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CULTIVATE PATIENCE
What are the keys to advancing in your craft? Retailers recommend putting in the time, attending trainings, nurturing a solid support system and cultivating patience.
“I honestly think patience is key. Not everything you do will be successful and not everything will go your way. Make sure you have a great support system in place. Mine is my family who 100 percent supports what I am trying to do. The only thing I wish I had done differently would be to have started this adventure a little sooner so I would be a little further along.” - John Brettle, The Mesh Man, Centerville, Utah “Training makes you more efficient. You have to get the install to a point where you can test it without having to go back and undo a bunch of things if something’s wrong. [Your ego] wants you to complete it, test it and know that it’s good because you did it—but that’s not always the case. I think training is huge. You need classroom training and hands-on training, which is probably more important. [A technician might be able to] recite Ohm’s Law to me, but if they know how to use a multimeter, and they know the capacities of an amp, that’s better because you can make the shop money versus [be able to simply] pass a test.” - Sam Flynn, Flynn Audio, Middleton, Wis. “If you want to expand your skillset, you have to put in the time. You need to make the commitment to push yourself and your knowledge to the next level. It has to become part of your routine.” - Adam Devine, Devine Concepts, Naples. Fla.
BOOK: The Power of One More: The Ultimate Guide to Happiness and Success
BY ED MYLETT Often, people are only one more intentional thought or action away from discovering their best life. In this book, renowned keynote speaker and performance expert Ed Mylett draws on 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur and coach to top athletes, entertainers and business executives. He reveals powerful and practical strategies to help you live this extraordinary “one more” life. Read about his breakthrough ideas: becoming an impossibility thinker and a possibility achiever, the dynamics of team chemistry and becoming a “One More Multiplier,” and faith, energy, and quantum science. Use these universal strategies to kick-start change in your life—both professionally and personally.
BOOK: To Risk It All: Nine Conflicts and the Crucible of Decision
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WATCH THIS: American Auto
WWW.NBC.COM/AMERICAN-AUTO Start your engines if you haven’t already. American Auto, a car-centric comedy, was just renewed for its second season which is expected to have 13 episodes. The plotline certainly makes sense: A floundering group of executives at a major American automotive company in Detroit try to rediscover the company identity amidst a rapidly changing industry. Watch how the folks at Payne Motors try to navigate the world of self-driving cars and other 2021 industry challenges. With producers and actors that have ties to The Office, Superstore and Saturday Night Live, there’s no question this got the green light.
SITE TO SEE: Overland Expo
WWW.OVERLANDEXPO.COM Overlanding was already a thing pre-pandemic, but now this vehicle-based adventure travel pastime is booming. With off-the-beaten-path exploration, camping and self-reliance on everyone’s radar, overlanding is exciting for both first-timers and seasoned pros. There’s no better place to check it out than the Overland Expo. A series of family-friendly events, the expo travels across the country from Arizona to Virginia between May and October. The next one is scheduled for July in Redmond, Oregon. You’ll see hundreds of vendors with cool gear and off-road builds of every shape, description and value. There’s also live music, food and more.
Whether it’s a natural disaster or another unanticipated event, industry professionals discuss best practices for ensuring businesses are ready for anything.
WORDS BY ROSA SOPHIA
In the last couple of years, the pandemic and devastating weather events have tested the preparedness not only of companies in the 12-volt industry, but of people everywhere who found themselves caught off-guard. June marks the beginning of hurricane season for those in the south and southeastern areas. Adam Devine of Devine Concepts in Naples, Fla. said he keeps a staple of supplies in case of emergency, for both home and business use.
“I have a generator for the house and extra five-gallon water jugs for the shop. I also have a few gas cans that I keep filled and cycled through rotation to make sure we have extra fresh gas,” he said. “I also keep non-perishable items and a go-bag of basic essentials, in case I just have to leave.”
COVID-19, he said, was eye-opening in terms of how he views emergency planning. He reflected on his experiences helping to manufacture and donate face shields during the start of the pandemic.
“It goes to show we were all a little unprepared for a mass emergency,” he said, adding that it caused him to put
Devine Concepts in Naples, Fla. stays prepped for hurricane season, which began on the first of June. Business owner Adam Devine said he also keeps a go-bag of essentials on hand in case he has to evacuate..
Dan Bowman, who works in sales at Titan Motoring, said the business is very “community forward,” and seeks to be of assistance as much as possible. more thought into creating a plan with family members, or having a secondary location in which to find safe harbor.
After all, he noted, “Anything can happen at any point in time.”
BE PREPARED WITH AN EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN
In 2020, in the midst of the pandemic, people everywhere were already being tested in terms of safety and preparedness. Then, Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana. Sandy Crespo-Mossi, operations manager for Oracle Lighting, based in Metairie, La. recalled a feeling of being on edge:
“We have some employees who live close to the water, and some who drive from farther away,” she said. “We knew the intensity of how fast Ida was coming. We closed and made sure everyone had enough time to evacuate.” Fortunately, Oracle Lighting didn’t suffer major
damages, she added. “Compared to many in this area, we were very lucky.”
