Shop Profile: Opportunity to the rescue

Jan. 1, 2020
"If we would have planned it, it probably never would have happened." That's Aaron O'Connor's take on the founding of his Dolgeville, NY, shop, Automotive Rescue + Repair. Twelve years ago, when O'Connor was working as a tow truck operator, he passed

"If we would have planned it, it probably never would have happened." That's Aaron O'Connor's take on the founding of his Dolgeville, NY, shop, Automotive Rescue + Repair. Twelve years ago, when O'Connor was working as a tow truck operator, he passed through Dolgeville on a service run.

"I saw an old service station building someone was looking to rent for just $350 a month," he says. Believing the area was in need of quality shops — and confident he was up to the task of creating one — O'Connor jumped at the opportunity and rented the location. He's never looked back.

In the decade since his fortuitous journey through Dolgeville, O'Connor has continued building his business by taking advantage of the opportunities at hand, opportunities that often first appear as serious problems but eventually turn out to be auto repair gold.

This was certainly the case during the early years of operation, when O'Connor was still learning vehicle repair, had limited business experience and practically no seed money to build on. He made the most of the opportunities handed to him. For more education, he turned to every auto repair and management resource he could get his hands on, and pored over their information. Inside his business, he concentrated on customer service and quality repairs while supplementing with 24/7 towing operations.
Eventually, word spread, business took off, and O'Connor "casually" began planning for the day when he could expand and take his operation to the next level.
That day came much sooner than expected in late 2002, when the building owner decided without warning to evict O'Connor's business. Considering a harsh upstate New York winter was coming in, and O'Connor's building plans were still, as he describes it, in the "dinner napkin drawing" phase, the eviction notice couldn't have come at a worse time.

But O'Connor had an ace up his sleeve. Years before, he took advantage of an opportunity and purchased property he believed to be ideal for a shop site. With property in hand, he needed only to finance the shop itself.

The timing couldn't have been better for a business loan, since interest rates were extremely low in late 2002, saving O'Connor what he says was a "small fortune" on interest. With money in hand, O'Connor quickly broke ground and several months later opened the shop he always wanted.

Today, that shop repairs more than 50 cars a week, bringing in more than $650,000 annually. It continues to thrive in large part by making the most of business opportunities — many of which are drawn to its doors by its towing services. Towing contributes significantly to the shop's bottom line, and brings in a steady stream of new faces with whom the shop can build long-term relationships.

Even when these visits turn into one-time only affairs (towing customers often are from out of town), they still possess significant value to Automotive Rescue. The shop gets one more chance to help customers, build its reputation and work toward the next opportunity.

Tim Sramcik is a freelance writer who has covered the auto repair industry for more than eight years. He has received national and regional awards for feature writing from the American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE). He also has 18 years of experience in the technical writing industry.

About the Author

Tim Sramcik

Tim Sramcik began writing for ABRN over 20 years ago. He has produced numerous news, technical and feature articles covering virtually every aspect of the collision repair market. In 2004, the American Society of Business Publication Editors recognized his work with two awards. Srmcik also has written extensively for Motor Age and Aftermarket Business. Connect with Sramcik on LinkedIn and see more of his work on Muck Rack. 

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