The early days of my life were filled with rummaging through many wrecked, older cars and trucks hoping to find loose change, toys, shinny things, clothes, tools, magazines (an amazing variety), and yes, much too often, rather gross items as well.
As I got older I found it curious that some cars appeared undamaged, while others had differing degrees of damage. In my teen years my father encouraged me to dismantle those cars, and I found I developed a sense about the various parts and how they worked. He also taught me why he bought some cars that were undamaged, and others that were. Many years of work and experienced pointed me in the career direction I would follow and provide the means for making a life.
ALL IMPORT AUTO PARTS was formed January 3, 1989, while I was a junior in High School. I had acquired five years of training in my father’s recycling facility, AAA SMALL CAR WORLD. Going to school the first half of the day, then managing my small business the second half, was never easy. Some days seemed short while others continued well into the following day. As fate would have it, my first class in the morning was under the tutelage of a “hard-nosed” English teacher, for whom I never seemed to be quite ready. Never-the-less, after I graduated it became a lot easier working full time building a firm customer oriented foundation that has served our business well. Tammy, my wife, became part of our family-run business in 1994. Our business grew as she and I continued our education by attending business seminars around the Country.
We became members of the Automotive Dismantling and Recycling Association in 1996. We meet every year for the expressed purpose of teaching recyclers the “do and don’t” of owning/managing a legal, ethical recycling facility. We have learned much by attending these meetings and built some strong personal relationships, discovering personal friendships which last a lifetime..
I want to thank some men that mean a lot to me, and I am proud to know them: Ron Sturgeon, Jim Counts, Bill Stevens, Paul Parker, Bob Swarts, Troy Miller, Norman Wright, Howard Neussbaum, Bill Tolpa, Ron Massey and James Pack. They have been my friends and competitors over the years, and still are today..
During 1997 we begin attending a meeting where ten recyclers would share business information, from financial statements to the type of tire used on the forklifts, In my opinion this process, giving and receiving information, is “far and away” the best way to learn.
Looking back I am amazed at the success we achieved while making mistakes and operating without the technology we have utilize today. It seems unreal. Through the years we’ve used and abandon systems and procedures that, at that time seemed efficient and profitable. Now, we spend a prodigious amount of time learning computer operations and understanding how best to handle information. Even with all the changes and progress over the years, and other outside influences that have affected our business, we continue to steadfastly maintain that our customers come first – and always will.
