Joe Marconi

You bring a whole different perspective to the mobile service business. I guess with your talents and your positive mindset, along with the fact that you really enjoy what you do, it works. Keep us updated, it's a great topic for future posts.

You should work for the government as an advisor. I get it, and you make sense. People need to go back to old fashion values and be accountable for their actions. Not looking for a bailout.

You bring up a great point. How did they get into this situation to begin with? What would they do if there were no bail out? All good points.

First, thank you for posting! Your perspective as a mobile technician is very informative. It is obvious you have great technical skills, as described by the work you perform. And I see that you do advise customers that some jobs are beyond the scope of what you do. A few questions: How do you bill your jobs? Would you mind sharing your labor rate, and part pricing? And what does Your future look like? Do you have plans on opening up your own brick-and-mortar shop?

Frank, that's what happened in my market area after the 2008/09 recession. People held back from buying new cars, but then a flood of people purchased new cars, and we saw the dip in business. Build now while business is still good, in order to ride the slower times. We have been through this before, we are no strangers to the economic roller coaster.

I feel the same way. I urge everyone to attend the next R+W conference and others like this. Hands down, you will walk away a little smarter, a little better, and with renewed energy and passion. That I can guarantee!

I agree, Brian. The level of professionalism from other shop owners and other industry people was amazing to see. Great meeting you too in person.

Wow, thanks for sharing that! I hope everyone reads this post!

Great tip! Quick Books has a great payroll service.

From what I am hearing from my fellow shop owner friends, the shops in my area, Northeast (New York), auto repair shops are busy and steady. However, there is a feeling from many shop owners to be cautious about the future. Things that give shop owners concern: Inflation, the cost of living affecting the consumer's ability to afford auto repairs, dissatisfaction with the current administration, and possible recession. Your thoughts?

As a former auto shop owner, one of the things that kept me up at night was not knowing enough about all the labor laws and human resource regulations. How do you keep up with all the changes to the labor laws and human resource regulations in your state?

Perfectly stated, Jonathan. And I agree with you 100%! Keep posting!

We are almost into the 4th quarter of 2022, which means that you need to consider your 2022 tax return. Many shops are having a very good year, which means there may be more taxable income at your bottom line. What do you do to plan for and minimize paying taxes, while still maintaining a cash reserve?

I was honored to be the keynote speaker at the Ratchet and Wrench conference this past week. It was an amazing event, with so many great shop owners and industry people. The networking with so many great people was priceless, along with the great training. And, I was thrilled to meet fellow Auto Shop Owner member, Craig, known to us as bantar.

You made great points. When I started in the 1970s, what we did was mostly mechanical. In the typical repair shop, mechanics had to be skilled in rebuilding components, from alternators, generators, starters, master cylinders, engines, steering boxes, engines, etc. The auto industry has evolved so much in the past 4 decades. Today, the hi-tech things we do has earned a different terminology. With all that, the consumers still say, "My Mechanic" Great post Jonathan!

There is a lot of horsepower through networking. And it appears you have harnessed that horsepower. Do you ever meet on a formal basis, or just casual? The reason I asked is that years back, a group of TechNet shops would meet periodically at a CARQUEST warehouse in Westchester county NY. These meetings were great. The shop owners shared a lot of great information, and I felt that this form of networking was so valuable.

Great perspective!

Great news, Brian! It's going to be a great conference! See you there!

First, we are the same age, and I'm still learning too. I had two locations, an 11-bay and a 4-bay location, and a 3-bay satellite facility around the corner from my 11-bay shop. The 11-bay and the 3-bay were located Mahopac, NY, in Putnam county, about 45 minutes north of NYC. My 4-bay shop we on the border of Westchester and Putnam, in a town called Croton Falls, also around 45 minutes north of NYC. While the area was populated, it's an area with very little mass transit, and nearly every drives themselves everywhere. An excellent area for auto repair shops. I was born and raised in the Bronx, and felt blessed that I was able to live, have a family, and have my business career in that area.

That's is what we did. We had Enterprise and Hertz in our area, and they gave up a deep discount for our customers. And, I agree 100%... "Each business must decide what works best for them."

Thanks, I did that. There are not a lot of Ubers of Lyft cars available, and the wait time can be up to one hour. Unless we schedule a specific time.

Good points, and agree. One thing to consider. I am from update New York. Most of the time you can't get an Uber or Lyft, they are not available. But if there were, that is a viable option.

Most communities have a variety of repair shops, dealerships, and franchise models. Do you consider them the competition, or colleagues? Do you think it's worth it to get to know other auto businesses in your community? To share and exchange business ideas and strategies?

There seem to be mixed opinions on what Business System is the best. And also, not all business systems fit a particular repair shop model. There are a lot of new players in the past few years: Auto Leap, Protractor, Teckmetrics, Shop Boss, Shop Monkey, and more. Are you happy with your system? What features are important to you?