The saying goes that if you do what you love you won’t work a day in your life. For more than 25 years, Pat Le Plastrier, owner of Bright Spark 12V Centre in Cairns, has been working on very cool cars and loving every minute of it.

Words and pictures: Lara Wilde

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How did you get started in the industry as an auto electrician?

PLP: In 1986 I completed my apprenticeship with the Melbourne Metropolitan Board of Works. With my trade under my belt, I returned to my home town of Benalla in Victoria and spent 18 months working on the tools for one of the local auto electrical shops. It was during this time that I met and married Kelly.

One of the great things about having a trade is the opportunity to travel and work. We had a four-wheel drive Ford XY at the time, and we had a great time in that ute. Kelly and I spent a few years traveling Australia spending time in Darwin, Kalgoorlie and Yarrawonga before choosing to settle down in Cairns.

Was it easy to get started in Cairns?

PLP: In Cairns I worked for a number of auto electrical businesses while staying in touch with my mates in Melbourne. They were doing well in Melbourne working out of their vans as mobile auto electricians. Their business model sounded promising and I thought it would work well in Cairns. I took the leap and became the first mobile auto electrician in Cairns sub-contracting to Gary Fry Auto Electrical.

After a couple of years sub-contracting, I sold our beloved ute and purchased a Toyota Hi-Ace van to open my own business ‘Bright Spark Mobile Auto Electrical and Air Conditioning’. Before long we had a base in a converted shipping container at the local Mack Truck dealership. Business was good and we quickly outgrew the shipping container. We moved into a rented space in Muir Street and took on our first apprentice, my brother-in-law. We were very proud to graduate from a mobile service to a legitimate workshop.

How were the early days for Bright Spark Auto Electrical in the new workshop?

PLP: We grew quickly. We took on two new tradesmen and two apprentices. Kelly resigned from her position in human resources and accounting to become our full-time office administrator. We purchased a property in the light industrial area with an old Queenslander at the front of the block. We built a large workshop at the rear of the block and quickly grew to eight staff with a service advisor/manager.

It sounds like it has been all smooth sailing. Have you had any challenges in the business?

PLP: In 2007 and 2008, Kelly and I packed up our two children and spent six months exploring the east coast of Australia. It was a magnificent adventure and as we traipsed from van park to van park, we could see the business potential of the caravan and RV market. Despite seeing the promise of cashed-up grey nomads, we returned from our trip to wear the full brunt of the Global Financial Crisis. Cairns is a tourist town and it was hit hard. We scaled back our business, sold the workshop and returned to a mobile business model for a few years.

That must have been challenging. Has your business recovered?

PLP: In 2011, we reflected on our caravanning holiday and established Bright Spark 12V Centre to cater for the Caravan and RV market. Our hunch has paid off and we have gone from strength to strength.

We now employ seven staff and have a large retail shop catering to the caravan, camper trailer, 4WD and RV markets.

We specialise in custom 12V DC systems, self-sufficient power management systems to enable our customers to free camp, utilising solar and vehicle DCDC charging with back up 240V battery charger via mains and generator charging. With the average powered van park site around $60 per night, we can design a system that will pay for itself in a short amount of time. We also do general auto electrical work including EFI, ABS, SRS, Starters, Alternators and so on. We endeavor to carry out mainstream diagnostics/repairs to allow our staff to be competent in most auto electrical fields.

We also have a sister company called Autocool Cairns which is our auto air conditioning branch. All of our staff are qualified/licensed auto air conditioning technicians. We also carry out classic and muscle car rewires and a/c installs through Bright Spark Custom Rewiring and air conditioning.

Are you still hands on in the business today?

PLP: Kelly is in charge of the office and I split my time between the showroom and workshop. We employ Todd as our Service Advisor/Sales Manager. We find it is easier to have someone run the showroom and myself oversee the workshop/work flow. Clive is our senior tradesman with Robbie and Jarvis both working as tradesmen in our workshop after completing their apprenticeship with us. Young Jaydan is our apprentice in the second year of his training.

What are your plans for Bright Spark in the next few years?

PLP: Our next expansion phase will focus on online sales of parts and accessories.

We are currently updating our websites and working on getting our online sales up and running. We want to systemise our business with better workshop software and point of sales/bar coding for the showroom.

What do you see as the greatest advancement in technology for your business?

PLP: Scan tool technology has been a game changer but having access to the internet and technical data providers cannot be underestimated. Technology has taken the guessing game out especially when presented with a greater range of odd and exotic models of cars.

Do you consider that the advancements in electric cars will have an impact on your business? If so, how so?

PLP: I know electric vehicles will have a big impact on our business.

We will see more and more of them coming through the shop for a variety of issues. We will need to stay abreast of current technology to avoid becoming redundant in the future. We are looking to MTA Queensland to keep us up to date with the latest changes in the industry.

What is the greatest benefit of your MTA Queensland membership?

PLP: We joined MTAQ about a year ago. So far our membership has been very useful when dealing with apprentices and understanding what we need to do to train them. The access to general advice and knowing someone who understands our industry is there for us when we need them is great.

Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (August 2021)

12 August 2021