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My name is Jeff, and I'd like to welcome you on a journey of reflection and insight into the tolls and triumphs of a career in automotive repair.
After more than 20 years of skinned knuckles and tool debt, I want to share my perspective and hear other people's thoughts about our industry.
So pour yourself a strong coffee or grab a cold Canadian beer and get ready for some great conversation.
[00:00:00] Aniz Lavji: You can project to the world opening seven days a week is the right thing to do. It might be the right thing to do for your demographic because you have such a huge following.
[00:00:21] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:00:22] Aniz Lavji: You have insane amount of cars that you need that day, fine. Good for you. Yeah. But I don't think it's appropriate to project to the industry, in my opinion- Yeah
[00:00:33] Aniz Lavji: I'm not naming anyone, that seven days a week is the right thing to do for everybody.
[00:00:48] Aniz Lavji: You're getting so much information that's ex- like the value, okay, if, if anyone is thinking about ASTA and you wanna talk about value, the, the ticket price is nothing.
[00:01:05] Jeff Compton: Oh, we saw that in a conversation this week, Anis. We saw that with a gentleman in the States- I know who we're messaging. Yeah, back and forth about that, 'cause the guy's like, "Oh my God, you know, it costs more than SEMA."
[00:01:15] Jeff Compton: I don't know if it does or not. I truthfully, I don't know. Um, if it does, um, I can tell you that the vibe, uh, that I've been at SEMA, and I've been at Apex, and I've been at ASTA, the vibe is very different between those, those shows. So, you know, expensive or not, more expensive or not, it's not what it's about.
[00:01:33] Jeff Compton: Trust me. That gentleman in that particular situation that was posting about that, he needs to be at ASTA. If you're listening to
[00:01:40] Aniz Lavji: me- And I hope he takes that ticket- I h- ... that Chris
[00:01:42] Jeff Compton: was offering Yes, I hope he does too because, you know, and- I wanna meet
[00:01:45] Aniz Lavji: him.
[00:01:45] Jeff Compton: Yeah, me too. And it's not a situation of like everybody's gonna dog pile him and say, "Hey, you're all wrong- No
[00:01:51] Jeff Compton: for even thinking that or you don't see the value." It's, "Trust us. Show up. It will change your life." Just like it did- Yes ... for Anis, just like it did for Frank- Mm ... when Frank came to- Yeah ... TOOLS. He came out of there just like... Him and Margarita-
[00:02:04] Aniz Lavji: I, I told Frank- Oh, yeah ... "When you go to TOOLS, you're gonna tell me that, holy crap, where have I- Yeah
[00:02:12] Aniz Lavji: been? Why have I not gone to any of these?" And, you know, most of the conversation I've had with... Well, T- I talk to Frank almost every day.
[00:02:19] Jeff Compton: Almost, yeah.
[00:02:20] Aniz Lavji: And, uh, you know, he's like, "It was great," and Margarita had a blast.
[00:02:24] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:02:25] Aniz Lavji: And it's just the camaraderie, and, you know, that was... It's a little bit of a smaller expo, and like it's very tight-knit.
[00:02:32] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:02:32] Aniz Lavji: But the organization and the people that were there, like you were there and everyone else there, very welcoming.
[00:02:40] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:02:40] Aniz Lavji: And you don't feel like an outsider at these kind of events.
[00:02:43] Jeff Compton: Yeah. It was so funny to me, 'cause Frank was telling me, I can remember leading up to TOOLS he's like, "Well, I'm gonna make TOOLS, but I'm not gonna be able to make ASTA.
[00:02:50] Jeff Compton: There's no possible way." And he comes home and he's, from TOOLS, and he says to me, "Well, I know you and Anis are going to, to ASTA. I'm gonna have- You have to ... to make that work now." And I mean, I'm so happy that he can join us. Um, you know, and it's... I, we have to, we gotta talk for a second. There isn't... It's not that we're in a wasteland of no training up here in Canada, 'cause there are, there are other events that happen in, in Canada.
[00:03:16] Jeff Compton: Mm. Not at the numbers and the frequency that there is in the States. But they don't get the kind of, uh, you don't get the kind of vibe, you don't get the attraction. They do a terrible job of marketing themselves to, to the- That's
[00:03:29] Aniz Lavji: an understatement.
[00:03:29] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Right? And we're not here to throw shade at them.
[00:03:33] Jeff Compton: That's not what it's about. But I mean, you and I are essentially leaving Ontario to go to North Carolina to take an event at the same time that there's an event happening on, in Toronto.
