THE DR. Independent Service History
THE DR. INDEPENDENT SERVICE began in 1988 and was known as DR Volvo Independent Service. The original shop consisted of 1800 sq. feet, two hoists, and serviced only Volvos. The owner had never been in the automobile repair business before, nor was he a mechanic. He previously owned two other unrelated businesses.
A neighbor, who was shop foreman at a Volvo shop, talked to him several times about starting his own shop. After three months of feasibility studies, the automobile business penciled out and DR. VOLVO Independent Service was born. Being a neophyte in the automobile repair business, the owner decided to visit other auto repair shops for ideas and see his obstacles. Not being a technician was to his advantage, as he viewed these shops as a potential customer. He quickly realized that lack of credibility was the biggest obstacle he had to overcome in order to make a difference in this business. He needed to create trust with his customers.
He decided THE DR.’s 5 essentials would be:
- Join AAA Automobile Club—Strive for 100% customer satisfaction
- Have the cleanest and most organized shop possible
- Issue a two year warranty on all work completed
- Offer free visual inspections on customer’s cars.
- Create ‘open shop’ policy where customers would be allowed in the shop and be shown needed work.
Business blossomed and in 1993 DR. Volvo Independent Service moved to a 10,550 sq. foot facility. He decided he wanted continued growth so he reinvested all profits back into his shop.
In 2004 THE DR. purchased a 20,000 sq. foot building on two acres with freeway access and visibility from the 405 freeway in Orange County, California. This freeway carries the heaviest traffic usage in Southern California. The real secret to THE DR.’s growth and success is our understanding that we are in the ‘people’ business, which is often forgotten in the auto repair business. The employees now working with THE DR. were all hand picked to be not only competent, but truly people caring. We are a service oriented people company. Our three goals are and always have been:
- To delight our customers.
- To promote an optimum working environment for our employees.
- To remain profitable.
Southern California is perhaps the most competitive market in America. The edge we seek is perfection. We have purchased all software available to diagnose and properly repair each of these high performance makes.
Our mission statement is “The Extraordinary Experience”. Each employee strives to create this environment for every customer. We have an inviting showroom and clean waiting room. We provide loaner cars for our customers with early bird and late night drops. Customer convenience is always our goal. Free hand car washes are provided for each customer’s car. We also have a complimentary “service”station where customers get their tire pressure and all fluid levels and conditions checked. Solving our customers’ transportation needs in an area where there is little public transportation gives great satisfaction knowing we are adding to our community. |
