"When you have consistent procedures and consistent, long-term employees, you get consistent results," said Jandura, who along with business partner (and shop production manager) Stan Crebassa, owns and operates Crebassa's Auto Body.

When Jandura talks about the business, he tends to focus far more on the people than the procedures. He said that about a dozen of the company's 18 employees have been with the company five or more years, adding that the shop offers a number of features that help build that loyalty:

- Full medical and dental insurance benefits.

- Flexible work hours, with production employees able to start their eight-hour day at 6, 7, or 8 a.m.

- A 401(k) retirement plan, with the shop matching 25 percent of an employee's contribution to the plan. "We encourage people to max it out because we know they're going to need it," Jandura said. "A lot of guys have built up a fair amount of money and have been able to take a loan out of their 401(k) to buy their first house. That's kind of cool. I've had employees tell me, 'If you hadn't done this, I wouldn't have saved anything.'"

- A profit-sharing plan that allows every employee (after their first year) to earn a bonus equivalent to 6 percent of their wages. "That's not just for top performers," Jandura said. "Everyone gets it or no one gets it. If you're just rewarding your top performers, you're not encouraging working as a team."

- Hourly rather than commission pay for technician teams. "I've found that putting people on teams encourages the entry-level and experienced techs to work together because each person's productivity contributes to everyone's profit sharing. So the experienced techs help the entry-level get efficient and productive and expand their skill sets."

- A well-lit, well-equipped workspace that helps the I-CAR Gold Class shop turn $2.5 million in annual sales out of just 8,800 square feet (plus an additional 1,200 square feet of office).

"We've always invested money back into the shop," Jandura said.

In the last year or two, he said, that investment has included a new Hunter R811 wheel alignment system, replacing an often-upgraded system the shop had been using to do its own alignments in-house since 1986.

"One of our technicians used to work in the glass industry and has trained all our technicians to do their own glass work as well, so we're never waiting for alignment or glass work," Jandura said.

The shop has five MIG and aluminum welders, and bought a Pro Spot i4 inverter spot welder last year, he said.

"I bought the first Pro Spot welder in the area, and it was great technology at the time, but this inverter welder is so much nicer," Jandura said.

The shop also has three DataLiner frame racks and two DataLiner laser measuring systems, Jandura said. The shop's four refinish technicians have the use of four IRT short-wave infrared curing lamps, a Becca gun-washing system, and three side-by-side AFC Finishing Systems prep stations, he said.

Crebassa's has for years worked closely with California-based AFC, buying the company's first Quadraft booth, and more recently retrofitting it to accelerate air movement in preparation for Crebassa's shift to Akzo Nobel's waterborne basecoat product this month, he said.

As with most of its vendors, Crebassa's has maintained a loyalty to the Sikkens paint line, purchased through California Color Source, for a dozen or more years, Jandura said.

"Those long-term vendor relationships are critical for long-term success," he said. "We find that if you have those loyal relationships, if you're not always shopping your business for an extra point or two, those vendors will come to bat for you when you do need help and need them to go the extra mile. You've built that kind of relationship where they're willing to do it."

One example of the value of Crebassa's relationship with Akzo is the shop's participation in the paint company's "Benevolence Program." A story in the local newspaper last December featured Crebassa's partnership with Akzo, Novato Toyota, and other vendors in repairing and painting a vehicle they then donated to a woman through the nonprofit Marin Abused Women's Services.

Though not intended as a marketing project, such positive publicity helps Crebassa's ensure that it keeps its name in front of consumers, Jandura said. Insurer direct repair referrals account for about 60 percent of the shop's work, he said, but the shop also advertises on buses, on cable TV, in print media, and in movie theaters.

"You have to have a budget and a plan and keep marketing to create top-of-mind awareness," he said. "I talk to people who say they'll try it for six months. You've got to make a multiyear commitment."

That long-term thinking is perhaps another reason Crebassa's loyal employees help keep the shop's performance consistent, he said.

"What I relay to a prospective new hire, and what I consistently relay to employees throughout their tenure here, is if we can make them successful, the business will be successful," Jandura said. "If just Stan and I are successful, then the business may not be. But if we all work together to be successful, everyone will benefit from that.

"Over the last 26 years, we've seen that come to fruition. We've built up a pretty nice business, and that's by being consistent."