Fisher Auto Parts Acquires New Locations As Part Of The Company's Ambitious Growth Strategy

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Fisher Auto Parts Acquires New Locations As Part Of The Company’s Ambitious Growth Strategy

The Gipe Auto Parts acquisition includes five company stores in Kentucky and a sixth location in Indiana and does not include the automotive refinish and industrial coatings division. Gipe Auto Color will continue operation with eight locations owned and managed by the Gipe family.

Counterman Staff
By Counterman Staff
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STAUNTON, Va. — Gary Shifflett, co-president of Fisher Auto Parts, announced the acquisition of Gipe Auto Parts company stores in Kentucky and Indiana by Fisher Auto Parts.

The Gipe Auto Parts acquisition includes five company stores in Kentucky and a sixth location in Indiana and does not include the automotive refinish and industrial coatings division. Gipe Auto Color will continue operation with eight locations owned and managed by the Gipe family.

Gipe Automotive, Inc. was founded in 1931 by the late T.E. Gipe in Owensboro, Kentucky and is now managed by third and fourth generation family members. After expanding to multiple auto parts locations in the early 1970s, Gipe Auto Color was formed as a separate division in order to best serve the automotive refinish industry. Starting with one refinish location in 1983, Gipe Auto Color now has eight locations serving Kentucky, southern Indiana, southeast Illinois and northern Tennessee. Gipe Auto Color has been a PPG Platinum Distributor since the inception of the program in 1995 and was awarded the PPG Platinum Distributor of the Year honor in 2012.

“Gipe Automotive today is essentially two separate, flourishing businesses. To continue as market leaders in automotive parts and refinish requires one-hundred percent focus in both areas. This move puts both operations in position to do just that,” said Tom Gipe. “I have known the Fisher family and management team for many years and there isn’t a finer, more talented group in the industry to lead the Gipe Automotive team of parts professionals into the future. Gipe Auto Color is proud to continue our long-time membership in the Federated group as a PBE specialist.”

Fisher Auto Parts also acquired Turney Auto Parts of Cleveland Ohio earlier this month. “In order to meet our ambitious future growth objectives, we will need to continue our strategy of teaming up with highly capable parts professionals to service additional markets,” said Shifflett. “Although we’ve experienced tremendous growth during the past several years, we remain well positioned for further expansion. We are aggressively looking for additional acquisitions and new greenfield locations.”

The founding member of Federated Auto Parts Distributors, Fisher Auto Parts now has nearly 500 company-owned location plus over 110 independent jobbers in 18 states. The company continues a steady growth strategy by more than quadrupling in size over the last decade through a combination of same store sales, new stores and acquisitions. Founded in 1929 by Blair Coiner, Fisher Auto Parts currently has approximately 5,300 employees.

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Customer Service: How It’s Done

Customer service should be your number one priority, and it all starts with the greeting.

Eric Garbe
By Eric Garbe
Eric Garbe is a graduate of Columbus State Community College with a degree in Automotive Maintenance Technology. He has extensive independent and dealership field experience as a technician and shop owner and is an ASE Certified Master Technician and former Adjunct Automotive Professor. He has been professionally writing automotive technical articles and documents for many years and in his free time enjoys restoring old cars and creating custom interiors and upholstery.
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This is always an important topic to discuss, because I consider excellent customer service one of the most important tools you can have to earn trust, respect and repeat business from the customers that come through your door. Whether that customer is do-it-yourselfer from across town or the professional repair shop across the street, your business depends on a solid relationship.It’s a subject that I am passionate about, and it’s one that many people are losing touch with. Whether you are communicating to someone in person, on the phone or using some type of social media, good customer service and bad can both exist. You can’t afford the latter, so this is the first in a series of topics which can and should be shared from the front of the shop to the back. No matter which role you hold, you represent the shop and yourself. Customer service should be your number one priority.First on the list is the greeting. From the second a customer walks in the door, they need to know you appreciate them coming in and how important they are to your business. First impressions are everything and here’s the correct way to do it each and every time: look them directly in the eye, smile and say hello!Of course, you can say “Good morning” or “Welcome to Joe’s Autocare,” but it should be a formal greeting and the most important thing is that you have smiled, looked them in the eye and recognized that they have walked through the door.You should always retain a formal greeting until you are on a first-name basis with a customer. Only once you have established that level of relationship is it OK to use the less formal greeting of “Hi,” followed by the person’s name.This greeting does more than just indicate respect and appreciation for someone walking through the door. Most likely there are customers both new and old who are in earshot of your conversation. For newer customers, this continues to build rapport and reinforce their positive view of your shop; they see that you demonstrate respect and treat everyone in the same manner. For repeat customers, even ones that have been coming for years, the greeting is important because the way you treat them is the reason they continue to come.And when a long-time customer comes in and you greet them with “Hi [First Name],” this indicates your appreciation for them and that you’re glad to see them as a person, more than just a customer. New customers that witness this will see that your repeat customers are comfortable enough to be on a first-name basis, another indication of the trust they have in you.

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