A Smooth Transition

Bill Snow still remembers a customer he encountered the first day he officially took over as owner of his shop in Wickliffe, Ohio, from the Maher Brothers.

“She stopped dead in her tracks,” Snow recalls of the woman. 

She came in–maybe only two feet or so–into the repair shop, looked around and said, “Who are you? Where is everyone?” 

The woman had known the shop as Maher Brothers Automotive and was surprised to see it under new ownership with Snow at the helm, and a new name: Rad Air Complete Car Care. “She then said, ‘I don’t know what to do, I might have to leave,’” Snow chuckles. He assured her that although the name on the door and a few faces had changed, the core values and the care that the Maher Brothers had extended to the community were still there and that she was in good hands. 

Taking over a shop is never easy, particularly if it’s well regarded in the community. Snow knew that he was in for a challenge, especially because the shop was switching over to a franchise. Here’s how he was able to handle the transition and carve out his own spot in the community’s heart. 

Backstory:

Snow came from corporate America and had some interest in starting his own business. In 2012, he and his wife were on a trip in North Carolina when his wife’s car broke down because the repair shop that they had visited used the wrong antifreeze. He remembers sitting on the beach telling his wife, “If it’s happening to us, it’s happening to other people.” It was then that they began contemplating opening their own repair shop. 

Snow began looking for shops for sale, but nothing came to fruition until Rad Air Complete Car Care reached out to him with an opportunity. Two brothers were interested in being bought out, and Rad Air needed to find someone to take on the shop. Initially, Snow wasn’t interested in becoming a franchise owner because he viewed it as cookie-cutter approach to starting a business and he wasn’t thrilled about the idea of someone else helping him launch his ideas. It took a few sit downs with Rad Air representatives, but Snow quickly realized the brand would provide a lot of flexibility and the ability to tailor it to his vision.

Problem:

The Maher brothers had built a nice business in the neighborhood and with new ownership, there was bound to be some growing pains. Since employees and customers aren’t always receptive to change, Snow had to figure out a way to get everyone on board with a new name and a new leader.

Solution:

The previous owners—Corey and Daryl Maher—were the reason that the business ran so smoothly. Snow says that each brother had their own role. Corey was on the business side while Daryl was more hands on. According to Snow, Corey was the reason that he agreed to the deal. He says the way he led his shop and the core values of the business were major selling points for him. Meanwhile, Daryl expressed an interest in staying as a technician, which turned out to be a great fit as he and Snow developed a good relationship and shared a lot of the same ideas. Snow adds having him at the shop for a few years was huge so people could see a friendly face. 

Before Snow officially took over, Corey introduced him to people in the community, including Chamber of Commerce representatives as well as a local networking organization. He also called his top 100 customers to explain what was happening so by the time the official announcement was made, everyone knew that Snow was the person that the Mahers chose to take over. In the shop’s windows, caricatures of the brothers depicted the two with their arms extended and when the new ownership took over, they playfully added the Rad Air logo in their arms as if they were presenting it to the community.  

For Snow’s part, he made sure to get to know the staff and customers by hanging out in the shop for a few weeks, even going as far as to wear a Maher Brothers sweatshirt. Snow says although employees can be apprehensive of new ownership, it went much better than he anticipated. He says that spending that time in the shop paid off because his team could sense that he was a good guy. 

The only real obstacle the team had with the new ownership was that Rad Air had a different inspection process than Maher Brothers did. Although the team was initially frustrated, Snow assured them that they could tweak it to find a solution that worked for them and eventually they found their groove. 

Aftermath: 

Snow estimates that he was able to keep roughly 75 percent of the customers that Maher Brothers Automotive had, along with picking up new customers. He says that revenue has tripled in 12 years, and the staff has doubled.

Takeaway: 

For any shop owner that’s considering repositioning itself—either through new ownership, a name change, or even a new phone-answering process—Snow says to think it through and decide if it’s really what you want. Ask yourself whether a refresh will really move the needle and make a difference; otherwise, it’s not worth it. Snow cautions that such moves are expensive, so first make sure that it will pay off. 

He also urges shop owners to see ideas all the way through. He says he’s seen many shops toy with introducing a new logo or a new name and then only put it up on a few social platforms but it’s not consistent throughout, so rather than making a difference, people are just confused.  

Perhaps the most important piece of advice he has is that if there is something you are thinking about to improve your business, you need to take action.

“If you leave that plan in your notebook, it’s never executed,” Snow says.

Although some people want an idea or a plan to be flawless before it’s executed, it will never be perfect. If you want to change something in your business and think it will make a difference, you need to really go for it.