Driven Brands Kicks off 'Limitless 2024' Conference

Abra, CARSTAR, and Fix Auto USA franchise partners kicked off the 2024 U.S. Driven Brands Collision Group conference in Texas style on Tuesday, launching three days of education, networking opportunities, fundraising events, and the annual awards celebration. The “Limitless 2024” conference is being held at the Omni Dallas Hotel, located in the heart of the Dallas Arts District.

The first day of the conference opened with a Texas Two Step charity walk, raising more than $6,000 for research, care, and advocacy for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Next, five deserving Dallas families received NABC Recycled Rides vehicles, donated by GEICO and refurbished by CARSTAR, along with support from Abra and Fix Auto USA. The vehicles were given to veterans and families impacted by cystic fibrosis.

The opening ceremonies were held Tuesday evening and featured an executive update from Sabrina Thring, Brand President, Driven Brands Collision Group. Thring shared the collision segment’s performance in 2024 and outlook for the industry in 2025.

“We are so excited to bring all of our franchise partners in the U.S. collision business together again to celebrate our achievements, share our metrics and performance, and plan for our future,” she said. “Having all these top operators together under one roof powers our ability to explore our strategic vision together and map our plans to drive our future growth.”

Thring also announced the top award winners – the coveted Franchisee of the Year award – to recognize the exemplary owners of 2024, including:

Day one concluded with dinner and entertainment at Gilley’s Dallas, including karaoke, live music, armadillo racing, and charitable fundraising events throughout the evening.

Day two of the Driven Brands conference featured Damien Reyna, U.S. Collision Chief Operating Officer, who discussed system performance and growth; Melissa Kwiatkowski, Vice President of Marketing, who touched on brand performance and consumer trends; and keynote speaker Jon McNeill.

McNeill is the CEO and Co-Founder of DVx Ventures, and has operated and scaled companies with a focus on growing revenue and improving operations. He was president at Tesla and then COO at Lyft, where he helped prepare and take the company through its IPO.

After the morning sessions, breakout sessions featured topics like how to leverage technology to enhance capacity management, driving volume with CCC’s latest tools, and a profitability panel with top performers from Abra, CARSTAR, and Fix Auto USA. The vendor trade show closed the day to showcase the latest services and tools.

The final day of the Driven Brands conference opens with Brian Newberry, Vice President of Development, who will lead a discussion with MSOs on how to thrive in this industry. Brandon Eckenrode, Executive Director of the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), will discuss hiring strategies for collision centers. The morning will close with Bart Mazurek, Vice President of ASG Consulting and Services, who will share insights from his more than 23 years of experience in automotive and P&C insurance markets.

Breakout sessions will follow and include coaching strategies to win more business, leveraging fleet opportunities, and a panel on scanning and calibration. The final day is capped with the awards gala celebrating top franchise partners.

Visit www.AbraAuto.com, www.CARSTAR.com, and www.FixAutoUSA.com for more information.