BUSINESS PROFILE
FAR AND WIDE 3M’s ties with the automotive aftermarket date back to the beginning BY MADDY KYLIE
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n August 12, 2020, 3M’s Automotive Aftermarket division Business Manager Craig Jalbert sat down with Collision Repair’s Maddy Kylie to discuss how 3M has helped Canada’s automotive aftermarket survive the pandemic, in an exclusive live webinar. Craig has worked for 3M’s aftermarket division for 16 years now and is currently going into his 17th year. Within 3M’s automotive aftermarket division, he has worked in a variety of roles, and has thoroughly enjoyed serving the industry. “I can see the passion in this industry and it’s just fun to be a part of it.” In the webinar, Craig broke-down 3M’s 100-yearplus history with the automotive aftermarket. He explained that 3M originated in 1902 as a smallscale mining venture, however, it quickly grew into several other industries—one of the first being the automotive aftermarket. The first product 3M manufactured specifically for the aftermarket was WetorDry Sandpaper in 1917, followed by Scotch Masking Tape in 1925. “We’ve invested in the aftermarket from the early stages of the 1900s—at the grassroots of this industry,” he said.“We invested innovation to bring the first waterproof paper to the industry. So, this produced less friction, less dust, in a shop in the early 1900s. And then, the second milestone— which is kind of unique and I think the people in the aftermarket should be proud of that—is in 1925, we brought in masking tape. We pivoted as a company—it was an abrasive company—to start bringing in masking tapes. And this was the first scotch platform that used scotch tape and that was invented in the aftermarket division.” And, the rest is history, in the following years 3M continued to bring innovation to the aftermarket with products such as panel bonding adhesives, Trizact, PPS, soft edge foam masking tape, and many more.
During an exclusive webinar with Collision Repair, Craig Jalbert, business development manager for 3M’s Automotive Aftermarket division outlined the company’s rich history in the sector.
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3M boasts a 100-plus year history working alongside the automotive aftermarket. The first product manufactured specifically for the aftermarket was WetorDry Sandpaper in 1917, followed by Scotch Masking Tape in 1925.
