Fred White, owner/operator of Miles Auto Service in Sewell, N.J., recently won a $50,000 shop makeover in the Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Garage Overhaul Sweepstakes.
He was presented the prize by his sales and marketing team from Eastern Warehouse Distributors. White was the first of two $50,000 shop makeover winners.
The rules of the sweepstakes dictate monies must be spent on exterior and interior cosmetic improvements and upgrading technology and equipment. White reports he will use the money to enhance the cosmetics of his shop, purchase new technology for customer service, and add tools and supplies to better facilitate and elevate his business platform in general.
White wants to focus on an exterior facelift that will differentiate his storefront from other buildings nearby. Key among the improvements is replacing the face on his stand-alone lighted sign in the front of his shop, and adding an illuminated sign to the front of the building.
On the interior, White will improve his waiting room/customer service area/lunch room. By removing a wall he will create a much larger customer service area/waiting room. Floors will be redone, new paint will be applied, a new service counter will replace the current desk, and new furniture will be freshen up the waiting area.
White’s shop is already well equipped with advanced technology tools, but now, with a proper customer service area, he plans to capitalize on the capabilities with better customer relationship management software. He and his team are highly focused on training, so he plans on utilizing the refurbished area for evening technical and team training programs.
The shop currently has five bays, but only four lifts, so White will be adding a lift to increase the productivity of the facility.
Miles Auto Service is a longstanding customer of Eastern Warehouse Distributors. They are a member of Eastern’s Certified Service Center program, and an active participant in the company’s Service Center Advisory Group.
White noted that winning this sweepstakes will give him the ability to take his business to the next level. In his words, “Simply put, this opportunity will allow us to further improve the customer experience. My goal is to create a loyal client rather than a transactional customer.”
