for each job sent. So far it’s working. Zach’s shop
is busy and he’s making good money. He’s slowly building up his business model, hiring employees and increasing his volumes.
The People
Currently Zach’s Transmission and
4X4 is mostly about Zach. He’s the pri- mary diagnostician, rebuilder and shop manager. But he’s beginning to grow: Zach has two fulltime R&R techni-
cians working for him, plus a general technician who steps in to handle most ancillary repairs when necessary. He’s now starting to train his people to move up through the ranks, and is hoping to have at least one of the R&R techs move into a swing position before long.
He also recently hired a shop ser-
vice writer: Risa Vandenbos, who also doubles as his girlfriend (a job she had first!) Risa attended Expo this past year, and Zach sent her to Maylon Newton’s service writer’s school to learn the trade.
Having someone else to answer
the phone and handle the front desk frees up Zach to keep working on the bench, which is just what he prefers to be doing. And it enables him turn out more rebuild work every day.
5 Recurring Traits
Throughout the What’s Working
program, the one thing that’s remained constant has been the 5 Recurring Traits of the most successful shop own- ers. And Zach is a prime example of those traits:
1. Attitude — Zach loves what
he’s doing, and he’s happy to let every- one know it. He’s content with where he is in his life, and he’s thrilled to be able to make a living doing what he loves.
2. Vision, Plan and Goals —
After attending Expo, Zach knew that he needed to set goals for himself. He chose to build his business around wholesale work, and he went out and made it happen. 3. People — Before attending
Expo, Zach had a fellow working for him who was a competent and talented technician. Shortly after returning from Expo, Zach fired him.
GEARS May/June 2010
According to
Zach, “he was poi- soning the shop.” The technician knew his way around a trans- mission, but his atti- tude wasn’t right for the business he was building. When the technician wouldn’t accept Zach’s new vision, he had to let him go. When asked
about working at Zach’s, one of the technicians, Del Trantham, had this to say: “I’ve worked other shops where it seemed like it was ‘us against [the customer].’ I like the attitude of serv- ing the customer a lot more. It’s a nicer environment to work in.” 4. Processes and Systems —
Most of Zach’s business is centered on him. And he’s quick to acknowledge that, without clear processes and sys- tems in place, it always will be. For him to grow beyond his present situa- tion, he has to institute clear processes. Bringing in a service writer was one of his first steps toward that goal. 5. Pull the Trigger — Zach knew
where he wanted to be and he knew how he wanted to get there. As he dis- covered at Expo, he was the one who’d have to make it happen. And that’s exactly what he did.
Marketing Zach’s
Just because Zach has built up a
reputation as the go-to transmission guy doesn’t mean he doesn’t have to keep himself out in front of the com- munity.
Zach with his servicewriter, Risa Vandenbos at the service counter. The addition of Risa has provided a great boost in the businesses bottom line.
But instead of a billboard, Zach
puts his name out there by sponsoring local teams. His banners appear on the sports fields every season. He also has T-shirts and market-
ing specialty items on hand, which he gives freely to customers. And he’s big on attending car shows, where he hands out his marketing gifts. “They may not need me today,” he says, “but they’ll remember me when they do.” And, like most shops, he does have
a small ad in a few local Yellow Pages books.
Zach is quick to acknowledge the
role that ATRA played in his success. He knows that his view of business was skewed; that the things he learned by attending Expo made the difference in his business strategy and its outcome. Success comes in many forms. For
some it’s about money; for others it’s about being happy with what you do, each and every day. In the case of Zach Evans, it’s about both, because he’s discovered how to be profitable doing what he loves. It’s hard to find fault with that.
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