Amazing Women in Automotive (AWiA) has had several members who have faced the struggle of the unexpected loss of their business partner. In many cases, it is a husband, father, or close family member, making the loss even more impactful to their lives. Two women from our group were kind enough to share their experiences in hopes of preventing you and your team from waiting until it’s too late.
Rich Udenberg bought Cannon Auto Repair in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, in 2002. He was a Master technician for 20 years, beginning his career in automotive as a detailer. In 2023, he was just starting to think about retirement and planning the transfer of his business to daughter Ashlan Kaplan when he passed away from a sudden and unexpected heart attack.
Rich’s loss was felt throughout the community that he had served for so many years. However, the loss the team experienced, coupled with the lack of legal documents or insurance plans to cover such an event, left them in shock and scrambling for an action plan.
Ashlan had worked for her dad part-time while tending to her full-time job in the chiropractic care industry. She graduated with a degree in health care management, but about two years ago, after the birth of her daughter Sophie, she decided to go full-time in the shop and begin the transition of taking over the family business.
While nothing can fully prepare you to endure such hardship, Ashlan does say there are a few things she wishes they had done that would have significantly helped. One example would have been key-employee insurance on her father’s life. This would have allowed her and the staff some time off with pay for grieving and allowing Ashlan to get things in order. She reminds us that we often spend more time with the people at work than with our own families. Therefore, employees also need time to adjust to this type of situation. Key-employee life insurance coverage was one of the first things she implemented in the shop.
She also says meeting with management staff and having an actual plan is necessary. It’s not an easy topic to discuss, but like Ashlan, who is still working through probate, none of us want to see the ones we leave behind having to persevere through such a horrible and preventable process.
She also mentioned standard operating procedures. While they had quite a few, there were so many things her dad just took care of she did not even realize he was doing. I think this is common for many of us who start small. It’s easy to “just do little things” without realizing the impact it can have. Ashlan says we need to lean into the owner less. Her dad wasn’t just one of their main techs; he mowed the lawn, came in on weekends to clean, and much more. “We should have had a plan in place to sub out those duties.”
Lastly, ensure personal accounts, such as e-mails or storage clouds, are not linked to your business. “I am still trying to hack into my dad’s iCloud account because of the 2-factor authentication linked to his personal cell”, she shared. They plan on getting a cheap cell phone just for the office for these types of instances.
Employees and family members aren’t the only ones who go through an adjustment in these circumstances. During my conversation with Ashlan and Michelle, we discussed the customers. Ashlan, in particular, because she is in a small town and an automotive shop, has many long-term customers that have relied on them for routine maintenance. She was overwhelmed by their clients’ concern about losing their repair shop. This could be addressed by coaching your clients and not just your staff about who will inherit the facility upon your retirement or exit from the business. Unfortunately, most of us plan for that day much later than we should.
Michelle Trube of GT Transmission in Ronkonkoma, New York, had a similar story. Her father, Greg, had started GT Transmission in the year 2000. One day in December of 2021, Michelle’s father didn’t show up to work. His family went to his home and found he had passed away in his sleep from a heart attack.
While Michelle grew up in her dad’s shops, she was not working for him at that time. She was left with her three other siblings to figure out what to do with his shop and staff. Michelle’s brother, Matthew, had been working as a mechanic at his mother’s transmission shop and decided, in the meantime, to try and get the cars currently in the shop completed and back to the customers.
Michelle and Matthew visited with the staff and told them they planned to stay open at least through January 1st and would soon decide whether they wanted to keep it open after that point. Ultimately, Michelle and her brother decided to buy out their other two siblings and keep their dad’s shop going.
Michelle says the worst part, other than losing her dad, was the feeling of cluelessness and loss of control. She had no idea where anything was or where to start, for that matter. She says one thing she wished they had in place was a secondary or backup person on business documents. Things get complicated when only one person is in on everything, and then that person is suddenly gone. Probate is expensive and can be a slow process for many. Luckily Michelle and her brother have completed that and are making GT Transmission their own.
I asked the ladies what advice they would give someone currently in this situation. Ashlan says to find support in groups like AWiA. She has leadership business coaches, who she says are a huge help when she has questions or needs resources. Michelle says not to be afraid to ask for help. Whether it’s other shops or friends and family, anything helps. Michelle saw a GEARS Magazine article about AWiA and decided to join because you just never know when you might need a community to lean on.
For more information about AWiA, please visit AmazingWIA.com. Ladies, be sure to join their private ladies-only roundtable group on Facebook for info about the weekly meetings and events!
