13 minute read
Real World Retail
Adapting to the Times
Solar Pro Tint n Tunes has moved through the challenges of the past year by creating transparency, fine-tuning procedures and nurturing a work-life balance.
FAST FACTS
MAIN LOCATION: WARRENSBURG, MO.
NUMBER OF LOCATIONS: ONE
SQUARE FOOTAGE: 5,000
TYPE: TRADITIONAL RETAIL
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: FOUR
MAIN FOCUS:
42.3% CAR AUDIO
46% WINDOW TINT
5% REMOTE START
4.7% IGNITION INTERLOCK DEVICES
2% MOBILE VIDEO
KEY STAFF
OWNER: CJ BARNHART
SHOP MANAGER: AARON SCHILDKNECHT
WINDOW TINT: MIKE GAITHER
Solar Pro Tint n Tunes in Warrensburg, Mo. is comprised of a small team of technicians, headed by owner CJ Barnhart and shop manager Aaron Schildknecht. It’s a family business, as Schildknecht is Barnhart’s brother-in-law. Both men have been involved since the beginning in 2005, when the shop opened its doors independent from its original tint business and incorporated 12-volt into its offerings.
“When I was in middle school, I walked by this stereo shop every day,” Barnhart said. “They talked to me, let me watch [them work], let me sweep and pick up trash. When I started driving, I became a customer and within a year I was employed.”
The building has been known for car audio since the late 1970s. In 2014, Barnhart bought out the business, then approached the landlord and made arrangements to purchase the location, as well.
“This is the building I got my start in 21 years ago. I now own it, and I run my business here every day,” he said, adding that it’s within walking distance to restaurants. “Clients will bring their vehicles in, go downtown and have lunch.”
The right side of the bay is set aside for 12-volt, and the left side is for window tinting. The shop boasts 5,000 square feet, with 1,700 set aside for the showroom and the waiting area, and 3,300 split between the two main departments, with a 15-foot wall keeping everything separate.
Mutual Local Support Gains Referrals
While it began primarily as a window tinting business, today, car audio and window tint at Solar Pro are just about evenly split in terms of revenue—almost 50/50—with smaller percentages coming from remote starts, mobile video and ignition interlock devices.
The shop doesn’t stray far from its niche categories, according to Barnhart, who said it maintains relationships with other local businesses rather than compete. As a result, a nearby truck accessory shop refers business to Solar Pro, and vice versa. “He’ll mount light bars and roof racks, then send the vehicle to us to wire it. He’ll tell the customer that’s what we do. He’ll say, ‘I’ll do it, but they can do it at another level.’ We share business that
Orca / Focal Demonstrates Commitment to Dealers During Pandemic
After four years with Orca and Focal, Barnhart said one of the best things about the company is its level of transparency. During the past year’s product shortages, the vendor has always been clear about when and if it’s aware of incoming product availability, a level of directness which Barnhart prefers.
“Don’t give me a false sense of hope, because ultimately I pass that to my customer,” he said. Focal’s level of transparency, he noted, is very valuable to Solar Pro clients who don’t usually mind waiting for product.
In a demographic that enjoys quality sound at mid-line prices, Barnhart said the Flax series in the Focal lineup is a “happy medium” for most clients. In using top-down selling, the team will begin with the Utopia lineup and go down from there.
“We were excited when the Focal Flax 8-inch came out because it gives the option of having a subwoofer for applications where [something of that size] might be all that fits,” he said. Adding Mosconi processors and amplifiers to the shop’s offerings, according to Barnhart, has been a natural progression from Focal.
Geofencing the Best Route for Local Marketing
Years ago, Barnhart said marketing comprised a large chunk of sales. Today, it doesn’t. Most of the shop’s marketing is done via Facebook and other social media outlets, and a lot of it uses organic growth to raise awareness. Aaron Schildknecht handles that end of things.
“We also use Google AdWords, and we run a campaign with a local newspaper,” Barnhart said. “We don’t do anything in print more than twice a year, but we advertise on their digital site [year-round].”
This has a high click-through rate, he noted. But one of the most effective tools is geofence target marketing, which allows the business to set specific areas to “geofence,” enabling ads to appear, for example, if someone goes to the license borough to renew tags, or purchases a new car: “Our ad would pop up [on their device], and we get priority because we wanted that area geofenced.”
