3 State Associations, Industry Speakers

Collision repair skills training, live product demonstrations and the John Eagle Honda Fit vehicle were all part of the Southeast Collision Conference, held June 23-25 at the Gateway Conference Center in Richburg, SC.

The event, held in partnership with Assured Performance Network and Collision Hub, was hosted by the Carolinas Collision Association (CCA), Gulf States Collision Association (GSCA) and the Tennessee Collision Repairers Association (TCRA).

“It was really good seeing shops coming together,” said Josh Kent, executive director of CCA, GSCA and TCRA. This was the first time the associations gathered for a conference in person since the pandemic. “The event exceeded our expectations,” said Kyle Bradshaw, president of CCA and director of Fixed Operations at K&M Collision. “We had a great time and I’ve had a lot of really good feedback.” The goal of CCA is to better the collision repair industry. The nonprofit organization focuses on continuous improvement through training and support for members and business partners to facilitate safe and correct repairs for consumers.

Bradshaw said some of the

Pictured, left to right, are Josh Kent, executive director of CCA, GSCA and TCRA; Chris Hedrick, general manager of Statesville Collision Center, named “Most improved shop of North Carolina;” Marc John, from Statesville Collision Center, who was named Technician of the Year; and Kyle Bradshaw, president of CCA and director of Fixed Operations at K&M Collision Josh Kent arranged to have the John Eagle Honda Fit vehicle on display, sponsored by Intrepid Direct, to remind attendees what can happen when vehicle repair procedures aren’t followed

larger collision repair conferences can be intimidating and many people don’t have the luxury to take off time and leave their businesses to travel across the country.

“People have a desire to better themselves and that is really the goal of the conference,” he said. “We felt like we definitely accomplished that and we’re excited about the momentum we have.”

Platinum conference sponsors included Calibrators of the Carolinas, Lombard Equipment and ShopFix.

On the first day of the event, Collision Hub held a training day, with more than 80 attendees. Kristen Felder, COO of Collision Hub, discussed negotiations and total loss claims, and Rachel James, financial advisor and field director for Northwestern Mutual, provided a high-level overview of body shop finance and employee payment/retention plans. Felder said the goal of a Collision Hub training event is to give shops unfiltered access to problem-solving techniques and strategies. This includes how shops can reduce stress, frustration and anger while translating that into still recovering more money per repair order (RO), and turning total loss vehicles into a profit center that supports the shop’s growth with a healthy net profit.

“We take years of experience in claims and claims training to present the tactics and strategies that are

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Following the training day, an awards ceremony was held that evening, recognizing local association members.

“We wanted to celebrate the people who are in the shops and doing the actual work,” noted Kent.

Award winners included:

• Most improved shop of North Carolina: Statesville Collision Center, in Statesville; Chris Hedrick, general manager

• Most improved shop of South Carolina: Prestige Collision Services in Pendleton; Shane Isbell, owner • Most improved shop of Mississippi: Richie’s Collision Center in Hattiesburg; owners Richard and Tracy Lewis, who is also president of GSCA • Most improved shop of Tennessee: Wallace Collision Center in Bristol; John Baker, manager • Technician of the Year: Marc John, Statesville Collision Center in Statesville, NC • Painter of the Year: Kirt Martin, Palmetto Paint & Body in Camden, SC • Customer Service Representative of the Year: Ashley Stukes, Big Chris Collision in Aiken, SC • Detailer of the Year: Zach McClure, Starnes Collision Center in Charlotte, NC • Estimator of the Year: Michaela Hood, Galeana Body Shop in Columbia, SC

Over the next two days, more than 30 vendors showcased their products and services. On the last day of the conference, three skills competitions were held, focused on paint, welding and estimating. The winners received $1,000 each. They included Andrew Speight (paint), Ben Donahoe (welding) and Will Barkley (estimating).

The paint and welding competitions incorporated virtual reality equipment sponsored by Robbie Lynch from Fayetteville Technical Community College. The paint competition was sponsored by PPG, welding was sponsored by Autotality, and Spark Underwriters sponsored the estimating competition, which was judged by Mike Anderson.

Attendees also had an opportunity to network.

“The camaraderie and networking aspect is something that I was really pleased with,” said Bradshaw. “There was a lot of really good feedback as far as the connections made and people realizing that they are not the only ones having this issue or problem.”

A unique feature of the conference was the inclusion of the John Eagle Honda Fit vehicle, sponsored by Intrepid Direct. Kent arranged to have the car on display to remind attendees what can happen when vehicle repair procedures aren’t followed.

