Aftermarket April 2022

APRIL 2022 AFTERMARKET 57 www.aftermarketonline.net more than just Honda though. The average day will include a lot of BMWs and VAG group and stuff like that. It is everything really, and the customer base is all ages. On the marketing side, we have the website, we also have social media. We use that to keep our current customers up-to- date, and to attract new customers.” This was augmented by a number of partnerships and associations: “We started with a small customer base, but it has grown. On top of routine work, we are an authorised agent for Avon Tuning. When we started they sent us a load of work that way. That continued, which has helped us out massively. Avon Tuning are only about 30 minutes up the road. We are also part of the DPF Doctor Network and the HEVRA network for electric vehicles. We get a lot of recommendations from people that use us as well.” Understanding We wondered how they split the workload and responsibilities. Connor commented: “Mark and I have slightly different job roles here. I’m 27 and Mark is 37, so there is a bit of an age difference. Before Mark worked at Honda, he worked at an independent garage. When he was at Honda he ran the workshop, so he had a better idea in terms of being customer facing, and running things from that aspect. “When I was at Honda, I qualified as a Master Technician, and I also did a lot of training courses with James Dillon. I’ve done his diagnostic programme and the Master Tech programme. Overall, I have done quite a lot of training within the industry. We have a lot of understanding of the new technology and we are qualified for it.” Top Garage Back to Top Garage. We wondered how they felt, as a small and relatively new business, to have won such a prestigious national competition, impressing the likes of The Garage Inspector Andy Savva in the process: “We were massively shocked to win. It was like a dream to be honest. It didn’t quite seem real. It was an awesome day. For obvious reasons, we had never entered before. It was our first opportunity to enter, so we were blown away to even get to the finals. To win our group was crazy. What an achievement to win something like that.” On the benefits of the process, Connor said: “It was massively useful. As you go through the stages of the competition, you look at what they are asking, and how to implement it. You then look at what you can change in your own business. It is interesting to see what we could be doing, or what we think we should be doing. “We shouted about our win on our social media, as it is a massive achievement for us. The whole experience was amazing to be honest. It was also nice to speak to so many other garage owners at the Top Technician and Top Garage Awards Evening. Many of them we had spoken to, but not actually met in real life. It is great as a networking thing too. We would definitely recommend it.” Next step On what the future holds for CM Automotive, Connor concluded: “For our next step, ideally we would like a bigger premises. We need more room basically. We are not sure whether we would move entirely, or if another space became available on the trading estate we would shift across. Then we want to expand and take on some more staff members. We would like another tech and maybe an apprentice. For now though, we are at the limit on the space side, but we will make do with what we have got for now.” We started with a small customer base, but it has grown ”