Toronto, Ontario -- A major independent collision repair facility is celebrating its 60th anniversary.
Ryding Auto Body, a cornerstone of Toronto's collision industry, was founded in 1965 by Rocco "Rocky" DeLorenzo. Over the six decades that followed, the business found itself growing at an uncomfortable speed, and was forced to move to larger sites in 1973, 1981, and 1999. From its beginning in modest garage attached to the DeLorenzo home, it is now based out of a 2,000 square-metre (20,000-square-foot) facility on Castlefield Avenue.
Today, the business, which employs between 15 and 20 people, is owned by Rocky's son, Mark DeLorenzo, who had been a partner in the business before his father's death in 2021. "There are three generations of DeLorenzos working here right now," he says. "Though it has its challenges, owning a family business is something that has kept us together."
It isn't just the DeLorenzos Mark sees as part of the family, but the whole Ryding team. This put him in a difficult position during the coronavirus pandemic, when the company was struggling to remain afloat.
"I'm proud we were able to keep the core team employed even though no one was driving. We had a fun project that kept the staff busy -- rebuilding a 1967 Chevy Camaro."
While not a fiscally rewarding strategy, Mark says it did allow him to briefly live out a life-long dream. "Classic cars are in my blood... My first toys were a wrench, a hammer and a sander. While working on them doesn’t pay, it's what I'd spend my life doing if I won the lottery."
While setting his team on a make-work project during a lean period may not sound like the actions of a hard-nosed business leader, Marks efforts to ensure the competitiveness of his company paint a very different picture.
In recent years, he has set about securing 10 major certifications for Ryding Auto Body. "We've secured a lot from the Asian OEMs. My goal right now is to get some more European certifications."
Ryding Auto Body doesn't just focus on continuous improvement on the shop floor. Recently, the company implemented AI systems to handle answering phones, booking appointments and providing estimation reports.
He says that, while there were a few teething problems, the team was quickly able to adapt. "Its always a challenge teaching staff a new way to do something, but our team picked it up quickly," he says, proudly adding: "We’ve got a lot of bright people here."
While Mark is quick to adopt new ideas, he shares his father's belief that hard work, hard-earned confidence and quality customer service are the foundation of his business's success.
"In terms of our overall approach, we favour substance over slickness.... I don't want to give away any trade secrets here, but let me say this: if people like you, trust that you know what you're doing and and that you'll be honest about the price, they'll keep coming to you."
