To say Dreher Collision Center – with locations in Appleton and Brownsville, Wis. – is family-owned would grossly underestimate
the impact of family on the business. This family comprises nearly 50 percent of its employee base, which is currently at
nine.
Bill and Colleen, shop co-owners who split time between both locations, have three sons and a daughter. Each of the children
"loves the business," according to their mother, Colleen Dreher. In fact, the sons, in particular, are a primary reason why
the owner parents decided to open the Appleton shop. Daughter Kristen, while always available to help out, graduated from
University of Milwaukee and now works as a financial advisor at US Bank in Fond du Lac, Wis.
All sons have completed high school, and all went on to college before returning to their roots. The oldest, Chad, a graduate
of Clemson University, is managing the Brownsville shop. The middle son, Easton, graduated from Northern Michigan University
in 2005. Eleven days later, he opened up an outdoor adventure store in The Dells but is now working his way into the business
through a new venture. Youngest son, Derek, who left Oshkosh University early to help the business, now manages the Appleton
store.
Photo courtesy of Dreher Collision Center
|
"All of our sons are good with the work environment and business relations. They all went for their business degrees. In Derek's
case, we pulled him out of college a year and a half after he started because he approached us and said he'd love to be part
of the Appleton venture," Colleen says.
In fact, Derek gave Colleen a special birthday card that noted, "Thanks, Mom, for giving me this (Appleton) opportunity. I
won't let you down."
Dreher Collision Center, which has been in business since 1979, only recently opened its shop in Appleton in February 2007.
SNAPSHOP
|
"In the small town of Brownsville, we could not keep three sons busy with enough business. Even as Brownsville grew, we wanted
to expand our horizons," she explains, sharing how Appleton came into play.
"Small" would accurately describe the staff size as well – seven employees (four in Appleton and three in Brownsville) not
including Bill and Colleen. Yet the collision center at Brownsville alone does nearly $1 million in sales a year. Not bad
for a city of approximately 400 residents.
EQUIPMENT CHOICES
|
Efforts to market the shops are important since the Drehers say running a repair business in rural Wisconsin poses some significant
challenges. Despite steady gross revenues over the years, currently, the workflow has slowed down for the shops, a situation
that happens periodically in Wisconsin. Colleen said business is seasonal and it's difficult to keep employees busy when it
slows down.
"When winter rolls around with all the snow and deer hits, we get busier. When spring comes around, and we don't have the
work, sometimes we have to let employees go by nature of the business," she says.
Posted 2008-11-06 12:40:53.0
