LAS VEGAS -- IWD, Auto Pride/Truck Pride reported record attendance for its 20th annual membership meeting, which took place March 30-April 3 in Las Vegas.

During the meeting, 2004 Auto Service Expert of the Year Dan Bryant from Bryant’s Automotive in Redding, Calif., and 2004 Truck Service Expert of the Year Stephane Jobin from Stephane’s Mobile Repair in Lac La Biche, Alberta, Canada, were honored for Outstanding Performance with Auto and Truck Service Expert Programs. Bryant and Jobin spoke to the IWD members and manufacturers about the value of the marketing programs.

At the Auto Pride marketing meeting Thursday afternoon, the committee posed the question: How do you find better customers? The group discussed opportunities available to Auto Pride distributors by holding shop-owner council meetings to raise the bar of professional standards when dealing with customers.

To demonstrate to members the value of the council, a live shop owner meeting was held, where Four Auto Service Expert business owners -- Dan Bryant, Craig Fetter, Gary Goodman and Jeff and Judy Walter -- shared their opinions about price, quality and service. The group discussed how they keep their customers and grow their businesses.

At the booth show on Friday, Auto and Truck Pride members were able to have one-on-one meetings with the manufacturers and obtain the latest product information from automotive, heavy duty and marketing vendors.

On Saturday, Auto Pride held an open panel discussion with representatives from four Auto Service Expert repair facilities who discussed industry issues such as the Right to Repair Act and best practices. Truck Pride roundtable meetings were also held on Saturday morning. Members using the Truck Service Expert program were able to work one-on-one with those members just coming on board.

The meeting concluded with speaker Michael Gerber, author of "The E-Myth," who spoke about the challenges of entrepreneurship.

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