Since then, he has become the owner of five more CARSTAR facilities, including a second in Omaha, one in Lincoln, and three in Wichita, he said. 

The three Wichita stores were acquired in June after CARSTAR decided to sell the last company-owned stores, Petersen said, adding that he takes trips to Wichita once a month to monitor the stores. When he is not on location, he said he corresponds daily with his managers by e-mail and also checks daily progress reports to track sales goals.

Petersen said he was provided all the necessary tools to be successful when he became a CARSTAR owner. 

 
"Joining CARSTAR made me a more professional business man than I had been before because of the training and systems that they provided," he said. "The power of franchising is that the system is already figured out for you; you don't have to reinvent the wheel. That is part of what is good about being part of CARSTAR."

Another benefit is the training CARSTAR provides, including support with purchasing programs, insurance companies, and running the business, he said.

Petersen added that each one of his stores also belongs to a group that meets with other shops throughout the year to share ideas and business practices.

With five body technicians, three painters, and two helpers, he said he repairs about 125 cars a month at the CARSTAR Northwest location -- the store with the largest sales volume. All six stores combined work on about 500 cars a month, he said. 

At the CARSTAR Northwest location, Petersen said he has one Garmat spray booth, a Chief E-Z Liner with computerized measuring frame machine, and a Pro-Spot welding system.

Starting in February, Petersen said, he also implemented BASF waterborne paint at the CARSTAR Northwest location, which speeds up the paint process. In August, the Silver Hammer location started with waterborne, and the other four stores will all be spraying waterborne by the end of the year, he said.

"The painters like it a lot, and we haven't had any problems with it," he said. "The color match has been better than before, there is less waste, less environment hazard, and the pricing is similar."

Petersen said about 65 percent of his business is through DRPs, with the other 35 percent coming from other insurance companies and customer-paid items.

In 2000, when the DRPs were coming on strong, he said he quickly took advantage of the opportunity. He said he views the DRP process as part of the evolution of the collision repair industry.

Although some body shops in some states are going to legislatures to try to resolve problems with the insurance companies, Petersen said he has a good relationship with the insurance companies and believes that to be true of most shop owners in his area.

"People don't get in accidents very often, and many are shocked that it takes weeks to get their car repaired," he said. "But the DRPs help speed up the process."

Petersen added that working with a lot good vendors that get parts delivered fast also cuts down on repair time.

For aftermarket parts, he said he turns to Keystone; salvage, LKQ, and OE parts mainly come from the Performance Auto Group in Omaha, and Van Chevrolet in Kansas City. Although Van Chevrolet is three hours away, he said he gets better service, and anything ordered before 4 p.m. gets delivered that night, so it is waiting for the technician in the morning.

Although the many key indexes are down in the collision industry market, Petersen said he has seen growth every year.

"We do very well in the market," he said. "Even though there are fewer vehicles on the road, fewer miles being driven, and fewer claims, we still have experienced steady growth year after year. Customer service is a high priority, and we have good scores with that. We try to implement and follow all the CARSTAR systems the best we can."