Page 20 - Australasian Paint & Panel magazine

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PAINT&PANEL MARCH / APRIL 2023 WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
CHOPPY WATER FOR INDEPENDENTS?
WITH THE PROLIFERATION OF MULTI-SITE GROUPS AND CONSOLIDATORS IS IT TIME TO CONSIDER JOINING A TEAM RATHER THAN ROWING YOUR OWN BOAT? SAM STREET TALKS TO THE FIX AUTO AND CAR CRAFT.
OW THAT THE NUMBER OF
consolidators and multi-site operators are on a steep growth trajectory, the insurers have an increasing amount of choice for
where they direct volumes of work. From my crow’s nest view it seems to me that rowing your boat solo is going to become more challenging and being part of a crew more appealing this year. If you are looking to sell up and move on and you have a good business then 2023 could be a good year for you as the likes of MotorOne looks to expand its foot- print amongst others. Repairhub contin- ues to expand, and while CARe – from the team that brought you Capital S.M.A.R.T – might not be planning such a large ven- ture as S.M.A.R.T they already have four
shops in three states and plans for more. Given the choice of dealing with one point of contact for large volumes of work
or lots of individuals for smaller volumes you know what the insurers prefer. It’s not just about whether these MSOs can do it cheaper or faster but dealing with a smaller network of repairers means less resources and headcount needed at insurance HQ.
Sheen Panel Service is also a collabora- tive group with over 25 sites. As it is solely Victoria based, however, we have fo- cussed on the two national groups. What these groups do have in common is that they are looking for genuine partnerships. They want people to thrive in their net- works and in order to do that, newcomers have to share similar values and stand- ards to existing businesses within the group. Both Fix Auto and Car Craft enable their partners to continue to be independ- ent entities. While the shops within Car Craft retain their identity, those who join Fix Auto take on the brand presenting a consistent national identity.
While COVID and lock downs put a bit of a crimp on recruiting new part- ners, both Car Craft and Fix Auto have nevertheless grown substantially. The bigger they become, the more they can offer to the members of their network.
Not only do they have national agree- ments with insurers and fleet compa- nies but they offer a host of resources to support the success of their network partners. They also offer a collaborative environment where repairers are invest- ed in each other’s success and happily exchange market information and are happy to share their experience and ad- vice if asked for it.
We caught up with Stuart Faid, Fix Auto regional vice president and Peter McMahon Car Craft CEO to see how the groups have been travelling since we talked to them last year and what their plans are for 2023.