SPOTLIGHT ON EXCELLENCE

Best Practices Cash N Carry Pull-Your-Part

This generational family business works to be the best on purpose,

with excellence always top of mind and seen in their daily actions. BY LYNN NOVELLI

I 62 Automotive Recycling | March-April 2015

f you want to learn about the self-service parts business, Kenny Grainger, co-owner of Cash N Carry Pull-Your-Part in Savannah, Georgia, is the man to ask. Cash N Carry’s website name, “IluvUsed.com,” is a definite clue to his level of commitment. Grainger doesn’t just run the generational family business, he lives and breathes the business. His grandparents, Levi and Mabel Grainger, started the business when they pur- chased a full service yard in 1966. His father and uncle, Ken and Bill, joined their parents in the business shortly thereafter, and in 1985 the family added the self-ser- vice yard. Kenny joined them in 1993, and worked both at the full and self-service yard until 2000 when the full-service yard was sold. He now dedicates his time to man- aging the daily operations as president of Cash N Carry.

With self-service as its core niche, Cash N Carry aver- ages an inventory of 1,200 vehicles and is situated on twelve acres in the middle of Savannah. Kenny has the pleasure of working closely every day with his father, Ken, Sr., and his sister, Ansley Johnson, who heads up the accounting department. In addition to self-service parts, the business includes recycled metal sales and runs a used car lot on the premises. The Grainger family is proud to display their ARA CAR and Gold Seal designations and participa- tion in the Green Recycled Parts®

program. Their ded- ication to excellence in the industry is a priority.

Competitive Advantages An LKQ-owned pull-your-part yard located just

seven miles away is Cash N Carry’s main competition. Surprising as it is to have two self-service yards in Savannah, considering the population is only about 150,000, Grainger welcomes the competition. “Iron sharpens iron,” he says.

He firmly believes that Cash N Carry has a singu- lar competitive advantage that a corporate-owned business can never duplicate. “We are a family-owned business, and that sets us apart from the competi- tion,” he notes. “A lot of people prefer to deal with