Member Corner
Lancaster County Small Business of the Year Award Recipient
Announced at 2010 Chamber Annual Meeting. Remarks by Award Co-sponsor
First Citizens Bank Executive Don Gardner
Our 2009 Small Business of the Year is a family-owned business that began in 1978 as a one-man operation. Having worked in this field for nearly twenty years, our small business owner sold a lake house, borrowed funds, and took the plunge into business ownership.
The company’s history explains its long-term success. During the early years, the business was a typical, old-fashioned body shop; but seeing the future, computers were added in the early 1990s.Then in 2001, the family began a major change to “recreate” the business in order to modernize and prepare for the future. On the same property of the long-standing body shop, an 8000 square foot Collision Center was built, including a suite of offices, waxed floors and TV cable news in the comfortable lobby. Updated technical equipment, a modern paint booth, and a laser measuring system were all part of the new organization. And, as anticipated, business did increase.
This family and business are committed to the Lancaster community. Not only active in the Chamber, the business is a corporate sponsor of Relay for Life and sponsors a Dixie Youth Baseball team. Family members are members of Rotary, active in the American Cancer Society, Red Cross volunteers, Junior Achievement volunteers and have been active in Dixie Youth Baseball and the Lancaster Recreation Commission Board. The family is also actively involved in their church.
This company feels its success is three-fold. First, the company values its employees, and treats them with respect and as co-workers. Second, this business believes the best form of advertising is word of mouth and they work to provide on-time, quality service and excellent customer relations. And finally, the company has developed a good working relationship with insurance companies.
While collision repairs and auto painting continue to be the main products, the company also maintains 24-hour, seven days a week towing service which is answered personally by a staff member, and provides certified, well-maintained Rent-A-Cars for customers’ convenience.
The company will look for innovative ways to do their job while staying equipped to provide quality service, and new marketing avenues will be explored. Most importantly, the family and business plan to stay involved as volunteers and to give back monetarily to the community simply because they believe that is the way to live.