What does it really mean to be family owned and operated.
Businesses that are family owned and operated are becoming scarcer as big box companies continue dominating industry. As small company numbers drop and big companies start to govern commerce, it is important to remember what locally owned, and family-owned companies bring to commerce that cannot be replaced.
The truth is that it is a real game changer when you might see your customer at the grocery store, when as a company the day’s issues are often gone over at the dining room table, and when you work for the community, friends and family that surround you.
Your business practices become a reflection of the values you wish to instill in your children. There are no secrets and lord knows no one is getting away with anything when you all work together.
My husband and I opened Altra Collision Center almost two decades ago. With Roger having years of experience in the body shop industry, it felt like the right time to start our own business, and I learned a lot along the way. We both had a strong belief in the idea that if we deliver excellent workmanship, handle every situation with integrity, and respect for our customers we would be successful. We have proudly grown that business with hard work and a lot of great people to help us along the way.
From the beginning we had the eyes and ears of our children watching and listening to every move. They were at the shop on days off school and summers, and they listened to the talk at the dinner table of the day’s events. We wanted to show them hard work and integrity was the most important component to success.
Today, when you come to the office one of those sets of eyes and ears will be here to greet you. Our son Casey has been working at the shop since he was 14 years old. He started by washing cars and scrubbing toilets. He has taken his time to learn every aspect of the industry. Brock is our son-in-law; he has worked with us for over ten years and joined our family officially five years ago. Now another generation of eyes and ears watches and listens to our every move.
But what does this mean to you as a consumer. What this means is that family owned and operated businesses have goals above and beyond financial gain. Our company cares deeply about our services and our customers. We care about earning you as a customer not only today but forever. We care about our customers telling their neighbors about us and waiving when we see them around town. We care about being a productive part of the community. We care about growing through hard work and integrity for generations to come.
Family owned and operated means we strive for the best workmanship, accompanied by top notch customer service. This is how we grow, this is how we meet our goal to be a service to our community for generations to come. This is how we measure success.