Longmont, Colo.--Three years ago, if you asked Jack Matthews if he's a car guy, his answer would have been no. Unlike most shop owners, Matthews' path to ownership didn't begin in a service bay. This "out-of-the-box thinking" led Matthews to create his shop from the ground up, he said, according to his perception of what a repair shop should be.
In 2004 Matthews said he left his 17-year career at Sun Microsystems to open a repair shop with his wife, Mariette, who is the business' secretary and treasurer. With an interest in cars and a desire to work with his hands, he said he forged forward and hasn't looked back since.
"I'm a professional businessman, not necessarily a car guy," Matthews said. Working on a car and running a business are two completely different skill sets, he said, noting that a lot of lessons learned in the high-tech world translate well into the auto repair industry.
"We did everything with the approach of operating with efficiency and organization," Matthews said of the building he designed from the ground up. A lot of thought went into the location, design, and operation of the shop, he added.
The 7,000-square-foot building is just west of I-25 on well-traveled Colorado 119. Since its location is in unincorporated Weld County, customers are charged only Colorado state tax, 2.9 percent, which saves customers a lot of money on big-ticket projects and repair items, Matthews said.
"There's a triangle between the customer, the facility, and the employees," he said. "You've got to ask yourself, would people enjoy working here?" he said.
The shop has a clean, open appearance with its 19-foot ceilings for added air volume, he said. The roof is covered with a white membrane to keep the seven technicians cool in the summer. And, he said, the wall separating the shop from the customer reception is thick to keep shop noise out; it also contains two windows so customers can see their vehicles being worked on. The customer waiting area offers free wireless Internet connection with complimentary beverages, Matthews said.
"You have to set up something that's comfortable," he said. "If you don't know about your vehicle and its needed repairs, this situation can be very unsettling." Since the vast majority of auto repair customers are women, he said, attention to cleanliness is important.
"It's the small things that make the difference," he said, such as the wi-fi connection, satellite television, coffee, and doughnuts.
If employees are happy, customers will be treated well, Matthews said, which is why he's gone to great lengths to make sure he has low turnover.
"You can't hover over and criticize employees," he said. "You have to give them the tools and means to be successful. If that doesn't work, they're not right for the business."
Those employees include his son, Reese, his customer service manager, Matthews said.
Local technicians hear about the working conditions at the shop and frequently solicit Matthews for a job, he said. "We are breaking the norm in quite a few areas," he said. "It's healthy and good."
Hourly compensation, not commission, for technicians is one way Matthews said he does things differently. This promotes quality repairs, instead of technicians focusing on quantity, he said. "We try to make sure it's done right," he said. In addition, he added, all technicians receive a full benefits package
The shop conducts an array of services from tires and general repair to performance upgrades and restorations, Matthews said. He pointed out that there's a natural transition between performance work and general repair.
Simple performance enhancements can include adding slotted brake rotors to a vehicle, a significant upgrade that doesn't cost much, Matthews said. Many customers will arrive at the shop for general repair, realize that they also do performance and restoration work and bring in their classic car for them to work on, he said.
For such diverse types of work, Matthews said, he's outfitted the shop with state-of-the-art equipment that includes an in-ground Mustang chassis dynomometer in an enclosed bay.
In addition to the dyno, he said his technicians use EFI Live, a PC-based scanning and tuning tool for late-model GM vehicles with fuel injection. The dyno time and software use are bundled into a package that he said are customized for each engine and vehicle type.
At the time of the interview, the shop was rebuilding a 1967 Chevrolet Chevelle, jazzing it up with a stainless steel gas tank and fuel lines, a fuel-injected LS2 Corvette engine, and a beefier transmission.
The other five bays of the shop are outfitted with Snap-on lifts that include a two-post 10,000-pound model and a 14,000-pound version, a scissor lift, and an alignment rack with a John Bean Co. Visualiner system.
To stay competitive, Matthews said it's imperative that the job is done right the first time, which can be achieved by choosing the right parts for the job.
"We always prefer OE or better," he said, "If it's not, we won't put it on.
"Even if there's warranty replacement on a part, they usually don't compensate for labor time," Matthews said, adding that he mainly relies on Pam Oil and Broadway Auto Parts for replacement parts.