While it still works well, Barnhart said the click-through rate isn’t as high as it was when the program was first introduced in his area.
The business’s latest endeavor is an electronic video billboard: “I am hoping to at least double my return on investment. I have high hopes for it,” he added.
way, and even shuttle cars back and forth for our clients.”
The shop’s target demographic has shifted over the years, from younger people to 30- to 55-year-olds who have a little extra money to spend. Generally, these clients also want more custom fabrication and higher-end installations.
The shop also attracts a lot of military clients because of the nearby base, and has a positive relationship with some of its higher-ranked individuals who will send referrals. Often, family members of military personnel will contact the shop and want to order something as a gift, according to Barnhart. “I would love to have an online store
where people can buy something from out of state and ship it to the recipient at the base, or have it here for the installation,” he said, adding that his original idea was based on parents of young airmen who are out of state and would call wanting to buy a stereo for their son, but didn’t know how to go about it.
The concept, Barnhart said, would allow them to choose something specific and heartfelt, and the recipient of the gift would come in to have it installed.
Maintaining Detail-Oriented OEM Appearance
Aaron Schildknecht, shop manager, has furnished the 12-volt side of the shop,
according to Barnhart, who added that the team relies a great deal on a laser and CNC to cut speaker templates.
A factory look is “mimicked” by paying close attention to every detail. “Aaron builds an adapter that’s physically fastened in place. Rivnuts and stainless steel hardware hold in the speaker plates,” Barnhart said. “Then we attach the aftermarket speaker. We’ve found we get better sound quality. There’s less vibration from the door itself.”
While Barnhart said it’s important to ensure a high standard, he admitted that
five or ten years ago, he wasn’t as focused on the practice. “We’ve grown a lot in that area,” he said. “We don’t want to take any half-steps.”
Sometimes, a client will come into the shop having completed an install themselves and they’ll request a small fix. In the past, the shop might’ve taken a look and made the repairs. Now, Barnhart said, it’s different.
“We can’t just fix what they want us to fix. We want to help them, but if it’s a mess, or there are frayed wires, we have to address all the issues before it leaves
here.” Most of all, he added, it’s a safety concern, and he doesn’t want the business’s name on anything questionable.
Barnhart said the shop’s policies have created a bedrock of trust between the team and their clients. Often, a client will say, “Let’s do what you’d do.”
He noted that Schildknecht will show photos of installs to the client, and explain why he would choose one speaker over another, as well as discussing his reasoning for placement.
“All day Saturday, he does consultations—no installs,” Barnhart said. “If someone comes in with a bike, boat or a car and they’re wanting a full custom build, he can focus all his attention on them.”
The first step is to take a look at the client’s car and listen to the system using their preferred music. “Then we bring them in and show them options, and we really break it down,” Barnhart said, adding that the shop uses top-down selling.
“We don’t want anyone to make the mistake of cutting things out, and then ending up with something less than what they were expecting,” he said. “We like to get an idea of what they want, find out what we can offer and then build a price quote from there, maybe putting emphasis on one area versus another.”
The team has derived a lot of new techniques from KnowledgeFest sessions in the past, but Barnhart said they weren’t able to attend the online KnowledgeFest. Live events as they had hoped.
“It’s hard to set aside the time. We believe knowledge is power, but with the unpredictability we’re dealing with right now, we’ve had to put that on hold,” he explained.
Transparency Bolsters Team Effort
Transparency within the business has helped increase profitability. It was at KnowledgeFest that Barnhart first learned the importance of “knowing your numbers,” he said.
“We began as a window tinting company that did some car audio. The growth in 12-volt is catching up to the growth we see in window tinting.”
He said he used to think if everyone knew the numbers, it would create some level of animosity, adding, “Such as, ‘If you make that much, then I want more.’ But we all understand it takes a certain amount to run the business. It’s helped with the drive to help make the business more profitable, because [the team wants] job security like everyone else.”
He noted one of the key aspects of operation at Solar Pro is that a job begins and ends with the same technician, giving the client a sense of comfort and reliability. “Since we opened, Aaron and I have been the face of the business. It gives our clients a warm feeling and makes them more comfortable spending money with us.”