[00:03:43] Aniz Lavji: Multiple times a year, like I, I did. And, and I know you go to multiple events, but- Yeah ... it's not like it's just one- event.
[00:03:52] Aniz Lavji: There's multiple events that we're leaving the country to go to-
[00:03:55] Jeff Compton: Yeah, yeah ...
[00:03:57] Aniz Lavji: to better ourselves.
[00:03:58] Jeff Compton: And, you know, and it's not that the, the event in Toronto doesn't have good opportunities or good training, it's just, it does, like I said, it does a terrible job of marketing itself to people. There are so many people.
[00:04:11] Jeff Compton: You're two hours away from Montreal or Montreal. There I am in Toronto. Toronto. Toronto. I'm two hours away from Toronto, and yet we can go out our doors and we can talk to people and say, "Do you know about this event that's happening?" And they go, "Huh? What? What event? Put on by who?" And yet we can go onto our computers and, and log into these industry groups and everybody's talking about the vision and they're talking about, you know, Tectonic.
[00:04:34] Jeff Compton: They're talking about Asta, they're talking about tools. We have to, in this country, you and I as Canadians, we have to get this coming to be a bigger thing where we are. Because-
[00:04:46] Aniz Lavji: I'd love it if it was here ...
[00:04:47] Jeff Compton: oh, so easy. It would be so... Like, I could drive up, I could stay at your couch, Frank's couch, you know, go to the Toronto show.
[00:04:55] Jeff Compton: You,
[00:04:55] Aniz Lavji: you have a home, you know that.
[00:04:56] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And, and there's enough shops in Toronto. Like, we talk about, you know, Raleigh's a big demographic, but in the east- Mm-hmm ... look at the Toronto area. Like, nothing compares to it in terms of the amount of cars and shops, you know? But-
[00:05:11] Aniz Lavji: There's as many shops as Tim Horton's.
[00:05:13] Jeff Compton: That's right. Yeah. One on every corner, for God's sake. Some of the, the plazas have three shops in the back, you know, behind on the side streets. There's a Tim Horton's, a gas bar, and there'll be four different shops, all servicing four different cars. Mm. It's ridiculous.
[00:05:27] Aniz Lavji: And if you go to each one of them and tell them that there's a show on this date in Toronto, they would first not know what the name of the organization is.
[00:05:38] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. And they'd probably think you're joking.
[00:05:40] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And they'd be like, "How much does that cost to go to?" Well, really, you know, the expo cost is this. You could drive home every night in that terrible traffic that is Toronto. You know it, I... It's been a long time- Yeah ... since I lived in Toronto. But you could drive home every night, save on the hotel fare, and go to this event.
[00:05:58] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm. Right? We don't have that option. You and I are like, "Okay, let's get on a flight, fly to North Carolina," not, not complaining about that, I love it, "and, and stay in a hotel." There are so many opportunities that are being missed in, in our province up here, because it's just, it's marketed terribly. And, you know, I wish, I hope that for next year they change the, the planning schedule of it, because it's- And the date
[00:06:20] Jeff Compton: yeah, it's a conflicting date with ASTA. Yeah. And that they actually get some people behind it that wanna market it for them and help them, because
[00:06:28] Aniz Lavji: I would love- If it wasn't the date that, you know, for ASTA, I would 100%-
[00:06:33] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm ...
[00:06:34] Aniz Lavji: make a point to go- Yeah ... and see what it's all about. But, like, I can't justify going and not go to ASTA.
[00:06:44] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. It's like a no, not happening.
[00:06:46] Jeff Compton: Yeah. It's too bad. Um, what are you excited about for this year's trip?
[00:06:52] Aniz Lavji: You know, it's, it's interesting question, and I knew you'd ask that.
[00:06:59] Aniz Lavji: Last year I was very excited to get the experience of getting some sort of training, formal training-
[00:07:07] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm ...
[00:07:08] Aniz Lavji: for the first time for a business. And 'cause I was, you know, business owner, service advisor, everything- Yeah ... in the front of house. And which I got a lot of information, and again, I continued it, and I, uh, talked with many different people from the industry and got lots of tips, went to Vision.
[00:07:29] Aniz Lavji: Uh, this time, yes, I've signed up for some amazing classes, and I'm super excited for that. But this time around I have a very different objective, Jeff.
[00:07:41] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:07:42] Aniz Lavji: My objective this time is I want to be the person standing where you were when I came to AST last year.
