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The Group’s Larry Pavey: ‘Our Industry Has An Identity Crisis’
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By Counterman
In link hidden, please login to view, we gave leaders from the major distribution groups and trade associations an opportunity to reflect on the most critical issues affecting the automotive aftermarket. For the second year in a row, we let distribution leaders “riff” on these topics in their own words.
Here’s what JC Washbish, vice president of sales and marketing for the Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance, had to say on the power of partnerships.
The Alliance has been full-speed down the front stretch of 2023 with our joint-venture partners, Federated Auto Parts, and the newly established Federated-Alliance! It has been exciting, to say the least, to work with our close friends at Federated. Our goal from Day 1 has been to sell better! It remains our aim to be the best independent distributor in the industry.
The Federated-Alliance partnership has led to our inclusion in the Automotive Parts Services Group (The Group). The Alliance would like to thank Sue Godschalk, president of Federated Auto Parts, and Robert Roos, president and CEO of the Pronto Network Cooperative, for welcoming the Alliance into The Group with open arms. It was an honor to attend The Group’s 2023 National Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, this past March. The Alliance also would like to thank all the valued channel partners that supported and attended the wonderful event. Without their support or their quality products, we wouldn’t be able to accomplish our goal: selling better!
The Alliance also has increased its membership within the Alliance Commercial Vehicle and Heavy-Duty program with the additions of Pardo Fleet Solutions located in Sewell, New Jersey, in March. Piston Ring Service & Supply of Winnipeg officially joined the program in April. Finally, the Alliance is excited to announce Arnold Oil Supply of Austin, Texas, as its newest CVHD member this past June.
The focus of the Alliance takes a political shift as we head into the second half of the year. We will answer the calls of Bill Hanvey, president and CEO of the Auto Care Association, and Paul McCarthy, president and CEO of MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers, to work together to pass The REPAIR Act.
July is Right to Repair month. We are mobilizing our employees, our shareholder members as well as our shop customers and encouraging them to contact their members of Congress to ask that those officials support the REPAIR Act. The Alliance will attend the Auto Care Association Legislative Summit this September to further demand passage of the bill by their members of Congress.
In fact, I am asking YOU, the reader (come on, you’ve made it this far), to also contact your member of congress today by visiting this link:
link hidden, please login to view. The Alliance is looking forward to a fantastic back stretch of 2023 and is hopeful that as a united industry we will all be protected with the Right to Repair.
Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Inc.
Founded: 2000 Headquarters: San Antonio Number of members/shareholders: 37 Number of distribution centers/parts stores: 3,000+ Website: link hidden, please login to view and link hidden, please login to view. The post
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By Counterman
The Aftermarket Warehouse Distributors Association (AWDA), a community of the Auto Care Association, announced that nominations are open for its 2023 Industry Awards.
The AWDA Industry Awards are presented annually during the AWDA Business and Education Conference, which will take place Oct. 31-Nov. 2 in Las Vegas.
Over the years, the list of AWDA award recipients has evolved into a who’s-who of aftermarket luminaries. AWDA’s are among the most widely recognized and highly respected awards the aftermarket has to offer.
The AWDA Industry Awards include:
Art Fisher Award for Excellence in Education
This award, presented in memory of former AWDA Chairman Art Fisher, recognizes a company or individual for their leadership and commitment to education and training, either within their own organization or throughout the industry.
Lifetime Achievement Award in Honor of Martin Fromm
This very selective award recognizes individuals who have, over the course of a career spanning many years, distinguished themselves through their integrity, unselfish commitment to and high level of performance within the motor vehicle aftermarket industry.
Outstanding Leadership Award in Honor of Jack Creamer (Formerly the Jack Creamer Automotive Leader of the Year Award)
This award recognizes an individual, employed in the aftermarket, who over the past several years, has made a unique and monumental contribution to the industry and/or the association.
Pursuit of Excellence Award: Recognizing Special Achievement
This award is presented in recognition of excellence in business performance and the setting of high standards as an example for others to follow.
The deadline to submit award nominations is Aug. 25.
Learn more about the award criteria, see former winners and submit nominations by visiting the
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By Counterman
In link hidden, please login to view, we gave leaders from the major distribution groups and trade associations an opportunity to reflect on the most critical issues affecting the automotive aftermarket. For the second year in a row, we let distribution leaders “riff” on these topics in their own words.
Here’s what Lauren Beaulieu, vice president, professional marketing for Advance Auto Parts, Carquest and Worldpac, had to say on the topic of differentiation.
Our enterprise is focused on providing repair shop owners with differentiating products and solutions to help their businesses succeed and grow. We’re always evolving our strategies to support the needs of our customers.
