Dealers feed the bays at two shops for Ohio-based company

Jan. 1, 2020
Despite all the changes in the collision repair industry over the years, there has remained one constant. Word-of-mouth and referrals remain the best way — perhaps the only way — to succeed. Often customer bases are built one relationship
Despite all the changes in the collision repair industry over the years, there has remained one constant. Word-of-mouth and referrals remain the best way — perhaps the only way — to succeed. Often customer bases are built one relationship at a time. But sometimes a body shop is fortunate to establish one or two major relationships, which, in turn, provide a constant stream of referrals.

A case in point is Nagy's Body and Frame, a Doylestown, Ohio, -based company that recently opened a second location, Nagy's Collision Center in Wooster, Ohio. For more than a decade, the original shop in Doylestown has gotten between 5 percent and 10 percent of its business from several local auto dealerships that don't have a body shop of their own.

"What they tell us is, 'We want our customers taken care of because we want them coming back to us,' " explains Ron Nagy, who co-owns the business with his brother, Dan. "They say, 'Take care of the customer. We don't want to hear from them.' "

The work that the Nagy brothers get through the dealerships often leads to long-term customer relationships, even if the customers buy their next vehicle from a different dealer. "It gets our name out there," says Ron. "It's another opportunity for someone to see your operation and for you to show it off."

Last year, when the Nagy brothers opened their second location, south of Cleveland about 20 miles from the Doylestown shop, a dealership operating in the area was waiting for them to open so it could send its collision repair work there. That dealer's brand new facility also has no body shop of its own. "The dealers tell us they'd rather have more floor space for their showroom or for mechanical repairs," notes Ron.

The Wooster shop now gets a substantial amount of its business from dealership referrals, as well — and the anticipation of that work was one of the factors that convinced the brothers the new shop would be successful. They also noticed that the Doylestown shop had been drawing more and more customers from the Wooster area. After its first full year of business, the Wooster shop has doubled its business — and although some of that business came from customers who would otherwise have gone to Doylestown, the Doylestown shop is still on target to see a sales increase of 1 percent to 2 percent for the year.

Having two locations also gives each brother the opportunity to manage a shop. Ron oversees the Wooster shop, while Dan is in charge of Doylestown. Unlike some brothers, Ron says he and Dan have always gotten along — a phenomenon he attributes to the fact that they were one year apart and were the only boys in a family that also included three older and one younger sister. From the time they were in high school, both boys worked in the Doylestown facility, which their father, Dave, opened in 1972. "There's not a job we haven't done," notes Ron, who credits much of the success of the business to his father's values.

"My father was always about quality and taking care of the customer," comments Ron. "You have to know the numbers and measure them, but you can't dwell on them." The Nagy brothers are involved with several insurance company direct repair programs, which generate between 30 percent and 35 percent of their business. But, says Ron, "the customer is still the vehicle owner."

The Doylestown shop has expanded twice over the years. While Dave was running the shop he added 2,500 sq. ft. After his sons bought him out 13 years ago, they put on an additional 5,000 sq. ft. "Our business has grown every year," Ron says. "We've never had a declining year."

Among the other important relationships that have made the Nagy family successful are the relations they have with their employees. Ron credits a significant part of the success of the business to the strong team the family has established.

Currently, Nagy's doesn't conduct customer satisfaction surveys, but when the company was performing them regularly, customer satisfaction consistently ran in the range of 97 percent to 98 percent. That's a measurement predicated on quality technicians who are up-to-date on their training, says Ron. Employees who stay with Nagy's are required to get ASE certification. "I'm a true believer in this," he says. "I don't care how long you're in the business. You'll learn something new because of how the vehicles have changed."

As an alternative to customer satisfaction surveys, Nagy's is planning to conduct a series of focus groups, which will be conducted by a third party that specializes in that area. "Some customers tell you to your face what a great job you did," Ron says. Others won't, so he hopes the focus groups will provide more detailed feedback about the service. This will help the company plan new courses of action.

To help ensure quality, Nagy's does most of its own mechanical repairs. The company also will perform mechanical work unrelated to a collision for existing body shop customers — and will do air conditioning and suspension work even for vehicle owners who haven't used the shop for collision work.

Future plans include a 2,000-sq.-ft. addition to the Wooster location and staying focused on building the business. Between the two shops, Ron says, "We're on our way to do about $2.5 million this year."

About the Author

Joan Engebretson

Engebretson is a former editor-in-chief of America's Network. She has covered the communications industry since 1993. In 2002, she won a national gold award from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for her columns. Previously, Engebretson was the editor of Telecom Investor, a supplement toAmerica's Network.

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