Part 1 of this series debuted online in September at AftermarketBusiness.com/DeemedEssential, while part 2 aired last month an can be viewed at AftermarketBusiness.com/DeemedEssential2, They introduced us to four shop owners: Kyle Logue, Essex County Repair in Middleton, Mass; Amy Mattinat, Auto Craftsmen in Montpelier, Vt.; David Roman, Done with Care Auto Repair, Kansas City, Kan.; and Lucas Underwood, L&N Performance Auto Care, Blowing Rock, NC. Delve into Part 3 to continue learning how these businesses navigated success amid COVID-19.
After an unforgiving winter in Montpelier, Mattinat marveled at the colorful spring magic bloom to life. Compared to neighboring New York, whose recorded infections topped 351,000 cases, Vermont ranked the fourth lowest state of confirmed viruses at 935. With that psychological boost, Mattinat ticked off other positive signs.
“We had a killer week, and finally, we are pulling some money out of the hat,” Mattinat beamed. She’s ready to resume a five-day workweek.
Next to changing tires and a stream of wreckers dropping off stranded vehicles onto the lot, Mattinat expressed gratitude in the uptick of urgent repairs and the undercoating appointments booked through August. Still, for the moment, Mattinat steadied against lapsing into complacency. While she noted that her baby boomer peers are mostly employed, they lack a safety net and could abruptly slow spending if their employers chose to lay them off.
It’s one thing to only concentrate on treating vehicles for Mattinat, but another to oversee a running concern. Again and again, she reminded herself aloud the balance of managing the business and twisting wrenches.
Reflecting on preparedness before the lockdown, she said, “I’ve always planned by tucking money away. We can be down weeks at a time between tire changing season, and the last thing that I want to do is lay my people off temporarily.”
Regardless of the PPP monies to offset any sales decline, Mattinat canceled the house cleaning services, uniform laundering and trade association membership. All the while, she stepped up her digital commerce platform, starting with remote transactions for her employees and customers. In January, by coincidence, Auto Craftsmen launched an integrated shop management software system that allows the shop to electronically engage the car owner via email or text with images of the inspection; and from there, approve it and make payment.
Undoubtedly to no end, Mattinat missed seeing her clients. Now they’ve adjusted to the digital communications format. They like the convenience and appreciate that the contactless method also enhanced safety for the technicians. “We intend to keep the waiting room closed so that we don’t always have to wash it down and force my staff to wear masks all day long.”
With Nikki returning to the service advisor role, Mattinat planned to dedicate more time to business development. She encouraged her business peers to take advantage of social media to connect with their audiences in more ways than discussing measures to make them feel safe amid the pandemic. With time freed up, she collaborated with other professional installers over Zoom about producing an online best practice clinic.
As the 48 states gradually reboot restaurants, hair salons and retail outlets — except for Connecticut and Massachusetts — Mattinat insisted on wading back in one week at a time.
On May 25, Massachusetts gave residents the yellow light. Phase one allowed manufacturers and construction sites to pick up where they last left off. Good news aside, the past couple weeks were slow for Logue, whose shop is a 20-minute ride from the southern New Hampshire border that buzzed with traffic. He tried to make sense of the economic reset for his side of the state.
Three last-minute cancellations that resulted in servicing only four vehicles on that Monday wouldn’t rattle Logue. “I get it. Their employers want them back on the job,” said Logue. “And I think that people are cautious about going outside and exposing themselves to other people.”
Finding a service advisor rather than the customer no-shows obsessed Logue more. One candidate accepted the position on the condition that training day began after the state unemployment benefits expired, which far exceeded his compensation. “It didn’t sit well with me because I want a reliable person who appreciates the work ethic that my shop values.” Logue terminated the conversation, telling the person not to bother coming in after all.
Did Kansas City respond positively to Roman’s Facebook campaign? Perhaps thank the breezy, 70-degree sun-kissed days. Or maybe the easing of restrictions awoke the audience that Roman had been targeting? Whatever the reason, Roman laughed. “This is ideal,” he said, referring to a steady flow of confirmations. “Between the latter parts of last week through today, we’ve had an influx of activity.”
Roman admitted to having cash flow anxieties. Looking back, he saw each week as either a feast or famine. He attributed the outcome to the car count, the amount of the average repair invoice, or a combination of both. “I’ve been in debt to the gills with equipment purchases, and I need steady revenue flow to pay off the loans for the alignment device and the diagnostic equipment.”
Roman intended to enlighten his customers on the long view of vehicle fundamentals. Take, for example, the misconception that a car is perfectly healthy if it sits for extended periods. Stay-at-home workers should rethink skipping regular maintenance intervals. Over time, chemicals break down, batteries drain and rubber tires may become brittle.
