Page 4 - Australasian Paint & Panel Magazine Sep-Oct 2019

Editorial
4
PAINT&PANEL
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2019
WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
EDITOR
Sam Street (02) 9213 8334 samstreet@yaffa.com.au
NATIONAL SALES MANAGER
Lynette Rochford (02) 9213 8331 0407 241 554 lynetterochford@yaffa.com.au
WE’VE COME
A LONG,
ADVERTISING PRODUCTION
Luke Buckley (02) 9213 8216 lukebuckley@yaffa.com.au
change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” That’s from the wise Irish- man George Bernard Shaw who saw a great deal of change in his 94 years on
this earth, from 1856-1950.
In the nine years I’ve been co-judging
the Paint & Panel Bodyshop Awards I’ve seen that those that cannot change their minds aren’t still in business. The industry has changed so dramatically since I peeked into my first Aussie panel shop – they are cleaner, leaner, faster, better organised and even more customer-focussed. The biggest change though, has been mindsets. I re- member visiting shop after shop back in 2011 where all the owners did was com- plain about insurance companies. Now owners have either chosen to work with in- surers or chosen not to. A consolidator is moving in around the corner? 2011 mindset was terror, doom and gloom, 2019 mindset is: ‘how can I turn this into an opportunity for my business?’
Finding a niche, diversifying was an al- ien concept to the majority of the industry, now so many have embraced it. Prestige
PUBLISHER
Helen Davies
CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGER
Martin Phillpott
MARKETING MANAGER
Lucy Yaffa
LONG WAY
MARKETING SPECIALIST
Simon Ancone
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR
Matthew Gunn
ART DIRECTOR
Ana Heraud
STUDIO MANAGER
Lauren Esdaile
DESIGNER
Bree Edgar
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Member Circulations Audit Board
car repair, caravans, mechanical, paint protection, UTE lining, structural only, the list goes on and on. Back in 2011 hard- ly anyone could ‘afford’ to let their staff out of the workshop to upskill and anyway, everyone was an expert because of all their years in the trade. Now, how much training a shop undertakes is an important part of the judging criteria.
Our 2019 winners range from business owners at the end of their career but still passionate and focussed, to hungry, ambi- tious next generation owners facing their future confidently – all of them willing to change their minds and the direction of their business to continue shooting inbe- tween the ever moving industry goal posts.
They also gather industry intelligence and inspiration at industry events such as Paint & Panel L!VE on 11 October in Melbourne. The theme is Game Chang- ers, so to keep your mind nimble, make sure you make the time to attend.
Sam Street – Editor
“P
ROGRESS IS IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT
WHAT’S COMING UP IN 2019
EVENTS
• 4 October PPG Colour Matching Competition, Melbourne
• 11 October Paint & Panel L!VE conference, Melbourne
• 11 October Paint & Panel Bodyshop Awards gala dinner, Melbourne • 11-13 October Motorclassica Show, Melbourne
• 15 November Women in Collision seminar and awards, Brisbane
If your company has any exciting new products or is involved in any innovative projects, contact Australasian Paint & Panel editor Sam Street on samstreet@yaffa.com.au.