The Honda Fit was part of the John Eagle lawsuit in which the owners of the vehicle were awarded $42 million by the John Eagle dealership in Texas related to injuries sustained due to faulty collision repairs.

“It’s an epidemic in this industry that repair procedures aren’t followed,” said Kent. “There are a lot of excuses in this industry on why we can’t do things right. People need to be reminded that people’s lives are at stake.”

“Everyone’s heard about it but to actually see it in person makes it a little more real,” said Bradshaw. “To realize the result of our decisions and the role that those play in the safety of human beings was really impactful. I think it’s probably opened some people’s eyes.” A variety of educational classes were also offered during the event. “Education is important and for the 90% of the industry that doesn’t educate themselves, it’s a shame,” said Kent.

“Being able to provide that education to others helps make people better,” added Bradshaw. “My biggest thing is everybody realizing that they can be better tomorrow than they were today.”

Kent said all three of the host associations are growing and CCA is one of the more active associations in the U.S., planning four quarterly meetings a year, as well as educational classes. As executive director, Kent said one of his goals has been to emulate the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and how close that organization’s board is. “That was one thing I wanted to take note of—to bring my board together,” he said.

As a result, yearly retreats are held, which he has found to be successful.

“I visit conferences all over the United States and they are all good but our vibe in regard to the closeness of our people feels different,” said Kent.

Upcoming Events:

July 28: Danny Gredinberg, website administrator at Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG), will speak in Baton Rouge, LA, at the Automotive Technology Center at Baton Rouge Community College Aug. 4: Mark Olson, CEO of Vehicle Collision Experts, will speak during the TCRA meeting at Chattanooga State Community College in Tennessee

For more information about the associations and these events, contact Josh Kent at oregon.josh.kent@ gmail.com.

Andrew Speight received the award for the paint competition

Ben Donahoe won the welding contest Will Barkley received the top prize for estimating

Industry Speakers Share Insight During SCC

A variety of educational classes were held during the Southeast Collision Conference, featuring top industry speakers.

Here are highlights from three of the presentations that took place at the event, held June 2325 in Richburg, SC, and hosted by CCA, GSCA and TCRA.

Consumer Communication and Sales

Kristen Felder, COO of Collision Hub, offered attendees communication tips in her presentation, “Shut Up! Consumer Communication and Sales.” Felder’s advice is to “shut up” and “ask questions.”

“We all seem to approach a customer with an agenda---a pre-planned speech with all the information we think they must know in order to make the decision ‘we’ want them to make,” she noted.

Instead, she recommends taking the time to make a personal connection and asking people how you can help them and really mean it.

“Stop lecturing them and start getting to know them,” she said. “No one wants someone to tell

them what they should and shouldn’t know.”

Then, she advises shops to do whatever they ask, rather than what the shop wants or thinks should be done.

“If you are the helpful place they feel they can land, they’ll trust you,” she pointed out. “If you’re not, they’ll trust the insurer. Their commercials are better than ours.”

Felder said regional focused tradeshows are the only future for the industry.

“Shops are overworked and understaffed every day,” she said. “The shops need to be close and specifically target their region with real information they can immediately implement.”

She said regional shows allow experts to dial in and speak to shops, rather than speak in terms of the general industry.

“This is what makes the regional shows, like the Southeast Collision Conference, so important to the industry and what makes the shops that attend so special,” explained Felder. “They’re not there for the dinner parties or a golf tournament. They are there to learn and improve. A small group of focused individuals can accomplish what 100,000 generalists could never do.”

Becoming the Employer of Choice

Dave Luehr, owner of Elite Body Shop Solutions, talked about “Becoming the Employer of Choice in Your Market.”

To become a magnetic business that attracts top talent, according to Luehr, it requires learning and applying the five key elements of a magnetic business. These include meaningful work, acknowledgement, measurement, teamwork and goal guidance.

“After studying outlier businesses that do not seem to be affected by the so-called ‘talent shortage,’ we have learned that any business that applies the five keys that we teach can soon find themselves the market’s main attraction for the best employees,” he said.

Luehr said it was really nice to be back with the industry at the conference.

“It is a very special conference for me, since I have become close to many of the attendees,” said Luehr. “There was an overall feeling of excitement and freedom in the air after such a long pandemic delay. Personally, I felt like a caged animal being let out of my ‘COVID cage.’”

He said Executive Director Josh Kent and the associations involved did an incredible job putting the event together while bringing in many of the top trade show vendors and industry trainers.

“I’m so proud and grateful to the people in

A variety of educational classes were held during the Southeast Collision Conference, featuring top industry speakers Kristen Felder, COO of Collision Hub, offered attendees communication tips in her presentation, “Shut Up! Consumer Communication and Sales

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