Car care advice tied into the 70 to 150-point free vehicle estimate, Roman told me, will soon post on the company Facebook page. Newsletters and direct mailings aimed at his client base will inform them about proper upkeep in the new normal of the eastern side of Kansas. For Roman, he advocated a soft sell rather than pressuring the clients into something that makes no sense to their vehicles. “It’s a gamble because there’s no promise that the customer will approve the job. And that’s the cost of doing business.”
Memorial Day weekend
Having second thoughts, Nikki quit, worried about exposing herself to a flareup of the uncontained virus. Auto Craftsmen had just regained its footing with the alternating five-day schedule. “Without her, I need someone who can sell an estimate,” said Mattinat.
Sales slid by 35 percent. But Mattinat painted a rosier financial picture because the business was open four days. Productivity rose by 10 percent, suggesting that the average repair bills were more profitable than the same period last year.
What could improve Auto Craftmen’s operating costs, Mattinat suggested, is that the government extend the small-business funding through 2020. As the three-month parameters stipulate, recipients must return the unspent monies to the Feds or risk the likelihood of the bailout package becoming a loan. Mattinat cannot pre-pay overhead expenses or hand out bonuses. “I’m just hoping that the Senate quickly passes the bill; otherwise, I’m stuck,” she said.
Memorial Day weekend in New England traditionally marked 100 days of summertime holiday travel throughout the six states. And day one into the season, recalled Logue, began at a frenetic pace.
The phone had been ringing nonstop. The service advisor position remained open, and Logue soldiers on with the pent-up client demand. Earlier in the morning, he lost two appointments. Both customers need their vehicles ready sooner than Essex County Repair could promise. Through June 10, the shop lined up six jobs per day. Yet Logue knew that he could have placed more reservations if one of his technicians had avoided multiple customer comebacks.
As a result, he dismissed the tech. Oversights are a safety and quality liability that Logue won’t tolerate when his staff should know how to follow the step-by-step drivability checklist.
Logue crossed his fingers with another ASE-trained installer who he approached to join Essex County. If all went well, the new employee will start by June 21. But Logue spared no risk of jeopardizing his reputation or grabbing extra customers from his bankrupt competitor.
One motivation behind Logue’s ambitions was that he intended to grow his small kingdom by finding extra space to accommodate more jobs. The expansion was on his mind in 2019 before the interruption. “I have a few things figured out and I’m now doing what I physically can. So far, I’m grateful for what my employees have done for my business.”
As a gesture of appreciation, Logue allocated the remaining funds from the government loan forgiveness program by handing out cash bonuses, encouraging his staff to purchase new tools and equipment before the deadline.
Gaining ground
Underwood had maneuvered the shop into a recession-proof money maker. Sales through the first two weeks of June were on pace to reach the $60,000 mark. Average repair orders had climbed to about $1,100, roughly equal to the Federal stimulus checks, another sign that people are eager to spend. Referring to bookings running through the end of June, Underwood said, “We’re absolutely hammered out here!”
However, Blowing Rock craved the old normalcy. “Everyone in town says, ‘let’s get this over and done with.’” Underwood emphasized the frustration over the hazy statistics. And distrust of authorities was leading people to ignore pleas to stay inside, he explained.
Despite 150 recorded infection cases for Watauga County, Underwood treaded cautiously over what he could control and on what mattered for keeping L&N Performance Auto Repair healthy. Even though Blowing Rock’s year-round residents and the seasonal homeowners were eager to drive more miles, Underwood was reluctant to reopen the lounge until North Carolina satisfied the phase two requirements.
Over the Memorial Day weekend, L&N Performance stayed opened throughout to regulate the overload. “We’re seeing a lot of tourists, but we’ve booked light in case of breakdowns, and I staggered my techs.” Working solo on Monday gave Underwood a timeout to reflect on capitalizing in the moment. He felt exceptionally creative and brainstormed his plan to release a slew of video clips and radio ads. In the coming weeks, Underwood aimed to remind his social media audience to take advantage of the $89.95 air conditioner special with just a passing reminder that the onsite sanitation measures will continue through Labor Day.
Even if some individuals behave too carelessly, Underwood fell back onto what he could effectively influence in Blowing Rock and with the Facebook automotive group that he enjoys interacting with. No matter what, he said, “We cannot stop marketing!”
Before the coronavirus runs its course, he suspects that some installer operators may call it quits forever. He urged them to hang in there. He encouraged them to manage their businesses strategically. He added, “We have to drive our efforts and look out toward the 30- 60- 90-day timeline of taking care of the customer and finding new ones.”
According to Underwood, success depends on how well a technician communicates the findings to the car owner. “Customers are always in control of their decisions,” said Underwood, who subscribes to fact-based selling. “First, you evaluate and estimate the condition of the car you just inspected. Next, you present the evidence to the customer, and finally, you sell it!”
Look for the final installment, Part 4, of the “Deemed essential” series online in December at AftermarketBusiness.com to continue learning how these shops endured during a pandemic.