We’re preparing our customers for the future – because the future is here! We’re seeing how EV efforts are ramping up across the country. Our home state of North Carolina is opening multiple facilities that will be responsible for manufacturing batteries and other components for EVs, and I recently read that several manufacturers of EVs and EV components are coming to Georgia. As more electric vehicles and ADAS technologies populate the car parc, it’s our responsibility to support our more than 16,500 TechNet member shops and other enterprise customers with industry-leading education to support the vehicles of today and tomorrow.
Part of how we do this is through our Carquest Technical Institute and Worldpac Training Institute technical and business management training. One of the most important things a shop owner can do is invest in its people. Shops that invest in their team and create a positive, engaged culture retain good employees. CTI+WTI’s online, virtual and in-person training provides technicians, service advisors and owners the opportunity to expand their knowledge and grow their career and business. We’re developing more training content on high voltage, ADAS and other emerging technologies to help our customers prepare for the future.
Along with our commitment to expanding the curriculum available in CTI+WTI, our team is hard at work preparing for next year’s Supplier & Training Expo (STX) in Nashville. Each year, our goal is to add more relevant training and networking opportunities for attendees. We’ll have more than 350 courses led by the world’s top OE instructors, along with expert instructors from CTI+WTI. This will include significant programming on electrification and ADAS. While STX originated and is primarily a Worldpac customer event, it’s open to all our customers in the US and Canada: Advance, Carquest and Autopart International. We’re also excited to host our first event at STX specifically for members of TechNet Nation to network with other shop owners and technicians. This event is sold out, and we’re looking forward to seeing how members respond.
Earlier this year, I mentioned in this space how we’re expanding the benefits that come with being a TechNet shop. From social media templates to direct-mail designs, we’ve added more to our library of TechNet-specific marketing resources for shops to leverage. We also recently launched within our online TechNet shop locator a “service and specialty” section. Motorists can now sort and filter shops by what type of work they do. For example, if you’re looking for an import specialist, you can find the shop that meets your needs. Same if you’re looking for a shop that works on hybrid or electric vehicles, a collision center, and so forth.
Providing personalized resources to our TechNet shops while supporting the brand they’ve built in their local communities distinguishes them and helps them better-serve customers while helping their businesses grow and thrive.
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By Counterman
The Automotive Service Association, the Society of Collision Repair Specialists and the Alliance for Automotive Innovation have sent a letter to Congress reaffirming their commitment to a 2014 national agreement on automotive Right to Repair.
The organizations represent the nation’s independent repair facilities, auto body shops and leading automakers, respectively.
In the letter, the organizations reaffirm their agreement on the 2014 memorandum of understanding, “and commit that independent repair facilities shall have access to the same diagnostic and repair information that auto manufacturers make available to authorized dealer networks.”
In an attachment to the letter, the organizations reiterate: “There shall be available for purchase by owners of motor vehicles and by independent repair facilities on fair and reasonable terms the same diagnostic and repair information, including service manuals and technical repair updates, that a manufacturer makes available to its authorized dealers through the manufacturer’s internet-based diagnostic and repair information system or other electronically accessible repair information system.”
In
link hidden, please login to view, the repairers and automakers also wrote: “This commitment was created with our mutual and valued customers in mind: vehicle owners. It affirms that consumers deserve access to safe and proper repairs throughout a vehicle’s lifecycle [and] it is built to last because it anticipates changes in automotive technologies and market evolutions.” Highlights of the agreement include:
Access to diagnostic and repair information – Independent repair facilities shall continue to have access to the same diagnostic and repair information that auto manufacturers make available to authorized dealer networks. This applies to:
Telematics data needed to diagnose and repair a vehicle if not otherwise available; All vehicle technologies and powertrains, including gasoline, diesel, fuel-cell, electric battery, hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric powertrains. Education and training – A pledge to work together on education and training programs so mechanical and collision repair facilities are fully aware of exactly where and how to obtain repair information,including:
Directly through an automaker’s repair website; Shared access points like www.OEM1Stop.com; Via third-party information providers, software and tools. Future advancements – As vehicle technologies and the corresponding demands on repairers evolve, the commitment ensures a level playing field and a forum to discuss future repairer needs as they develop.
Repairers and Automakers ‘In Lockstep’
As state legislatures and Congress consider automotive Right to Repair laws, including the REPAIR Act, the parties noted: “…independent repairers and automakers are not at odds on automotive data access, but rather in lockstep on this fundamental principle: Consumers should have choice when it comes to repair options and the ability to have their vehicle serviced in well-equipped shops by well-trained technicians anytime, anywhere, anyplace.”
The organizations note that independent repair facilities perform 70% of post-warranty vehicle repairs today, while automakers’ own certified collision networks are comprised of shops that are more than 70% non-dealer owned.
