Bankers Don’t Bite
I’m convinced that most small-business owners are scared to death of bankers. They view loan officers as stiff-lipped stuffed-shirts who exist only for the pleasure of foreclosing on little old ladies on Christmas Eve.
Sharpen Your Sectioning Skills
Sectioning is a common procedure in hundreds of collision-repair shops across the country. Most of those shops make a conscientious effort to section according to the rules;
some shops make up their own rules.
Room to Grow
Name: American Auto Body Location: Akron, Ohio Owner: Joe and Rocky Piscazzi Established: 1976 Square Footage: 20,000 Number of Employees: 10 Repair Volume: 60 cars per month Rocky Piscazzi recently learned that relocating to a new body shop can trigger Murphy’s Law of moving – everything costs more than expected. “Even though I’ve learned that
Working Smarter Not Harder
Name: Jerry’s Body Shop Location: DeLand, Fla. Owner: Jerry Doyle Established: 1976 Square Footage: 10,000 Number of Employees: 11 Repair Volume: 60 cars per month Average Repair Cost: $1,500 After 40 years in the collision-repair industry, you’d think a bright guy like Jerry Doyle would’ve learned not to help his competitors. Yet, several evenings a
When the Goan Gets Tough: the Goan Body Shops
The age of refinish technology has yet to dawn in India. With a population in excess of 900 million, labor is cheap and plentiful and money is scarce. Needless to say, specialized collision-repair equipment is virtually nonexistent. Although India has only 5 million cars and CVs, the demand for collision-repair shops is high. The roads
Working Magic: Paintless Dent Repair (PDR)
PDR is only as good as the operator on the other end of the pry tool.
Explaining the Choices
It would be hard to name another product category in our industry that has more vendors than compounds, polishes and waxes.
The Vote is Cast: National Rule Regarding the VOC (Volatile Organic Compound)
In currently regulated areas, many shops had a learning curve with new low-VOC products that will be shortened considerably for the rest of us. What they discovered when they began using high-solids products was that their main problems were getting the finish to lie down smoothly and getting the paint work to dry in the
Super Tech Tips
The best weapon, as always, is knowledge.
The CPA Search
One of the greatest challenges you face in running your body shop is sustaining a workable system of financial management.