Retail News

KarTele Mobile Electronics Refreshes Look with Shop and Showroom Remodel

WORDS BY LAURA KEMMERER

Waterbury, Conn.-based KarTele Mobile Electronics recently celebrated the completion of its shop and showroom remodel, a 15-month venture that both refreshed the business’ look and proved to be a challenge with the disruption of the pandemic.

Owner Mike Hungerford noted that since he took over the business, the change was

something he wanted to do from day one.

“It had been here for 23 years when I took over and it looked exactly the same. It opened in 1994,” he said. Before the remodel, when a customer walked in, they would be looking at the side of a counter. Now the counter is pushed back, facing the customers and the waiting area. This helps customers

feel welcome and helps boost sales. Audio is on one side of the room, and additional categories on the other side.

“The day I took over, I looked around and felt it could use a refresh, so I started with the shop area. Got that organized, set up, painted. More efficient,” Hungerford said. “More productive. Everything where it needs to be. We laid down an

epoxy floor because we do a lot of vehicles and with the snow, the epoxy floor is so much easier to push the water out, and no dust, which is awesome.”

In terms of remodel work that needed to be done, the previous cabinets were old. “We refinished them and added new hardware and a new top,” he said. “That helped keep the cost way

down and we were able to customize to suit our needs. Now all the installation supplies are hidden, the drills are behind doors, everything always looks neat and clean.”

Hungerford also wanted the waiting room to be comfortable. The overall aim for the remodel was to have something in place that was reminiscent of a high-end dealership. It took eight or nine months of planning to get all of the details just right. Another reason Hungerford wanted to remodel was to help distinguish KarTele from other businesses in the area.

The primary challenge for this project stemmed from keeping the shop open while also tackling remodel work. According to the shop owner, a number of customers thought the shop was closed due to the pandemic. There were many late nights spent working on the remodel. Hungerford even hand-stenciled the logo on the shop floor.

“Window tinting was another reason for remodeling the shop area. We used to have a regular cement floor, and you could sweep this thing five times and still get another pile of dust and dirt out of the cement cracks, so we redid the floor to cut down on that.”

Like a number of other mobile electronics businesses, KarTele has been thriving even with pandemic shutdowns. Hungerford attributes the record year to customers having savings or income set aside for a vacation, but instead chose to go for vehicle upgrades.

Matcom Group LLC Says Protect Your Business by Protecting Your Finances

The pandemic has impacted a number of businesses, and according to Luis Matos of Matcom Group LLC, sometimes what you need to do to save your business is to keep an eye on your pennies and dollars and call in some extra favors.

“I find that watching and trimming your overhead when necessary can make a huge impact on your business in these times we’re going through,” Matos wrote. “Don’t just watch the dollars. Watch those pennies at the end of the year. It could make a huge difference. You would be surprised.”

Matos also recommends that at least for now, hold off on purchasing those cool new toys for your business—at least until things are better. He also recommended asking your family and friends for help in promoting your business. Calling in those extra favors can help draw in business when you need it the most.

Photo Credit: Yahaira N. Lopez

806 Autoworks Celebrates Four Years in Business

In November, Amarillo, Texas-based 806 Autoworks celebrated four years in business. Though the pandemic prevented any kind of formal celebration from taking place, business has still been holding strong, though like many other businesses, 806 has struggled with product shortages.

“When I opened the business four years ago, I never thought it would grow the way it did. I thought four, five, six years down the road, I might be doing

what I did in year two, but instead it just exploded. I wanted to do something no one else had done in Amarillo,” said shop owner Bryan Turvaville.

“I wanted to give the customers a customizable experience. I didn’t want to just have displays with tons of product in it, and say, ‘Okay, pick something.’ I wanted to sit down with each customer and say, what do you want to do? How do you want your system to sound? What do you expect out of your investment?

I wanted to sell them the system they were looking for, not just a product on a shelf.” Turvaville said the business has grown from a $16,000 initial investment to $400,000 in gross sales this year alone. He also hopes to eventually acquire more space for expansion.

“This past year we teamed up with another company, West Texas Linings. He was completely mobile when he started. He joined us here, and then we offered window tint, spray-in bed liners, vehicle graphics—everything he did. With the

partnership, and the growth we’ve had this year, we want to add another 2,000 square,” Turvaville said.

The business has grown from doing car audio and remote start and truck accessories to adding leather kits and full custom packages. Turvaville is focused on trying to grow well, but not too quickly. Currently, the shop’s top categories are car audio and remote starts.

One of the most important things he said he’s learned is that good business owners should delegate things. Hire the

right help. He also emphasized, however, that owners shouldn’t sweat the small stuff, as there will always be issues. “Get a solution, execute the solution and move on. If you let it stress you or rule what you do, you’ll fail,” Turvaville said. “But if you take it in stride, and take each issue one at a time, it’s a lot easier to manage. Remember that saying: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”

A.C.T. Audio Celebrates Apprentice’s Birthday

A.C.T. Audio recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of apprentice Ethan Deer working with the company. When Deer turned 18, the shop celebrated with a small company get-together before the pandemic worsened again.

Business owner James P. Smith emphasized that Deer is a fantastic tech. “I can give him any job, and he will get it done 100 percent or ask the right questions to get it done. He loves this job, he’s an all-star, so we gave him a little birthday

celebration, a surprise for him,” Smith said. Deer has worked in various departments—including detailing, accessories, remote start, audio and motorcycles, among other work, but he doesn’t enjoy tinting all that much.

The party was both to celebrate Deer and bring the industry together. “I had Nick Frazier of iNNovative Concepts come, I had Mike Hungerford and his wife come and I had Jonathan Mercado and his girlfriend come,” said the owner.

Though these are competitors, Smith noted that he wanted to see more of this coming together in camaraderie in the industry.

Smith noted with humor that Deer’s first damage claim was rather bad, and so the birthday cake was made to look like the door of the vehicle Deer had damaged.

Pictured in the group photo from left to right: Ethan Deer, Dan Holben, Victor Cunha, Carlos Santos, Mike Tracey, Whitney Russell and James P. Smith.