Today’s Car Care may have just finalized its move from Boutte to its new Luling location, but Galen Guidry’s business philosophy was in no way left behind. “It’s all about building relationships with people,” Guidry said. “That interaction is the most rewarding thing. If you don’t like people, then you can’t treat people fair.”
That belief is permeated throughout his business and employees, old building or new. That noted, there are several tangible benefits that Today’s Car Care customers can reap following the move, which Guidry said was done in order to create more space and allow for expansion while also, as the store location’s owner, enabling him to pass the family business down to his daughter, Bailie and his son-in-law, Brody.
“It gives us a better ability to maneuver throughout the whole shop,” Guidry said. “It all adds up to better efficiency. In the other shop, we might have to pull in a car, then pull it out and pull another one in … now, (the shop) can have several cars in place and ready to be worked on. You can make some calls and continue fixing it. And we can put 20 cars back behind our shop now. That makes a difference.”
Today’s Car Care is equipped electronically for technical work. A state-of-the-art paint booth and new frame rack to allow attention to structural damage are among the new location’s shop perks. The new store sports an additional 3,500 square feet of work area. Guidry said the plan is to build the store a bit bigger than currently needed as to cover any kind of expansion going forward.
He said the Luling location will allow Today’s Car Care to provide full service to its customers, so each of them “will not have to leave here, because we can do everything you need.”
“We’ve done a lot of technical and suspension work for body shops over the years, airbags, electronics, alignments … so we’re not very far away from that as it is,” he said. “I’m very excited to be able to offer more services for our loyal customers.”
For Guidry himself, he notes some interpersonal benefits gained during the months where the move was set into motion, crediting his service manager, Greg Townsend, head technician, Brody Bourg and collision center manager, Jason Guidry as helping to make the move as seamless as possible.
“I couldn’t have done it without them,” Galen Guidry said. “I’ve had to be in and out over the past few months, and Greg and Brody kind of had to figure things out on their own. To me, it just puts us further ahead, because it allowed them to expand their roles. We’re all a little more hardened. [pullquote]“It’s all about building relationships with people,” Guidry said. “That interaction is the most rewarding thing. If you don’t like people, then you can’t treat people fair.”[/pullquote]
“I don’t plan to ever retire, but I sure would like to semi-retire one day,” added Guidry, now 50. “This assures we can keep it rolling for many years to come.”
He believes honest communication with customers is paramount, noting it’s something that’s helped his business thrive in the community for years. Part of keeping an ever-important trust is being upfront with each customer. Guidry said he instructs his staff to let a customer know right off the bat what can and can’t be done with their vehicle, eliminating most situations that would see a car or truck “in the shop” for an extended period.
“I’ve been on this highway my whole life,” said Guidry, who went into his line of work following in the footsteps of his father, who he began working for at the age of 12. “I’ve done this for 39 years. My method keeps people coming. If you explain things honestly, even a customer who disagrees with you at first comes back, because they realize, ‘ok, this guy sounds like he has my best interests at heart.’”
Guidry said a calling card of Today’s Car Care is its strong team of technicians.
“We pride ourselves on being a specialized repair facility, and that means I expect a high skill level from all of my technicians,” Guidry said. “Being specialized also means I pay them more, and that helps keep quality employees, as well as ensure quality work is being done.
“We’re always looking to add technicians to our team, and are even willing to train them in house and help them get the certifications they need. All they need is a willingness to learn and work hard, and they can be successful in this field.”
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