Brothers Michael and Steve Georgas are the owners of Absolute Car Care, a mechanical workshop in Brisbane.

But what started as a two-man operation nearly 20 years ago has – through hard work, skill, and a big dollop of business acumen – grown to employ 15 staff across a business that now includes the workshop, an exhaust business, a tyre retail and fitting shop, and a prestige car dealership and consignment business. It’s an impressive set up, and part of long-term vision that will see the brothers able to offer customers a true one-stop shop experience. Motor Trader caught up with Michael to talk about the business, the journey, and his thoughts on the wider industry.

What products and services does Absolute Car Care and associated businesses provide?

MG: We provide normal servicing, logbook servicing, brakes, steering, and suspension services. We also do air conditioning in house and are ARC accredited. We provide exhaust services through our Brisbane Exhaust Centre business, and tyre and wheel alignment services through our Deshon Tyres business. We also own Absolute Prestige Cars – a wholesale, retail and consignment business for prestige, high-end cars.

We pride ourselves on being a one-stop shop. Our vision is that if you bring your vehicle to us, we can solve any issue. We really don’t want the car to have to go anywhere but here, so we provide a service and process that is seamless. We do sub-contract certain things, such as auto electrical work, but that is also done here.

We work on all makes and models, though we are heavily focused towards European cars. Those brands – Mercedes, BMW, Audi and VW – as well as Hyundai and Kia, are a big part of the market and we have three European specialist techs, as well as a specialist on the Korean brands. They are senior guys and very skilled.

We have also invested heavily to be able to service all those brands and models with the technology and equipment specific to them. That is a big investment, but we have to keep up.

How long have the businesses been established and how did you come to be involved?

MG: Absolute Car Care has been running for 20 years and Brisbane Exhaust Centre for 14 years. We have owned Deshon Tyres for just over two years, but that business had been running for a long time before that. Absolute Prestige Cars has been up and running for 18 months.

Absolute Car Care was started when, effectively, the shell of a previous business was purchased and Steve started it up again with just one apprentice and under a new name. That was back in 1999.

The business grew and grew and after a couple of years, I came in to put some business procedures in place. We found a real synergy between the two of us, with Steve managing the workshop and the production flow, and me on the business side of things working with the customers and on sales.

In the past, I had worked on business anlalysis for big organisations such as Barclay’s Capital and Abbey National Treasury.

That was very interesting, but I had a burning desire to run my own business and I was actually going to go off and open a string of juice bars – I had the business plan and concept all in place. However, and to cut a long story short, Steve wanted some help and I said I’d come in and assist for the next 3 to 6 months. I’m still here 18 years later! So, I came into the industry by default, but I have loved it.

You are part of the AutoGuru booking network – a business that is part of a new way for workshops to do business. How has the platform worked for you?

MG: I am a fan of the platform and it has definitely worked for us.

While I understand the reservations of some, I do believe that if you use the platform in the right way, it can be very beneficial.

I treat it as a way to generate new business. For instance, a car may need work beyond the job it is booked in for and if you can convert that need to a sale, that’s a real upside. For us, if an AutoGuru client comes to us and it turns out that their car also needs a tyre, then we can offer that service. If we are competitive, we’ll win that work.

It is also worth noting that when a new client comes in and they are impressed with what you do, then they will likely come back to use your services again.

For us, AutoGuru is complementary to our business. Sometimes, the margin on the job may be small, but I take a long-term approach to it.

And it has worked. I get very good clients through AutoGuru. Perhaps as important, the clients like it – they like that it is clear and transparent about the work they are going to get done.

For us, it’s a no-brainer to be on the platform.

You recently joined the MTA Queensland’s Automotive Engineers Division committee. Why did you want to take on that responsibility and what issues are you looking at tackling?

MG: I guess I want to give something back to the industry. I’ve been running this business for 18 years, I know the ropes, and using my experience to give a little bit back is important to me.

Amongst the issues to focus on is training. I think it’s essential to look closely at how we are training young people coming into the industry. We know there is a skills shortage and that technology is changing, so I am interested in the education of people coming through into the trades.

The sharing of data and information is important to me too. And that will become more important as technology becomes more and more complex.

Electric and hybrid tech is coming, will be here to stay, and will be a big part of our future. The challenge for us as independents is keeping our skills relevant. So, there is a real need to share information, data, tools and equipment, skilled resources – and I think the industry, given the skilled shortages we face, will have to embrace that.

For us, we have some strategic partnerships in our local area. We work very closely with an auto electrician and with another European workshop, and we help each other to solve the complex issues that are presented to us. Without that community, things would be quite difficult.

Forging those relationship within your local community is crucial, and you need to take the approach that they are not your competitors, but your colleagues and your ‘cooperative’. If you embrace that, there is plenty of work for everyone and everyone is a winner.

The businesses that won’t survive are the businesses that don’t collaborate, and don’t invest in people or technology.

That may well lead to consolidation in the industry, and I don’t know if, for example, you will get the traditional one-man show anymore. That used to be how independents got started – when a mechanic went out on his own and started his own business that grew over the years. But we may have seen the end of that.

To what do you attribute your success?

MG: For me, it is about customer service and full transparency to the client.

Those factors are very important and there are strategies in place to support them. For example, preparing really good reports in which you tell the client, warts and all, what is going on with their car. Show them the old parts you’re replacing and why they are being replaced. And use technology to show the client what you are doing. Do a printout and show them the fault codes – just telling them there is a fault is not enough.

What does the future hold for the business?

MG: The vision is to be a one-stop shop, and we will continue to refine that. And we will have to do that as cars get more technologically advanced and present us with new challenges.

What do you do with your spare time?

MG: I have three young girls, so I spend as much time as I can with my family. I am not materialistic about ‘things’ but I really do like to travel and have those experiences with the kids and the family. So, we try and get away a couple of times a year.

Source: Motor Trader E-Magazine (Feb 2019)

7 Feb 2019