BARRE, Vt. – Bond Auto Parts announced that its Paint & Body Division recently won three awards at the annual PPG Platinum Conference held in Scottsdale, Ariz., this past spring.
 
The PPG Platinum Distributor program began in 1995 as a loyalty and support initiative for PPG single-line distributors, with the ultimate goal of providing exceptional service and benefits for PPG refinish customers. The program delivers competitive advantages to its participants by aligning the technology, training and customer support of PPG with the entrepreneurship, customer awareness, local market knowledge and service capability of the independent distributor. Each year, PPG recognizes its distributors that meet these expectations.
 
At this year’s PPG Platinum Conference, Bond Paint & Body received the Platinum Twenty Club, Platinum Plus and Zone Pacesetter Awards. The Platinum Twenty Club is for showing paint growth of 20 percent or more in a year. The Platinum Plus Award, which Bond has won for five consecutive years, is for meeting the projected growth requirement. The Zone Pacesetter Award is awarded for achieving significant growth over the prior year, meeting a percent increase over the prior four years and achieving the Platinum Plus sales growth goal.
 
“We are very proud of these three awards," said Mike Stevens, director of Bond Paint & Body. "We’ve worked hard over the past year to meet our growth goals and have done so by training and servicing our customers to the fullest potential.”
 
Bond Paint & Body also announced this week the hiring of Jim Szlasa as the Saratoga, N.Y., store manager. Szlasa entered the PBE industry in 1994 and has been servicing the Saratoga region for the past 16 years as a PBE specialist. Bond said Szlasa is a welcome addition to the team and will help stimulate continued growth in this area. The Bond Paint & Body Division has been in place since 1992 and is supported by 29 Bond Auto Parts stores. A list of locations carrying PPG and PBE supplies may be found at www.bondauto.com.