The Collision Vision

We’ve talked about recruiting and retention a ton here on this show. We’ve also talked training and career mapping. But we’ve never gone to the source, to the very beginning of the supply chain of collision repair talent… straight to the schools themselves. Today’s guest is Jeff Wilson, Collision Instructor and Department Chair at Kingwood Park High School where he is currently teaching 88 students in his collision repair program. Today’ Jeff and host Cole Strandberg will talk about the foundational stage of the future of the collision industry, recruiting the next generation of technicians, retaining this young talent, and much more. Enjoy the show! Website: https://www.humbleisd.net/o/kphs/staff?search=wilson&filter_ids=324787 Twitter/ X: @KPHSauto Email: jeff.wilson@humbleisd.net

Today’s guest is knowledgeable and experienced in two hot topics within the collision repair industry… marketing and recruiting. Today, we’ll talk about both. Diane Benting is a long-time member of the collision repair industry, working in various marketing roles at a prominent regional paint jobber before becoming President of BodyShopJobs, a job board for the collision repair industry. Enjoy the show! Website: www.bodyshopjobs.com Email: diane@bodyshopjobs.com Social: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmbenting/

Host Cole Strandberg was able to attend the 2024 National Meeting for I-CAR just a short time ago, and two presenters that were speaking The Collision Vision's language were a must-feature on the show. Today’s guests are Dara Goroff, I-CAR’s Vice President, Planning & Industry Talent Programming, and Arianna Sherlock, Senior Marketing Director for I-CAR. The two of them talked about talent programming, Colision Careers, and how we are going to recruit and train the next generation of collision repair technicians, and that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today as well! Enjoy the show!

Today’s guest made waves recently, when she announced a major move within the collision repair industry earlier this year. Michelle Sullivan is the CEO of Certified Collision Group, a member network platform that serves nearly 800 highly successful independent collision repair shops across the U.S. and Canada. Today, Michelle and host Cole Strandberg will dive into some high-level industry trends, the future of independent collision repairers, and how independent shops can stay competitive in an increasingly consolidated industry. Enjoy the show! Connect with Michelle: msullivan@certifiedcg.com https://certifiedcg.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/certifiedcg/

One extremely positive message that has developed out of the collision industry, particularly over the last few years, is the importance of being involved. That applies both locally and nationally within the collision repair industry. So what better people to speak with about ways to be involved than Josh Kent, Executive Director of The Carolina’s Collision Association, the Gulf States Collision Association, and the Tennessee Collision Repairers Association, and Jill Tuggle, the Executive Director of the Auto Body Association of Texas. Today, we’ll talk about some trends they’re seeing in our industry across the nation, the importance of being involved in your local association, and the value of regional shows for the collision repair industry. Enjoy the show! Connect with the Carolina's Collision Association here: https://carolinascollisionassociation.com/ Connect with Auto Body Association of Texas here: https://abat.us/ of email Jill Tuggle here: jill@abat.us

Today’s guest is Jordan Beshears, Vice President of Steve’s Auto Body, a two-store— and growing— operation out of the St. Louis area. Jordan and host Cole Strandberg discuss a ton in this episode, including how Steve’s Auto Body has grown to where it is today, the dynamics of a family business, OEM certifications vs. DRPs, some exciting growth plans in the works, and much more. Enjoy the show! Connect with Jordan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jordan-beshears-a9020621a/

Today’s guest is someone host Cole Strandberg considers to be a mentor… in fact, he hired Cole at his very first job out of school with an investment bank. David Boim is a long-time executive with vast experience in multiple industries within the world of private equity. He’s a turnaround guy from his early days, and now spends a ton of time consulting on business growth, business planning, and exit planning for small and medium businesses with his company, DSB & Associates. Today, we’ll talk about all of that and how it pertains to business leaders in the collision repair space and beyond. Enjoy the show!

Something we are big believers of in today’s business environment is producing high-quality content for your business, and this is especially applicable to collision repair centers. Today, we’ll be speaking with Jon Nigbor, President & CEO of WinWin Videos, a video production company with a ton of experience in the collision industry. We discuss why video is powerful, what kind of content can build trust with your audience, how to go about creating high-quality content, and a lot more. Enjoy the show! How to connect with John: Website: winwinvideos.com Email: jon.nigbor@winwinvideos.com Phone: 503.720.6431

It’s no secret that- from the perspective of sales- the last year or two have been good for the collision industry. We have a trend of growing sales and growing backlogs, though the latter seems to be trending downward… so the focus has really been on operations more than on marketing. That needs to change. With that in mind, today’s guest is Daniel Burkholder, Founder of Bodyshop Marketing and former collision operator. Daniel focuses exclusively on digital marketing for collision repairers, so in today’s conversation, we’ll dive into some strategies and tactics to ensure you’re doing what it takes to keep that pipeline full. Enjoy the show! Website: www.bodyshopmarketing.io Email: daniel@bodyshopmarketing.io Phone: 855-667-9648

Today’s guest is Russ Ramsey, CEO of Blue Vista Data Systems. Russ’ background, much like mine, includes a lot of time focused on supplying things for the collision repair industry… so while Russ knows the industry and knows it well, he proclaims to be a bit of an “outsider on the inside” of the collision industry. That resonates with me… Today, a lot of our conversation revolves around safety, training, reducing liability, and ensuring proper repairs, as well as some family business talk. Another them of this episode? While I have spoken in the past about ways to bring in more business, Russ walks through opportunities to generate more profit of the business you already have…I hope you enjoy the show! For more information visit https://www.bluevistadata.com/

G.B. Outlaw… known by most as just “Outlaw” is the President, Partner and Master Facilitator of Next Progression, providing leadership and performance insights, strategies and tools to help organizations and individuals unleash their full potential and make positive difference in the world. Get ready to be energized and motivated, and enjoy the show!