While Schildknecht handles anything custom-made or hand-built, he’s also an expert on the sales floor, according to Barnhart. “If you’re working with someone on the sales floor who will also be doing the install, it’s a very personal experience,” he said. “When our clients’ projects are complete, they know Aaron by his first name. If they want to trade in the vehicle and take all the equipment out, they’ll call and ask for him.”
Barnhart said he’s best with day-today operations and the actual running of the business. Each team member has his strengths.
“Mike is more on the window tinting side. He does a lot of assisting, helping to pull and organize wire and installs,” he added. “Because we don’t have a lot of staff, we can all bounce around and help each other.”
Yelp: An Ineffective Marketing Tool for Solar Pro
In the past, the shop has tried just about everything, including Yelp, which turned out to be ineffective. “Then we found Thrive, a phonebook company, and they put us on all the online phonebooks. They also deal with Yelp,” Barnhart explained.
Instead of paying for Yelp as a separate service, Solar Pro is able to pay for a bundle of services from one company and save money in the long run.
“I think business is a lot of live-andlearn,” he said. “You never know [if something will work] until you try.”
Personalized Emails Prove a Good Method for Follow-Ups
Due to staffing issues, follow-ups have been difficult, too. Barnhart said he feels the team has been falling short, but they continue collecting contact information, and have switched their point of sale system to Shop Monkey. “Our receptionist used to send personalized follow-up emails with invitations to call or to see if they had questions,” Barnhart said, adding that the emails came from her specifically instead of simply Solar Pro Tint n Tunes. However, the shop’s previous receptionist left during COVID, and the practice fell to the wayside.
“We hope to get back into that because we saw a lot of positive feedback,” he added, noting that the business has hired a new receptionist who will be handling it in the future. Generic mailers received very little attention, while emails personalized to specific clients and projects had a much higher open rate.
Willingness to Adapt Helps Business Persevere
In the case of backorders during the pandemic, Schildknecht—who handles inventory—said the shop spent more on shipping than usual in the past year than ever before.
“We were ordering piece by piece and having to hunt things down,” he said, adding that the shop began to carry more inventory when they realized things would be tight. “Balancing that, knowing when to buy and when not to buy, that’s hard.”
The shop recently instituted a new policy intended to help give the staff more flexibility to accommodate a worklife balance. Each Monday morning, the staff meets for 30 to 45 minutes to discuss projects for the day, backorders or any new policies. The store’s new hours support seamless operation. In the past, the team would arrive a few minutes before opening at nine a.m.
“Everything was rushed,” Barnhart explained, adding that the staff now arrives at 8:30. “We still don’t open until nine, and we’re here until 5:30” instead of six p.m. This allows time in the morning to discuss the day’s tasks. “With that 30 minutes extra in the morning, we’re more prepared. It’s invaluable for morale and customer flow. Plus, leaving 30 minutes early feels good and gives us all the ability to have more time at home.”
This balance is something Barnhart has personally struggled with in the past, and working on it has made him a more positive person, he said.
Due to the pandemic, the shop also implemented a new practice with scheduling, which Barnhart said they’ll keep moving forward. The majority of 12-volt clients now drop their cars off in the morning. Then, the POS system is used to text them when vehicles are ready for pickup. The goal was to increase comfort level and keep people from waiting in the showroom, but it had the side-effect of giving Schildknecht the flexibility to work on jobs in a more manageable order.
Barnhart admitted he’d love to switch permanently to a locked showroom, but he said his local clientele wouldn’t respond well to it. “We got pushback during the pandemic for that, but we did find we were more efficient and it was easier to get stuff done,” he added.
During the pandemic, the business has learned to adapt not only with how things are handled in the shop, but how clients are addressed, according to Barnhart. He admitted he was concerned about the direction of the business during the past year. “There’s nothing we sell that someone has to have. I was apprehensive. I didn’t know where we were headed,” he said, adding that none of the team wanted to do anything other than car audio, and this was their impetus for finding a way to move forward.
And how did they do it? “Passion,” Barnhart said, adding, “Our passion is the only reason we accomplished it. We had to keep people thinking of us. We wanted to make sure they knew we’d still be here.”
