Collision repair catering to millennials

By Elizabeth Sargeant

Toronto Ontario — June 21, 2019 — Collision repairers and dealerships are upping their in-shop experience game to appeal to millennials and younger customers – and surprisingly, it’s working.

While customer’s cars are appraised, repaired, and repolished, the wait can often be long and uncomfortable. One may associate the dreaded wait with the smell of stale coffee, the sight of flickering lights, the taste of perhaps of a complimentary store-bought tart, and even the feeling of a cracked leather couch under impatient legs, ready to put them back on the pedals of a repaired vehicle and get out of there.

In fact, a poll conducted by Beepi/Harris Poll revealed that 56 percent of millennials would rather clean their whole home than spend time waiting at a dealership – 24 percent of them would rather get a root canal.

Lexus dealerships across America are trying to erase those unpleasant attachments and appeal to the younger generation with fine-dining experiences while their customers wait for their vehicles to be serviced.

“In one of our stores in San Antonio, Tex., we have a free coffee bar with snacks, a manicurist and a masseuse,” Kimberly Sherron, design leader at Lexus told The New York Times earlier this month.

“In Wichita, Kan., you can drop your vehicle off at the service department, get taken to the airport and then picked up when you come back. In the Tampa area, we have a store that features a manned barista bar, with free macchiatos, croissants and sandwiches.”

So while many family-owned businesses may not have the budget to hire a full-time masseuse for their waiting room, here are some helpful tips to keep anxious millennial customers engaged during the stressful situation of waiting.

1. Consider investing in vegan, ethically-baked, locally sourced, non-GMO, gluten-free, fat-free, naturally-flavoured, pasture-raised, ecologically sustainably-produced, cookies. If you have trouble finding that at your local Costco, there’s nothing wrong with a bowl of apples. We hope.

2. Have a collection of books, hady for any reader! Any classics written before 1950 aren’t morally suitable for young millennials, however, you can never go wrong with #GirlBoss and Hilary Clinton’s classic memoir What Happened?, which is what I’m sure we’re all wondering

3. Ever heard of oat milk?

4. Host a macrame-making circle in the waiting room. It gives millennials something to do with their hands although their excuse for avoiding the trades is often, “I don’t work my hands.” Worried about the mess? You’re in an auto shop, it’s “dirty work anyway” – Amethyst, 22.

5. Rosé all day. It’s the summer slogan and frankly I’m sure the receptionist could use a glass after a long day of hearing about why the feng shui of this whole shop is just “off”.

While many millennials may feel uncomfortable waiting for you to service their car, catering to their specific needs may just be what everyone needs to make the process of collision repair run a little bit smoother.