Denver--In a bid to better service its customers, Murray Motor Imports, a BMW and Mercedes-Benz franchise dealership, has
made the leap into the collision repair business. Rather than endure the sharp learning curve of opening a collision repair shop, dealership officials decided to purchase an existing shop and retain its personnel.
made the leap into the collision repair business. Rather than endure the sharp learning curve of opening a collision repair shop, dealership officials decided to purchase an existing shop and retain its personnel.Last February, Murray Motor Imports purchased an existing shop that fit the image they were looking for. The shop, at 3001 Walnut St., has been renamed Body Works by Murray Motor Imports, said Manager Jeff Peil, who began working at the shop under its previous ownership.
"We expected to have a slow period to start with, but it's been overwhelming how busy the shop has been," said Bob Giese, parts and service director for Murray Motor Imports. "It's exceeded all our expectations."
Since March, volume has increased by nearly 40 percent, Peil said, adding that the shop participates in a single direct repair program (DRP). The depth of Murray's customer base has driven the growth for the shop, he said, which also includes customer-pay work and reconditioning work for BMW-certified pre-owned vehicles.
"It has been in our plans for a year," Giese said. The addition of collision repair shop allows the dealership to take care of its customers from start to finish, he said. "That was the only missing ingredient; that was the final piece of the puzzle."
By purchasing an existing shop, Murray was able to service its customers from the day it was bought, Giese said. "Nationwide, BMW is encouraging dealerships to have their own collision repair centers so they can control the customer service," he said.
When Murray purchased the shop, Peil said it began its BMW certification for structural aluminum repair, which was completed at press time. The dealership is concurrently working on its Mercedes-Benz aluminum repair certification, to be completed this fall, he added.
"BMW really wanted a certified shop in the market," Giese said. "It has to be 100 percent dealer-owned."To achieve status as a BMW Certified Collision Repair Center, Peil said the shop had to purchase approximately $200,000 in specialized equipment for aluminum repair, a dedicated clean room for aluminum repair, and have his technicians attend training over the course of a year.
The BMW-specific aluminum repair training includes Standox certification, body adjustment training for retractable roofs, aluminum repair, and body repair in levels one and two, he said. A technician earns points for each completed segment, he said, adding that the more points accumulated, the greater the status of the tech.
Peil said he purchased the curtains for his aluminum clean room from Bill Askew, owner of Askew Equipment. "He helped me put in the clean room and service our paint booth's filters," he said. The clean room contains curtains that eliminate to possibility of steel contamination, he added.
Although Peil said the shop has not begun to work on aluminum vehicles yet, he said he anticipates a spike in volume because Murray is the only BMW-certified aluminum repair shop in the Rocky Mountain region.
One of the advantages of being a dealer-owned shop is the volume of business and financial backing, Peil said. "The downside is that if we upset a customer we can lose their sales and service business," he said. "We have to be a little more invested in the customer."
The shop now caters to Murray's high-end customers, with 80 percent of the repair volume in BMW and Mercedes-Benz vehicles, Peil said. "When people spend that kind of money on a car, they expect a little more."
The affluent customers take to heart what the dealer tells them, Peil said, adding that they will stick with Murray as their collision repair provider if it's recommended to them.
Every Tuesday and Thursday, collision personnel are at the dealerships, located at 900 S. Colorado Blvd. and 4300 E. Kentucky Ave., writing onsite estimates for small items, such as door dings or paint chips.
The volume of customer-pay work has changed the way the Peil and his 16 employees operate the shop, he said.
With insurance work, the estimators would write the estimate, take photos, and the techs would get right to work and not stop until the vehicle was completed, Peil said. Now, with customer-pay work, technicians have to wait for customer approval before work can be completed, he added.
Peil said he's retained most of the employees from the previous ownership, which includes six office personnel, five bodymen, two painters, one paint prepper, and one detailer.
With the ownership change, Peil said he has implemented job accountability. "I try to make sure everybody has an accurate job description," he said, and their performance is measured against it.
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