Shroyer’s Auto Parts

“We are now in our fourth generation,” Shroyer says. The company’s property size consists of 13 acres, with four buildings comprising about 10,000 square feet, and processing about 2,500 cars annually. Shroyer employs 42 people, 24 of whom are in automotive recycling and scrap metal operations.

company’s centralized location, the company is in or near markets large enough to quickly obtain parts that they don’t have in stock, therefore negating the need to pay a high cost membership fee for parts transportation. Slater Shroyer, general manager of Shroyer’s Auto Parts in Lansing, MI says online sales are getting difficult to separate from other sales. While Shroyer and his team of employees can count sales that track from start to com- pletion through online ordering, an ever-increasing per- centage of telephone sales are actually being generated by online search results. Shroyer’s Auto Parts began as a gas station opened by father and son, Lewis F. and Lewis J. Shroyer. They eventually purchased Central Towing, which traced its founding back to 1935. Third generation owners Robert and Daniel purchased a salvage yard in 1977 looking for a place to store cars and they started the auto parts divi- sion in 1985.

Automotive Recycling

“Everything hinges on having qualified people in key positions,” Shroyer says. “You can buy the best cars, but you need experienced dismantlers. Dismantlers can create giant piles of parts, but without inventory support staff to test, tag, take pictures and manage a warehouse they’re just a giant pile of scrap. All of the parts can be cleaned and put away, but without motivated salespeople, those parts sit on shelves collecting dust. Everything comes down to finding and retaining the best people.” Because of the evolving nature of the business, handling important tasks like buying inventory, selling cores, and diversifying the business is vital to the success of a full- service entity. And while the Shroyer team used to have regular weekly meetings to discuss issues, with the increased pace of business, they now talk to each other constantly, in real-time, floating ideas and delegating tasks. “The weekly management meeting has been replaced by several impromptu meetings throughout the day to check on progress, discuss the latest issues and to review our overall direction,” Shroyer says. “We are in constant contact with one another and make decisions or delegate tasks based on group feedback.”

March-April 2019 // 31