Page 66 - Australasian Paint & Panel Magazine Sep-Oct 2019

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IF I’M HONEST WE WEREN’T REALLY EXPECTING MUCH WHEN WE DREW UP OUTSIDE FAIRWAY PANEL AND PAINT, BOY DID WE GET A PLEASANT SURPRISE.
W
WA – NEW
PAINT&PANEL SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2019 WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
SIZE: 1000m2
STAFF: 7
TYPE OF REPAIRS: All types AVG CARS REPAIRED PW: 20 AVG KEY TO KEY: 3-4 days
Rob Richardson should
rename his business Phoeni
Panel and Paint after the Gree mythological bird that against all
odds and adversity rose from the ashes to be reborn as a new entirety. Congratulations Rob. “That’s what I call a good old panelbeater”
x
k
FAIRWAY PANEL & PAINT
ABOVE: Welcoming family shop with high standards.
BELOW: Amy Caird, Rob and Matt Richardson.
E WALKED INTO A MODERN,
boutique, family business which ticked all of our boxes. It’s not been an easy journey for owner Rob Rich- ardson. He started the business with his brother Brian who contracted a devastating virus and had to resign his partnership. Then in September 2016 a massive fire broke out that took fire- fighters using aerial platforms several hours to contain. It destroyed the
paintshop entirely.
At that point, Rob could have packed
it all in and set off into the sunset and no one would have blamed him. But no, he rebuilt and reopened this boutique Fre- mantle repair facility in the middle of 2018, working alongside his son Matt who is a spray painter and his daughter Amy who runs the office.
The office itself is bright and welcom- ing. The new paint shop, which can be seen from the street, is Lowbake with a spacious paint mix room (which Matt keeps spotless) and one booth. Behind
the paint room are two body repair are- as and parts storage.
The business is approved for IAG, QBE, Progressive and RAC and, in addi- tion to insurance work, it also carries out the odd restoration. The small team are all dedicated to and passionate about the vehicle repair industry.
Rob’s plan for the future is to continue with the good standards that Fairway Panel & Paint are known for. And one day to hand over to the next generation.
As the shop has a small footprint it is likely near maximum capacity at 20 cars per week. New technology is one of the
SHOP STATS
industry plusses for Rob and the team keep up to date with I-CAR training and training with Spies Hecker.
Local community involvement in- cludes sponsoring the Swan Yacht club. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, there will always be a place for profes- sionally run, modern, family shops in this industry, especially in suburbs like Fremantle who like to support local business. Rob had to rebuilt his busi- ness but not his reputation, there’s plenty of glowing reviews on the web praising the service and quality Fair- way Panel & Paint provides.
POWELL’S POINTS