By Amy Antenora
CHICAGO — Conjuring the spirit of an FDR fireside chat, Affinia Group’s John Washbish sat poised behind a table with his 1940s style microphone and a mug that read “Big Boss” as he kicked off the Family Affair panel discussion on day two of the 2008 Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium in Chicago. Panelists included Craig Bond, senior vice president of Bond Auto Parts, a warehouse distributor based in Barre, Vt.; Dominic Grote, vice president of sales and marketing, Grote Industries, an LED lighting and wire harness manufacturer; and Doug Reevey, president of Autotec Inc., a Canadian service and repair business. 
The discussion focused on the different ways a family run business deals with issues compared to a public company. The first question Washbish asked the panel kept with the prevailing theme of this annual event – globalization.
“How do you define globalization, what impact is it having on the aftermarket in general and your business specifically?” Washbish asked.
“In the late 80s and early 90s, we saw globalization as a threat, but the attitude started to change within the company when we did our first deal with a transplant. So it went from a threat into an opportunity. We see globalization, for us, as an opportunity to grow,” said Dominic Grote. “It has also helped make us a stronger company.”
For Craig Bond and his business, the biggest issue surrounding globalization is where the parts are manufactured. “To be competitive in the marketplace you have to be affiliated with a low cost country at some level, and …now we’re chasing lower gross profit dollars,” said Bond. “You need to have a quality product with fit, form and function and if it’s acceptable it’s less of a concern where the products come from.”
“If you asked me that question two years ago, I would have said globalization would not impact our business whatsoever, at the grass roots level in the repair shop, but it does, in a huge way,” said Reevey. “I thought globalization would only impact the large companies, the manufacturers.” Reevey said the impact comes in the huge learning curve for the service provider as a result of the increasing presence of foreign nameplates in the North American market.
The panel also addressed such topics as technology and vertical industry collaboration. Each panel member addressed their biggest individual challenges, which ranged from agility and the ability to adapt to change, staying competitive in the marketplace in terms of technology, product and staffing, as well as Right to Repair.