When Ida hit, the company was already in a state of continuous preparedness due to COVID, according to Crespo-Mossi. “We had a limited group of people in our building. Most were working remotely. We were taking a lot of safety measures,” she said. “We switched gears and prepared for potential hurricanes. It was constant for us.”
She thought back to Hurricane Katrina in August of 2005, noting that Oracle was in a different location at the time. “During Katrina, the owners had to relocate the offices and operations to another state until they were able to return,” she said.
After Ida, Oracle began revamping its emergency action plans. Crespo-Mossi noted that it’s one thing to have the plans in place, but it’s a whole different thing to ensure the staff knows and understands those plans. Any company creating an action plan should make certain employees know what to do in case of an emergency.
If possible, a company should have a generator in case of power loss, she added. “I think we did really well during Ida, for the most part,” she said. “In a way, the pandemic prepared us. It allowed a lot of our customer service and sales to continue in a limited way from wherever [our employees had] been evacuated to.”
Dan Bowman, who works in sales at Titan Motoring in Nashville, Tenn., said, “In a perfect world, we’d have backup power so if you can get to work, you can keep earning.” However, he said, that’s not always possible for all businesses.
On December 11, 2021, tornados hit multiple communities in five states. Titan Motoring in Nashville, Tenn. had just completed a build on a 2019 Ford F-150 the previous month when a tornado came through, destroying the truck—along with the client’s second vehicle—with multiple fallen trees. The owner of the truck, Gary Pentecost, said he’d only used it once.
Due to supply chain issues, Pentecost is still waiting on his replacement truck. In the meantime, he purchased a preowned Ford F-150 Tremor, which Titan
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has worked on. Pentecost said the team at Titan Motoring has gone above and beyond throughout the process. The first person to call him the morning after the tornado was Bowman.
“They really understand the customer’s needs,” Pentecost said. “They really listened to what I was trying to accomplish. When I’m up in the woods and it’s dark, I can light up the entire area around my truck. They suggested lighting I didn’t even know I needed.”
Bowman said the team upgraded the truck so the client could pursue his outdoor hobbies of fishing and hunting. The vehicle had to be able to drive on difficult backroads in West Virginia, so the suspension was upgraded. “We added 70 to 80 horsepower, lifted it about 2.5 inches, and put in a radio and a full lighting upgrade,” he said, adding that the truck had to be able to pull a trailer on occasion, and also be able to navigate off-road to better hunting and fishing spots.
After the team at Titan Motoring completed a build for a client in November of 2021, tornados hit multiple communities in five states, causing a lot of damage. When the client’s truck was destroyed by fallen trees, the team carried out work for him on this Ford F-150 Tremor.
“Every region is a little different,” Bowman added. “Make sure you have multiple ways of communicating with your clients. It seems like we’re seeing more tornados lately, and they’re hard to contend with because they’re more unpredictable. There’s not a lot you can do.”
Devine said it’s important to stay as prepared as possible. Those living in Florida or in any area impacted by hurricane season, he added, are aware of how to get ready for storms, and when. However, he feels it’s important to reassess emergency planning as needed, or every six to eight months.
Don’t wait until a storm is coming to consider options. Have a plan, he said, “to protect your business and your employees, just like you have a plan for your home and your family.” He advised business owners to think of their business as their second home, and their employees as their extended family.
“Being educated about the current economic and meteorological climate is important to help you determine when adaptions are needed,” he said. “If you don’t know what’s going on or what could potentially happen, you’ll have a difficult time creating an efficient plan.”
FACE CHALLENGES AS A COMMUNITY
At Oracle Lighting, Crespo-Mossi said the pandemic only underscored the fact that the team always comes first. She added that, often, companies focus on revenue, “on how much money they’ll lose when things haven’t even happened yet.”
Oracle Lighting, though, is concerned with its people. “We have no business without our team. Hurricane Ida and the pandemic emphasized that even more,” she said, adding, “It’s most important to protect our staff.”
Bowman agreed, stating, “Make sure no one has put themselves in danger to get to work.”
Along with taking extra care with customers, Titan Motoring also tries to get involved with as many local charities and events as they can. The business takes part in toy drives, as well as year-round clothing drives to help the homeless. Titan will also get the public involved by sharing about it on social media. The important thing, he said, is that the community knows the team at Titan is there for them.
“In my experience, that’s how the custom car and 12-volt industry is—not just around here,” he said. In the past, when he worked for a different business, Bowman said the local Christmas parade was slated for cancellation, so the shop sponsored the entire thing. At Titan Motoring, Bowman said, “We want to the community to know we want to be involved wherever we can.”
“When a natural disaster happens, you’ve already got the mindset to pull together,” to support each other as a community, he said, adding, “Whether it’s raising money, collecting food, or offering support…we can help.”