“Automakers support Right to Repair, and today’s independent auto repair market is working well with lots of competition,” said John Bozzella, president and CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation. “Auto repairers across the U.S. have access to the same repair and diagnostic information provided to auto dealers. It’s not just automakers who say this. It’s the Federal Trade Commission. And with today’s agreement; it’s also the thousands of independent auto repairers and small businesses in all 50 states who together with automakers have once again made this fundamental commitment to customers.”
In the letter, the organizations note that the Federal Trade Commission “has rightfully placed a focus on the repair options available to consumers for all the products they purchase – far beyond just automobiles.” The agency has highlighted automotive repair “as a model for other industries to follow.”
“Consumers should absolutely be able to choose quality repairs, performed in accordance with the specific procedures detailed by the vehicle engineers,” said Amber Alley, chairman of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists, and manager of Barsotti’s Body and Fender in San Rafael, California. “They should have the right to be able to do so in an independent repair facility that has invested in the training, equipment and skillset development to meet the rigorous demands of sophisticated, modern vehicles. This expectation is achievable, and consumer options for repairs are not limited by automakers; quite the contrary. Consumers should have the right to a proper and safe repair, and this agreement reinforces the commitment that the entire industry will have the ability to train, equip their facilities, and perform repairs as intended by the vehicle engineers.”
‘Agreement Falls Short’
In a statement, MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers called the agreement “a step in the right direction to ensure that consumers are protected.” However, the pact “falls short of all the protections necessary to ensure consumer choice now and into the future for all parties, not only signatories of the pact.”
“As a transportation industry, we believe that we have one opportunity to pass federal legislation and that legislation must include the ability to prioritize and protect consumers’ access to both light-duty and heavy-duty vehicle repair and maintenance through all iterations of vehicle technology on the road today and to come,” MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers added.
The association asserted that Right to Repair legislation must include:
All vehicles in operation – light-duty, medium-duty and heavy-duty Access to telematics and diagnostics data beyond that available just through the OBD II port An enforcement mechanism The ability for independent repair shops, using bi-directional communication, to update vehicles and parts to the latest software Addressing the risk of repair monopolies Language to protect consumers’ access to both light-duty and heavy-duty vehicle repair, maintenance and parts of their choosing through all iterations of vehicle technology on the road today and to come “The agreement does advance the conversation around right to repair and consumer choice, but if automakers and repair shops are prioritized over consumers, fair competition and a free market would not be realized,” the association said. “As a key stakeholder in protecting consumers’ rights and an essential part of the value chain, MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers must be a part of the conversation.
MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers welcomes the opportunity to work with all parties to align on a federal solution that reflects the principles of consumer choice and a free market, includes the expertise of the supplier community, has a mechanism for real enforcement and prioritizes consumers, their safety and their economy – and the innovative industry we serve. The Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair (REPAIR) Act (H.R. 906) addresses these needs, and MEMA Aftermarket Suppliers continues to support this bill that addresses the above concerns and creates a repair ecosystem that puts consumers at the center.”
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By Counterman
The Tire Industry Association has joined other association leaders to support the critical global Right to Repair movement by signing the new Right to Repair position statement.
The statement enumerates the core beliefs of the movement and the objectives and intended outcomes of right to repair legislation. The document also sets forth 10 best-practice principles to developing a framework for Right to Repair legislation that any supporting country can use and adapt them to their needs.
Globally, the automotive aftermarket keeps 1.5 billion vehicles on the road while contributing $1.8 trillion to the global economy. After vehicles exit their warranty period, independent repair shops perform 70% of repairs. This vibrant industry and the consumer choice that it creates is being threatened by automotive manufacturers that block access to wirelessly transmitted vehicle repair and maintenance data, according to TIA.
Without the convenience and choice of independent parts and repair, especially in suburban and rural communities, consumers will have limited access to affordable vehicle service and repair. These restrictions can have catastrophic effects on local economies and the well-being and safety of millions that rely on vehicle transportation daily, TIA says.
In the United States, the automotive aftermarket is a $492 billion industry employing 4.5 million professionals, according to the Auto Care Association.
“Right to Repair is a top priority for TIA members and for the global automotive aftermarket,” said Richard “Dick” Gust, TIA CEO. “Without safeguards, independent automotive repairers and vehicle owners will have fewer repair options, face longer wait times and pay higher prices when they repair their vehicles. It is crucial for independent auto repair locations to have access to the equipment and data needed to repair today’s highly technological vehicles and that consumers have a choice in where they get their vehicles repaired.”
Both
link hidden, please login to view and link hidden, please login to view have successfully retained their drivers’ right to repair their vehicles. These countries are a model for similar legislation in the United States that levels the playing field and keeps the consumer at the heart of decision-making across the transportation ecosystem. Read the full position statement
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