Exciting Times All Around

I spoke with Rick Tuuri when I heard he was starting to work at I-CAR (I mean at a paid position - he has been working on I-CAR’s behalf, for free, in our industry for a long time!) "I just couldn't be more excited. I-CAR has a mission and a vision that I believe in," declared Rick.

Well, Tuuri is probably even more excited now, because word is out that the I-CAR national meeting was a sold-out event. This attendance record was set upon the heels of I-CAR’s best INSIGHT TrendLine shop satisfaction marks ever, as reported in our July issue.

See a special report this month from the I-CAR meeting, on page 13, rushed to INSIGHT from the quick pen of John Yoswick moments after the I-CAR meeting ended. INSIGHT is coming to you a day or two later than usual because we held up the presses to get this coverage to you immediately.

Remote desk auditors were front and center at July’s CIC meeting. The lively discussion guarantees an agenda place for this timely topic at upcoming CIC gatherings.

Texas is still a state on which to keep our eyes, even without a NACE event coming up there anymore. Allstate has introduced a new direct repair program in the Lone Star state in response to the law recently passed there outlawing insurer ownership of auto body repair facilities.

The California Autobody Association waxed enthusiastic about the Texas bill’s success and is apparently planning to try again in California, where a similar, CAA-sponsored bill was defeated last year.

Our August feature takes a look at our industry’s people in the middle, the jobbers. Talk about exciting! Jobbers supply not only materials and bodyshop supplies to us - they are diplomats and teachers and trusted mentors, and sometimes even magicians - at the center of the relationship between shops, insurers, and paint manufacturers.

Talking with jobbers across the nation while INSIGHT developed this article only made us want to hear more from the jobber segment. Be sure to read this month’s feature for an overview of the jobber experience.

Summer is almost over, so a final suggestion this month: Read INSIGHT outside!