Driven Brands Collision Group Stands ‘UNIT3D’ by Stacey Phillips
Early in December, Driven Brands Collision G roup held a virtual summit themed “U NIT3D.” During the event, speakers talked about the challenges the industry is facing and the importance of unity among the Driven Brands’ franchises to pave a path forward. After welcoming attendees to the event, Mic hael Mac al u s o, Driven Brands’ group president and EV P, paint, collision & glass, discussed the importance of strength for the company’s family of family businesses. “This year has certainly been trying but absolutely rewarding,” said Macaluso. “We’ve adjusted, we’ve pivoted and we’ve persevered.” Macaluso said that most importantly, throughout 2020, Driven Brands has tried to ensure the safety and health of the team, customers, franchisees and partners within the network. G uest speaker Mik e A nd ers on, owner of Collision Advice, discussed the state of the industry and then held
a panel discussion focused on current industry issues during the pandemic. “I understand that there are challenges in our industry right now with COV ID… ” said Anderson. “Y ou don t have to have it all figured out. All you have to do is be willing to reach out to other people and say, ‘ Can you help me? ’ It’s really that simple.” He pointed out how the Driven
Brands family has recently grown and advised attendees not to underestimate the value, importance and strength of the franchisees reaching out to one another to help accomplish
a goal. An additional keynote speaker was N anc y F ried man, founder and chairman of the Telephone Doctor. Friedman shared tips and techniques on the “G olden Nuggets of Sales & Customer Service” during the pandemic. She encouraged attendees to prepare for the unexpected, embrace change, do something extra, return phone calls and make sure not to be too busy. Throughout the event, brand updates were given by company leaders. “2020 has been a year to forget,” said L andon Thompson, vice president of operations, Fix Auto U SA. “All businesses have faced challenging conditions this year, but few have really gone through what we have.” He pointed to the three-and-ahalf-year dispute with Mondo that was resolved Feb. 5 . He also talked about the acquisition by Driven Brands six weeks after the coronavirus broke out. Despite the challenges with COV ID-19 , 21 new franchise loca-
tions were added over the year. “We’ve prided ourselves on being great performers and not only have we sustained our performance, we’ve improved it,” Thompson said. Mark W ahl in, V P, franchise development & operations, ABRA, said 2020 for ABRA actually started in October 2019 , when Driven Brands acquired the franchise. Since the pandemic, Wahlin noted, there has been additional work at the shop level related to the safety protocols for both employees and consumers. “It was an amazing shift and through it all, the centers stayed open,” he said. “The comeback has been amazing. At the end of October [ 2020] as a group, our sales are slightly ahead of that same time period as 2019 . As we look forward to finishing up this year and growing into 2021, the expectations are high for that growth to continue.” eff Labano ich, G M of CARSTAR Canada, gave an update on CARSTAR North America and then spoke about the network’s resil-
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