[00:07:53] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:07:53] Aniz Lavji: And I wanna be the person that's looking for the me from last year, saying, "Hey, how's it going, man?
[00:08:01] Aniz Lavji: First time?"
[00:08:02] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:08:02] Aniz Lavji: Let's chat."
[00:08:03] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:08:03] Aniz Lavji: Because right away that changed everything, Jeff, like, last year because I don't know, I was really lost, man. Like, w- what am I doing here?
[00:08:11] Jeff Compton: Yeah, 'cause I remember the night we were sitting in the hospitality suite, and you were, you were a little bit uncomfortable, and I could tell that you were, like, a long way from home, and it was...
[00:08:20] Jeff Compton: You know, you don't go a long way from home, uh, a lot of the time. You got three little ones at home and your wife- Yeah ... and all that kind of stuff. And you were, like, kind of, you know, um, wondering, "Did I belong here?" Right? What was I gonna do? Should I, should I book an early flight and go home? Like, you just didn't feel in your thing.
[00:08:36] Jeff Compton: And some people, you know, uh, kind of pulled you out of your shell a little bit and said, no. Like, you know- Let's, let's talk about this opportunity that this is- Mm ... this place is. And I- Yeah ... thank God that they did for you, right? Like, that's-
[00:08:51] Aniz Lavji: Yeah, I, I had a night where I was really missing my wife, really missing my kids.
[00:08:59] Aniz Lavji: Uh, even when I left for ASEA last year, like, I was choked up because just missing my, my family. And, uh, you know, I kinda got that feeling, I think it was two or three nights in, and, you know, I was leaving and a couple friends kinda saw me and they're like, "Are you good?" And I just said, "Look, I, I need to go upstairs," and then I just left.
[00:09:20] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:09:21] Aniz Lavji: And, um, you know, I was, I was sad, man. I went upstairs in my room by myself and just sitting there like, "Should I just leave in the morning?" It was like, this is, this is a lot.
[00:09:31] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:09:31] Aniz Lavji: And, uh, you know, it wasn't easy for my wife to be alone with three young kids trying to manage her work.
[00:09:39] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:09:40] Aniz Lavji: And at the same time, the kids have their needs and she's all alone.
[00:09:44] Aniz Lavji: So I was having that feeling like I've left her there.
[00:09:47] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:09:47] Aniz Lavji: And all those emotions and everything. So I wasn't coming back downstairs to, uh, the Confessions after party room, which by the way was a great time. Yeah. And, um, I get a message first from Tanika, and she's like, "Where the hell are you?"
[00:10:06] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:10:06] Aniz Lavji: Like, "What's going on?
[00:10:07] Aniz Lavji: Come downstairs." She takes a picture of some, uh, liquor balls, "Come have a drink."
[00:10:12] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Yeah.
[00:10:13] Aniz Lavji: And then two minutes later I get a long message from Benji.
[00:10:16] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:10:17] Aniz Lavji: And he's like, "Hey man, come downstairs. Let's chat. Let's hang out." You know, and I've said this on Tanika's podcast, they didn't have to send-
[00:10:30] Jeff Compton: Whoa What happened there?
[00:10:33] Aniz Lavji: And that's why, you know, I'm so glad that they did.
[00:10:36] Jeff Compton: Oh, yeah. Oh, and, and s- that's the two, like, when, you know, when I, when I talk about, you know, the, the Asta family, that's, that's the two, you know, um- Yeah ... standouts in that family, right, along with Lucas and David. Like, um, Benji- For
[00:10:51] Aniz Lavji: sure ...
[00:10:51] Jeff Compton: I, I'll be... He... That man has a crazy knack of being able to reach out to me at the, you know, most appropriate but unexpected time and just say, "Just checking in.
[00:11:04] Jeff Compton: Like, how are you?" You know what I mean? "What's new?" Yeah. Like, "What have you been doing?" And I don't know how he knows how to do it, but he just does. And I mean, I absolutely, like, I... Their whole family, like, you know, Christie, you know, Callie, like, the, their, all the guys in their shop, they are phenomenal. They are such- Great group of people
[00:11:23] Jeff Compton: Yeah, such a gr- And Tanika's got the exact same culture in her shop. You know what I mean? Like, there's... And that's what we talk about. Like we, you know, we say all, all the time, Andy, say it's the buzzword is, now, is culture and leadership. Yeah. But man, when you get around one of those, those businesses that has it figured out, it's incredible, isn't it?
