Originally Posted by
presidential
The biggest problem with most shops is attempting to tackle a spectrum of automobiles that is too large as opposed to single model/brand specialization. This can also blanket into going outside of your specialization in a certain area of said automobile as well.
Example: You advertise that you're a transmission shop and you do window tint just because the customer asks for it. It's an extreme example but I think everyone can understand it. It's really silly to try to be everything to everyone who walks through the door. Be good at what you do and corner a niche market.
Being a former employee of several shops, I can tell you that it's annoying and frustrating when you work on high-performance brand specific vehicles and the owner thinks that doing a water pump on a Duratec Taurus is perfectly okay. You've gotta stop, research, call around and stumble through it instead of just making money on what you know.
I see your point here Craig but I disagree. Look at all those "specialty" shops that specialized in S chassis (DC, XAT) - once people figured out they weren't tough to work on, the market went backyard and the shops belly up.
I think the key is flexibility. Cars are cars, and if you want to be here for the long term, you have to be able to adapt to a changing market. The last shop I worked for, worked on Evos, Vipers, WRX's, S2000's, Mustangs and just about anything else that came through the door.
This aint the same market it was 4 years ago. You don't refuse business in this economy. Hopefully, this market correction will teach people how to earn a dollar again