Collision shops and suppliers are both profiting from mutually beneficial relationships that thrive on loyalty and longevity.
The first Aftermarket Business World Collision Shop Study reveals that shop owners stick with their preferred suppliers — auto parts retailers and jobbers — thanks to long-standing relationships and fast delivery times.
And it would take more than brand tweaks to drive shops to look for new suppliers. Three fourths of survey respondents — the majority of which are the owner or president of a collision shop — said they would stick with their supplier even if they stopped carrying the shop's preferred product brands. And for 64 percent of respondents, no regular contact from suppliers is necessary to garner sales, according to the study.
Quality, availability and price were the most important qualities dictating shop product preferences — most often national brands — according to respondents, the majority of which were aged between 45 to 64 years and owning between one and three shops, results show.
Although just more than half of the respondents report their shops operate 10 or more bays, respondents still use the Internet rarely, with 96 percent reporting they only purchase between zero and 10 percent of products online.
Insurance companies have little impact on collision shop business, with just more than one-third of respondents reporting direct repair providers (DRPs) generate no business, and 78 percent say insurance companies have no influence on the service and maintenance work they perform on vehicles.
Click here to see the Aftermarket Business World Collision Repair Study results.
METHODOLOGY: The Aftermarket Business World Collision Repair Study was fielded via email to the readers of sister publication ABRN, which serves the collision repair industry.