[00:11:43] Jeff Compton: To be- You know? Our, our connection's getting a little unstable. Um-
[00:11:48] Aniz Lavji: Yeah, I'm seeing that.
[00:11:49] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Um, but isn't that cool? That's the neatest thing, is it's not like you come out of a classroom and all of a sudden they're just doing everything the way they are. They're not perfect. They'll tell you- Yeah ... "Whoa, like our...
[00:11:59] Jeff Compton: We're, we're a mess. We're a hot mess over here." They'll tell you that. Yeah. But it's that the way they have each other's backs, the way that, like, they go to work and they love these people that work with them all day long. That's what- Definitely ... you wanna come away from with that, you know? Yeah.
[00:12:14] Aniz Lavji: And that's, you know, when I hire a service advisor, and I didn't come back from ASTA and put an ad out and hire the first person- Yeah
[00:12:23] Aniz Lavji: that applied.
[00:12:24] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:12:25] Aniz Lavji: I hired a person a year later.
[00:12:28] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:12:28] Aniz Lavji: Because it's very easy to lose a longtime customer, but it's very, very hard to get them back.
[00:12:37] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:12:38] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, your, your team member just has to say one or two wrong things that rubs them the wrong way, and they're gone.
[00:12:45] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Yeah. Or it's, you know, the little things like the, the, the, the thumb smudge on the hood, right?
[00:12:51] Jeff Compton: Or the-
[00:12:52] Aniz Lavji: Yeah ...
[00:12:52] Jeff Compton: you know, the, it leaves for an oil change, and the washer light comes on around the corner because nobody topped that off. Like, it's the, it's the little- Yeah ... small stuff that people don't necessarily even bother to come back and make a big deal about it because it's... But it's that little thing that they didn't give us a chance to know that we dropped the ball on that.
[00:13:10] Jeff Compton: And- Mm-hmm ... but at the same time, we should be catching it. Like, it all becomes our process. Like, everybody- Yes ... the washer fluid's a perfect example, right? Like, you should be filling that up on every car that comes in and billing it into your price of, of that because- For sure ... you know. And, and nobody's...
[00:13:25] Jeff Compton: The people that go, "Why is it so expensive? Oh, well, I don't need you to fill that up," they're the same people that will say "Oh, I just had an oil change and, you know, like, they... I had to pour it in when, the next day. Like, they, they didn't check anything." We don't need those people. We need people that are just thankful that, like, they never have to lift, lift the hood on the car- Exactly
[00:13:44] Jeff Compton: until the next time they see us. That's what we want in shops.
[00:13:48] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, it, that goes back to the owner or the service advisor letting the customer know, like, "This is what we're gonna do today-" Mm-hmm ... for your service."
[00:13:58] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:13:59] Aniz Lavji: And, and put value in there. I mean, they're coming in thinking you're just gonna drop the oil- Yeah
[00:14:05] Aniz Lavji: fill it, uh, drain plug, and put the new filter, and throw them out the door. But if you're not letting them know that, "By the way, we're taking a look at your vehicle. We're gonna fill up your washer fluid, take care of that," you're losing value in that service that you're doing.
[00:14:20] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:14:21] Aniz Lavji: And, and notice I didn't say oil change, the service.
[00:14:25] Jeff Compton: Oh, I was just... I was having a... You know, and this is a great thing, 'cause Anis, the other thing that's great about AASTA from a standpoint for us Canadians is that tire chaos hasn't hit yet, right? Mm. Like, we're September, we're not getting into that crazy season. And I was talking with another good friend of mine, JeanAnn SaintGrace, this morning.
[00:14:44] Jeff Compton: We were talking back and forth, um, messaging about the, how that's looking to come up very soon here, and how she's- Yeah ... dealing with some of her clients in her coaching company. And, you know, I hate that You know, there's so many shops used to say... It used to drive me absolutely bonkers when I'd have a customer in, I would do their oil change, say, the second week of October, I'd do their oil change.
[00:15:05] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And at the end of October they're pulling back in. They're like, "Oh, I'm here for my tires now." And I'm like, "Oh." So I don't... Like, what was the point of that? It should've been handled at the same time.
[00:15:15] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. "
[00:15:15] Jeff Compton: Oh, I don't wanna put them on too early." That's nonsense. Uh, "I don't wanna leave it too late." Okay, I can understand that.
