Page 47 - Australasian Paint & Panel magazine Nov-Dec 2021

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revenue streams that just insurance work. So many of our winners have not only secured fleet work but also offer other related services such as wheel repairs, which they get to set the price for. Diversifying into fibre glass repairs, sandblasting, caravans, boats, vans - these have all paid dividends for many repairers, es- pecially in challenging times.
Light tunnels used to be rare, but they are fast becoming the norm and that is really great to see. Not only are they es- sential if you do any hail work, but it also shows a dedication to quality control.
The vast majority of winners are part of an OEM approved network, those that aren’t could be if they wanted to but it’s not in their business plan currently. Pretty much all of them use digital man- agement programs for better efficiency in the office, workshop and with cus- tomer communications. Every year the standard climbs and these industry leading winning shops show the rest of the industry what they are capable of.
THE COUNTRY MILE
It was great to meet so many country repairers as we expanded the category (thanks to sponsor MTAA) to have a
winner in each state and a national winner instead of just one winner. There are some young couples who had taken the plunge and set up shop which was great to see. Also, there is no shortage of apprentices in the coun-
The vast majority of
winners are part of an OEM approved network,
those that aren’t could be if they wanted to but it’s not in their business plan”
tryside it seems. Judging via Zoom al- lowed distance to be no object and we look forward to meeting more country shops next year.
VIRTUAL REALITY
At least last year judge Neil Powell and I could sit together - this year everything was via Zoom, even our shop selections for judging. Next year we are hoping that we can get back out on the road again and use the rather snazzy award logos that platinum sponsor Compass
MAIN: Awards Livestream was well attended.
ABOVE: Party buckets delivered by Compass, this one to Vito Marolda at Grham Bodyworks.
LEFT: Axalta delivered the trophies - Axalta Territory Manager, QLD Stephen Morris (right) with Wayne Tidman of Coastal Collision.
got made up for the cars we were going to use to hit the judging trail.
Because of the lockdowns we couldn’t even produce the photos and videos which we usually do to give everyone an in-depth impression of the winning shops, and had to ask our winners to provide pictures. But, to use the probably most uttered expres- sion of 2021, ‘it is what it is’.
The feedback on our second virtual awards Livestream with comedian Ta- hir as MC has been fantastic. Yes we had some technical issues zooming into the winners but it was as interac- tive as we could make it and we esti- mate over 1000 people were watching. That’s a lot more than we could squeeze into a function room (al- though - Crown Casino, Melbourne 2022 what do you think boss?). We loved that so many of the winners were watching with their teams.
Our finalists’ Paint & Panel party buckets were popular again - thanks to Car-O-Liner for sponsoring the drinks and for the Compass field force for deliv- ering them. It’s so great that the spon- sors want to be so involved - platinum sponsor Axalta’s crew has delivered the trophies to all the winners.