Today we’d like to introduce you to Andy Bizub.
Andy, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My first car, at age 19, was a 1972 Triumph Spitfire. British roadsters of that era need a lot of work, so I learned basic mechanics through owning that car. So started my lifelong obsession with cars, gasoline, and oil.
Fast forward 30 years, when I learned that the independent shop where I took my old Porsche 911 turbo for service, was failing and going to close. I put together a deal to acquire the business, recapitalize it, filling it with up-to-date equipment, and retaining the whole staff. We spent the first year cleaning and equipping the physical shop, stabilizing cash flow, and rebuilding customer relationships. Now in our 4th year, we are on the verge of opening a second location in Northbrook Illinois and have designs on a third location in the western suburbs soon. We have almost doubled the staff and consistently get warm reviews from very satisfied clients.
Has it been a smooth road?
The first 6 months of ownership were very challenging. I had to gain the trust of a rightfully disillusioned staff that had operated under very tough conditions prior to my acquiring the business. At the same time, we had to ramp up productivity in order to prove out that this was a viable business. I did my best to set an example by doing everything that I asked of the rest of the crew. I grabbed brooms, did demolition and construction, hauled out years of trash, de-greased, scrubbed, answered phones, and basically worked hard at building morale and generating a strong esprit de corps.
We also had to “fire” a small segment of clients who had become used to leveraging the former owner’s difficult financial position in order to get discounted service and freebies. I was intent on building a culture of value, quality, and respect, both in our respect for our client’s time and money, as well as their respect for our excellent service. There was no other way forward than earning confidence and trust through maximum effort and hard work.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Our focus is on maintenance and repair of German cars, from brand new to 1960’s vintage classics. We are very heavily into Porsche and are well known for our Porsche air-cooled expertise. We have clients contact us from around the country for advice, for pre-purchase vehicle evaluations, and even to send us their cars on a flatbed from other cities for service and major repairs.
I am very proud of our reputation for quality work, our specialized knowledge, and the fact that we stand behind our work with a warranty that is 3 times longer than the new-car dealer. Our staff sets us apart from our competition, and you can read for yourself how our customers respond to our people. Clients often call our crew out by name in online reviews, and many first time customers simply cannot believe what a good experience they have to service their car.
We invest heavily in training for our people, both technical, hands-on training for our technicians, as well as management and sales training for our service writers. Training is expensive, but it creates a customer-focused environment where we can deliver a great service that is highly respectful of our client’s time and money.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Our location in the West Loop neighborhood is outstanding for our business. Being so centrally located, we can easily call Uber and Lyft cars in order to get our customers on their way after they drop off their vehicle. Most customers are in and out of our shop in under 5 minutes when they drop off.
The majority of our business comes from clients who live in Chicago. They have few choices in the city for high-quality service on a German car, and there is no other shop that focuses on transparency and building a relationship with the client the way that we do. For someone starting a business, the city has many advantages, and, of course, a few problems. Advantages are proximity to high-density downtown, a very “hot” neighborhood with tremendous “buzz”, and high European vehicle ownership in the city.
Disadvantages are Painful traffic, underdeveloped infrastructure, and poor planning and use of public space. A recent push to locate bicycle lanes on an already overcrowded Lake Street, under rumbling El tracks with poor visibility and high commercial vehicle traffic makes absolutely zero common sense.
Our area has a large balance of TIF funds that should be used to improve everyday common infrastructure that affects residents and SMALL businesses because they are the drivers of economic development.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1385 W Lake Street
- Website: www.midwestperformancecars.com
- Phone: 3124329492
- Email: info@midwestperformancecars.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mpcars/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MPCchicago
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/midwest-performance-cars-chicago
Image Credit:
Chris Lum, Andy Bizub
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