Our guest today is Giorgio Andonian, Managing Director with FOCUS Investment Banking’s Automotive Aftermarket team. Giorgio spends the bulk of his time in the wheel and tire, automotive services, and automotive technology spaces. The guy is an absolute rising star in the automotive industry! Today, we’ll talk about different opportunities to add related services to collision repair centers, the economic profiles of different segments of the automotive industry to offer a nice frame of reference to collision repair business owners, the future of automotive, and a lot more. Enjoy the show!

Today’s guest is someone host Cole Strandberg met at CIC at SEMA this past year and was immediately blown away by his story and his passion for the collision repair industry. John Melendez is the Owner of JDM Collision, located in Thornton, IL just south of Chicago. John used to be a multi-shop operator but currently operates out of one location. Something John believes you don’t need to be a huge operation to be successful in our industry. John is doubling down in the space, though, and we’ll talk all about that in our conversation today. Enjoy the show! Email: john@jdmcollision.com Social Media: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-melendez-576b59294/

Jay Goninen of WrenchWay joins us for another episode of The Collision Vision. He and host Cole Strandberg discuss the current state of the technician shortage as well as the ongoing Technician Pay Survey, providing the transparency desperately needed to attract technicians to the space. Learn more about the survey, and get your technicians to participate, here: https://wrenchway.com/blog/announcing-2024-automotive-diesel-technician-pay-survey/.

Today’s guest is Paul Williams, president of Brightpoint Auto Body, a family office-backed collision repair holding company with three brands and five locations at the time of this recording. Paul’s story is a fun one, and we’ll talk all about what Brightpoint is up to, as well as some exciting topics like family business, working for- and selling to- a large consolidator, and partnering with a family office to scale in a big way. Enjoy the show!

Today's episode is a special one. As some of you know, host Cole Strandberg's dad is a legend in the collision repair industry. Gregg Strandberg founded Filterworks USA (now known as Autotality), a company that eventually became one of the largest paint booth, frame and welding, and wheel and tire equipment distributors in the country. Today, he and Cole will talk all things related to shop buildouts. So whether you're looking to Brownfield or Greenfield new locations, looking to increase productivity in your existing footprint, or just want to hear some fun family banter about the family business, be sure to give this episode a listen. Enjoy the show! P.S. Happy Birthday, Dad!

Nancy Rolland with FOCUS Investment Banking joins us for another episode of The Collision Vision. As you might remember, Nancy is host Cole Strandberg's partner with the automotive aftermarket team at FOCUS, where they work together on M&A and capital raising within the collision industry. On this episode, Nancy and Cole discuss M&A activity in 2023, trends as we move into 2024, and revisit what you can do to increase your shop’s value and make it attractive to the different buyers out there. Enjoy the show!

Today, we bring you another episode "from the Vault" to round out an incredible 2023. You may remember Steve Olson, Managing Partner of Louisville Collision Centers. In addition to this episode of The Collision Vision, you may see Steve all over social media, where he showcases an incredible facility and a unique, attractive culture. In this conversation, we’ll talk about how Steve built Louisville Collision Centers to what it is today without DRPs, how he built his culture, and where Louisville Collision’s future is trending. An importan note... throughout this episode, we talk about Steve's focus on building one great collision center. Ironically, Steve and his team would go on to acquire Manchester Collision out of New Hampshire- another world-class facility- only a few short week after this initial recording. I encourage you to listen to this conversation through that lense and I hope you enjoy, once more, this great conversation with Steve Olson, from the vault.

We're coming to you this week with another throwback episode from the vault-- a story of crazy fast growth you may have heard before if you're a longtime listener to the Collision Vision. Our guest today- once more- is Casey Lund, owner of Collision Leaders (formerly known as Warrensburg Collision), an MSO out of Missouri. Casey’s background is fascinating and the growth within the Collision Leaders organization is unbelievable, going from one location to eight in just about one year. Casey and his team received a ton of recognition for that growth at SEMA this year, which was fun to see. We’ll talk about that scalability, how Casey has built a culture- and foundation- that has allowed that type of growth, and much more. Enjoy the show!

This is a nostalgic time of year. That nostalgia, combined with a continued flurry of conversations around the world of EVs, brings us back to an earlier era of the Collision Vision with our very first “from the vault” episode. This is an episode that- if you’re a longtime listener of The Collision Vision- might sound familiar, because we’ve aired it before, way back to the beginning. If you enjoy the conversation around EV collision repair, you’ll love this conversation. With that said, Today’s guest is once more Kelly Logan, Senior Manager for Rivian’s Collision Repair program. Kelly has tons of experience in collision repair, collision repair equipment, and- something we’ll talk about a lot today—collision repair within the world of EV OEs. On this episode, we’ll discuss electrification and the future of collision, Rivian and its OE certification program, autonomous driving, and so much more. I hope you enjoy this – very forward looking, yet uniquely familiar- episode of the Collision Vision “from the vault”!