Are you and your staff actually selling your body shop expertise and ability to deliver top service to stressed-out customers who may still be reeling from being in a crash? Or are you more like order takers, casually waiting for the next job to just roll on in? These are some of the key questions raised by Chris Greulich, president of Greulich's Collision in Arizona.
Unlike many who grew up amid repair bays and paint booths, Greulich's non-automotive background had him entering the industry with an outsider's perspective as to what makes an enterprise's economic engine purr.
"I have no technical background, and I have never worked on a car," he says. "My college education was in biochemistry." After graduating in 1988, he began working in his brother's machine shop.
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"His business rebuilt engines, and eventually customers started asking if we would remove them and install them – and that's when I moved down the street and hired a mechanic and a service writer," Greulich says. The body shop element evolved as the business grew; it currently encompasses collision and mechanical repairs, plus a towing company under the Northeast Scottsdale Auto Group corporate umbrella, which Greulich heads.
"The biggest difference in starting from a different background is that auto service is a 'today or now' business, and what I found with collision was that five years ago when there was an abundance of work, they seemed more like order takers and not salespeople," Greulich says.
The service advisors are now required "to sell and ask for the sale daily, and my message to them – even when I had only one store – was always that every car should be looked at as though it's the last car you will see that day; so there needs to be a sense of urgency," he says.
"Collision staff in the past was just waiting for the next assignment and not selling the job as though it was their last car, but rather just waiting for the next assignment because there was always one right behind the other," Greulich says. "The shift today with our staff is that they need to ask for the sale and upsell items outside of the repair because the market has changed, as has the volume. The challenge over the years was to get them focused on getting the cars processed quickly and selling every job like it was your last."
Recruiting is conducted mostly though word of mouth as employee retention is enhanced "by providing a productive, clean and organized work environment where everyone wins."
According to Greulich, this sense of victory on the shop floor is driven by the staff's belief that they are truly valued and respected within the entire operation.
"The main factor that has contributed to the success of the organization has always been empowering all employees to make the best decision for the organization and our customers," he says.
"I never want employees to be frozen and not make a decision. If it's good for the customer and good for the organization, I want them to feel they can make the decision and know I will always support it."
Greulich's business philosophy involves surrounding himself with "great people and a strong management team that consistently promotes the same message: 'Put out a great product and make the customer happy,'" he says.
"I enjoy all business and my strengths have always been behind the scenes, as well as establishing a great team of people to propel the business forward. I rely on the strengths of each member of my management team because that's what makes this a great company today."
Greulich emphasizes how "our collision center approaches auto body and collision repair the same way the manufacturer approaches building the vehicle – with care and precision. We don't take shortcuts and we don't jeopardize our customers' confidence or trust by performing careless work."
Bottom line impact
The company's various affiliations reflect a top-of-the-line mindset. Certifications and memberships include the Better Business Bureau, the American Automobile Association (the Greulich's Mesa location won the local AAA's "Top Shop" award in 2009), the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE), I-CAR Gold, General Motors, Honda, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz.
"I have many friends who are CEOs and presidents of all types of companies," Greulich says. "I don't have one specific mentor, but I certainly have received great insight from all of them by understanding the challenges they have encountered in the growth of their own companies at all stages."
"I got involved in the Bottom-Line Impact Group when I opened my first auto service store back in 1990. I believe that experience changed my direction as well as my understanding of running an auto service business today. It allowed me to apply business principles that were sound to all the businesses I opened in the future, and I still use those matrices," Greulich says.
A series of 20 group memberships has also been beneficial because they are body shop-specific, providing "the insight needed in the collision side of the business."
The company was established as a single mechanical repair facility, and "I keep acquiring and opening new locations when it makes sense. I opened a parts store in 1992 because where I was located, no one would come and deliver parts because it was too far. I put in $300,000 in inventory and delivered to other repair shops. I eventually sold that business to CARQUEST in 1999," he says.
"I got involved in towing in 1995, and I grew that into the largest AAA roadside service provider in the state with 30-plus trucks today. Collision began in 1997 because we kept picking up wrecks and it seemed like we should be providing that service," he adds. A partnership with Enterprise Rent-A-Car is another aspect of the business.
Highly process-driven
Body shops with 17 bays covering an average of 18,000 square feet are located at the Scottsdale headquarters and in Mesa. Peoria, Ariz., hosts a dual-purpose mechanical/collision facility.
Greulich designed and oversaw construction of the Scottsdale body shop, along with several of the mechanical repair center structures. "I have a design team today that assists me in acquiring the land and building the model I have established as the ideal layout for our service locations."
Out on the repair floor, "we are a highly process-driven shop but not truly 'lean.' Waste in our shop is very minimal, and we improve our processes daily through the engagement of our employees. We also have an on-duty auto repair technician at our Scottsdale location. All mechanical work is done in house."
Blueprinting is done at the beginning with visual checkpoints throughout the repair. Customers can view digital photos of their vehicle and the staff makes a point to telephone or email relevant updates.
"One-time ordering" for parts is accomplished via the blueprint process, with suppliers being held accountable for specific standards revolving around timely and undamaged delivery of the correct components.
"We negotiate with every vendor to ensure the best price, best service and best product," he says, "and we instruct all of our locations to purchase from only the vendors that have been deemed to offer all of the above."
Waterborne paint has been in use since January. "It's proven to be very cost-effective and a help with color match issues," Greulich says, "and it's better for the environment. And we do have the perfect climate for waterborne paint."
Arizona's blazing sun factors into the car counts as the fabled "Snowbirds" take flight to beat the summer heat. "When it's hot, winter visitors leave our area for cooler climates, which means there are fewer vehicles on the road, and that equals fewer collisions. In the winter our volume will go up 25 percent to 30 percent based on population."
Greulich said there seems to be a rise in total losses due to high salvage values, and he would like to obtain more volume. The Scottsdale location is in a highly competitive airport demographic, he added.
Outside sales personnel, newspaper advertising, a complete website and a wide-ranging social media presence are among the marketing strategies.
"We need to constantly reinvent ourselves because markets change, and 'the way we always did it' may not be what will make you profitable today," Greulich says. "So I challenge each and every employee to think outside the box" in an ongoing quest for constant improvement.
"Our customers determine our future," he says. "We believe that each customer is as important as the next and deserves to have their vehicle serviced right the first time, in a timely fashion and for a fair price. Our customers are our primary focus and what drives us to do everything possible to ensure their complete satisfaction."
This goal is pursued "through investment in our employees and state-of-the-art facilities" along with "unparalleled customer service and quality repairs that enable us to build long-term relationships with our clientele."
