THE GAME OF WORK
It’s all about fueling the fun Column by TOM BISSONNETTE … CONTINUED FROM Issue 20#3 We still had our share of challenges getting the new shop up and running at Dodge City. People were getting used to working with each other, equipment still needed to be set up and required training. Production systems and administrative […]
So Far, SAAR Good: SAAR Fall Conference draws 200+ attendees to Saskatoon
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan — Gone as quickly as it came, the 2021 SAAR Fall Conference is officially in the books as the hottest ticket in the prairies drew in more than 200 attendees at its peak, this past weekend. As per tradition, SAAR kicked off the fall conference with a golf tournament comprised of 72 attendees, […]
Hottest Ticket in ‘Toon: SAAR Fall Conference golf tournament sold out
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan — The SAAR Fall Conference is just under one week out and the golf tournament just sold out of its last ticket—but luckily Dave Luehr and many other industry guests will be there to find other ways to spark your competitive edge. On Friday morning, industry icon Dave Luehr will lead a discussion […]
A TOAST TO COLLISION REPAIR MAG
Darryl Simmons took a chance—and we reap the rewards BY TOM BISSONNETTE I can remember the first time I heard about Collision Repair magazine (CRM). I was at a CCIF meeting in Toronto, and I ended up at the meeting after the meeting (in the hotel lounge) sitting at a table with Darryl Simmons and […]
Upping The Standards
Building the band at Dodge City BY TOM BISSONNETTE Initially, my role at Dodge City was twofold: run the day-to-day business of the existing bodyshop, even though the previous shop manager was still on staff, and work with the contractors that were building the new shop next door to Parr and the dealership. It was…interesting. […]
THE POWER OF PARR
The limits are endless with great people by your side BY TOM BISSONNETTE “I saw enough of the shops over in Europe to make the decision to come back and totally transform Parr into a world class collision repair facility.” As many of you know, I am not an auto body technician—I was a mechanic […]
CRUNCH TIME
Put pressure on those bleeding costs BY TOM BISSONNETTE Back in 1986, I worked at Parr Auto Body as the shop manager. I was in way over my head—a 2,230 sq. m. (24,000 sq. ft.) facility with a rent cost of $12,000 a month was just one of the insane overheads that the business had. […]
FIRST IN LINE
Collision repairers find themselves the first to deal with new tech—again BY ALLISON ROGERS “I can see that the OEMs would want to have a network of shops that have access to their proprietary information so that they can protect their brand— Tesla, BMW and Mercedes do that now to some extent. The challenge is […]
BREAKING THE GROUND – The struggles and successes of starting out
BY TOM BISSONNETTE I fell into the auto body trade almost by accident. My car had been in an accident and I took it to a local shop where I got to know the owner and manager and we became friends. My original vocation was a mechanic at a local farm machinery dealership. My father […]
Tom Bissonnette appointed SAAR Executive Director
By Tom Davis Saskatoon, Saskatchewan — October 10, 2017 — Tom Bissonnette, former owner of Parr Auto Body and former Chairman of the Canadian Collision Industry Forum (CCIF), has been appointed as Executive Director of the Saskatchewan Association of Automotive Repairers (SAAR). Bissonnette, who previously wrote Collision Repair magazine’s “Prairie View” column, officially started the […]
