see the stress leaving them”.
  • Also banned is the question “Is this going through insurance?” Coccimiglio says once the word “insurance” is uttered, customers feel they’ve lost control of the situation. “We take them out and look at the car and the damage. That tells us if insurance will be necessary,” he explains.
  • Connect with customers everyway possible. Coccimiglio adopts the stance that once customers enter the shop, they’re his. He and his staff then take every opportunity to speak with them, give them tours of the shop or engage them however possible. From there, the shop works as an advocate for customers, helping them navigate their way through the repair process and removing any stress or fears they may have.

Coccimiglio says these approaches paid off handsomely from the very beginning. He notes that his customers are extremely loyal and provide lots of word-of-mouth advertising. Just as important, they also leave plenty of positive online reviews on Yelp and Google. Coccimiglio realized the value of these reviews nine years ago and credits them for helping build his business. He says they’re a “must-have” commodity for every shop.

Also vital, he says, is having a staff member who can assist insurance agents. He’s had just such a person who addresses customer and insurer questions on towing, repair updates and other issues that would otherwise fall on the agent. By bringing real value to this position, agents are willing to recommend customers use the shop, sometimes over shops in their own DRPs. Coccimiglio’s business isn’t currently in any DRPs but manages to bring in DRP-type business because they’ve proven their value.

If you’re curious if these X-factors could benefit your shop, consider Coccimiglio’s admission that he’s made “lots of $100,000 mistakes” while learning the business. His unique approach to customer service has carried the shop when it stumbled in other areas.

Final lessons

If the base of most of these X-factors appears to be a fresh perspective, that’s probably because it is. The only way to truly transform a business is with a fresh vision. That doesn’t come from sitting in your office doing paperwork or concentrating on what’s happening in your work bays.

Go outside. Step away from your work. Ask colleagues about their perspectives and experiences. Put yourself in the place of the people who walk through your doors. Then, do something! All of the repairers noted here realized they couldn’t truly be successful if they did business like everyone else. By writing their own stories, they created something special. Maybe it’s time to start your own story.

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