A Woman's Place Is In the Shop

If awards were handed out for business slogans, Peak Automotive would surely get the nod for Most Intriguing. Their motto: "The Most Female Friendly Shop in the Triangle." Female friendly? What happened to the industry's old image of greasy, overall-fitted techs mulling over a work order in some odd mechanic-speak understood only by men? In the Raleigh-Durham area, Peak has replaced that image with a far more caring, customer-friendly attitude that drives in customers both male and female.

When Brian and Kim Walker learned of their first pregnancy, the young couple made the most portentous of decisions: They opened their first shop. "We saw it as, 'It's now or never,'" says Kim. 

Raising a family and building a repair business turned out to be two very similar ventures. Doing both right requires lots of education. On the business side, Brian and Kim both devoted themselves to management training through the Automotive Training Institute (ATI), Savage, MD, and other outlets where they picked up info on subjects like gross sales and profit margins. They learned how to separate duties and define their relationships on professional and friendship bases. 

They also made important operational discoveries, the main one being that a business built around quality and customers - one that was people-focused - would be more successful than one aimed at sheer repair numbers.

Education, therefore, now sits at the center of the Walkers' customer service efforts. Peak's service advisors provide in-depth explanations of any work or recommended maintenance; techs perform a free 59-point inspection of every vehicle. The goal is creating understanding, not simply sales. Recommendations and sales are never heavy-handed, says Kim. 

Customers make decisions they feel comfortable with on the basis of what they've learned. That way, explains Kim, when the customer leaves with a repaired vehicle, he or she leaves "knowing what was done ... and why it 
was done."

Kim adds, "[The customer] feels she has paid for quality work and as a result leaves with a positive feeling because she is also educated now on the system of her car." The learning continues after the sale as Peak sends out repair information in monthly e-mail newsletters and seasonal mailers. 

The business extends a similar caring attitude in its customer service with a number of amenities. "We work continually to impress, make comfortable and keep our customers," says Kim. That means offering free shuttle service, a $20 Taxi Certificate for first visits, night drop-offs, e-mailed work forms and a referral program that rewards customers with free oil changes. This last program has become so popular that it is now "tiered" to handle the numerous referrals turned in by some customers. Additional amenities include a cafe? area, a massage chair and couches so comfortable Kim says many customers have used them for naps.

Kim says employees are similarly made to feel like part of a family. Few have chosen to leave the shop. 

Peak extends its "motherly" attitude one step further by reaching out to the local community and beyond. Peak regularly plans and holds free events for National Car Care month. The business recently led local efforts in Hurricane Katrina relief, collecting two tractor-trailers of supplies and participating in mission trips to aid victims.

In case this attitude, along with the slogan, might seem a bit much or a bit exclusionary for male customers, Kim says, "think again." She explains that during a recent seminar, a male customer stood up and proclaimed, "They're good to the guys too!" But of course, good mothers are good to 
everyone.