[00:15:22] Jeff Compton: But, like, there's no reason to bring a car in for two services that, let's be real, talk real numbers, most places charge half an hour for an oil change, half hour for a tire, you know, swap over, not, you know, on rims, all that kind of stuff. Yep. Um, there's no point in having them in two times, taking up the bay twice when we can do that job- Waste of time
[00:15:39] Jeff Compton: in one appointment. And I wish that people in our demographic, you and I up in the great, you know, snow belt, uh- Yeah ... you know, the 51st state, start actually ap- approaching it. I at ease, I couldn't let it go. Um- I know. Like, uh, would, would approach it and say, you know, "We're gonna do that. Okay, so you need an oil change, and I always see you, Mrs.
[00:16:03] Jeff Compton: Smith, you know, the second week of November for your tire swap. So here's how we're doing it this year in 2026. We're gonna make that one appointment, and I'm gonna need you to drop your car off in the morning. I have your tires ready to go, they're in storage, or bring them in, you know, we'll have them.
[00:16:17] Jeff Compton: And you pick your car up at end of day and we're gonna do a complete service and inspection of the car, let you know about all the things so that the car can leave here today, tomorrow, whenever, and we won't have to see you again until May, April." Yeah. "When you're deciding to take your tires back off, and we wanna know, so, you know, is there anything else going on with the car while it's coming in that we should know about?"
[00:16:41] Jeff Compton: conversations
[00:16:42] Aniz Lavji: like that The on- the only way that you know to have that kind of a conversation with the customer is if you have been trained or told- Mm-hmm ... or heard that advice- Yeah ... from someone.
[00:16:57] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:16:58] Aniz Lavji: That's not gonna be a regular conversation that off the top of your head you just start thinking about.
[00:17:06] Aniz Lavji: At least I didn't.
[00:17:07] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:17:08] Aniz Lavji: So those are the kind of little tidbits that like I've learned over the past year, and after I dove into my business properly after the expo and started to listen to... I've listened to, I think, six podcasts now, and, you know, when you really dive into the industry, you see all the little things that you should have been doing.
[00:17:31] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. And the, the thing is, you have to start somewhere.
[00:17:37] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:17:38] Aniz Lavji: Don't look at the past or, "Oh, I should have done this for the past 10 years." You can't change that.
[00:17:43] Jeff Compton: No.
[00:17:44] Aniz Lavji: If you can, let me know.
[00:17:45] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:17:46] Aniz Lavji: I'll write the check so I can go back too.
[00:17:48] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:17:48] Aniz Lavji: But you can't do that, but what you can do is make the change now.
[00:17:54] Aniz Lavji: Now is the time to make the change. Go for training. You know, if you're able to financially and time-wise make it to ASTA, go. The training doesn't cost, it pays- Yes ... in devidence.
[00:18:09] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:18:10] Aniz Lavji: Dividends. Devidence. I'm not even drinking. But, uh, you know, if you're able to make it, you're gonna get so many tidbits of information that is going to change your life like it did for me.
[00:18:21] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:18:22] Aniz Lavji: It's put my business in a complete different trajectory.
[00:18:26] Jeff Compton: Yeah, like 'cause you shared with me before, you had 18 years in this. Like d- you're not a, you're not new at this. You've been doing this a while now, right? Up-
[00:18:34] Aniz Lavji: I bought myself a job for 18 years, and I didn't have to fire myself. I was employed for 18 years.
[00:18:42] Aniz Lavji: I have a mortgage. But we were growing-
[00:18:46] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm ...
[00:18:47] Aniz Lavji: but not growing in a rate, at a rate where it makes sense for- Yeah ... being in the industry that many years.
[00:18:54] Jeff Compton: Yeah. The risk, and the stress, and the, you know, the, the liability.
[00:18:59] Aniz Lavji: Time away from family.
[00:19:00] Jeff Compton: Yes, time away from family. Like, 'cause you, you're that guy that shows up, you know, early in the morning, and you're there long after the last car leaves, right?
[00:19:09] Jeff Compton: And then you're, you're home doing your- Yeah, I mean, six days a
[00:19:11] Aniz Lavji: week ...
[00:19:11] Jeff Compton: paperwork six days a week, right? Like, and you know, I wanna see, I wanna see you get to that point where you don't have to be there on Saturdays unless you wanna be. You know what I mean? Right. That's what I, that's what my goal is for you, and Frank, and, and, you know, all my friends that are, that are single store operators, one shop kind of, whatever you wanna call them.
[00:19:31] Jeff Compton: Is that so they can, they can... I don't, you know, if you... I'm not saying everybody needs to work a four-day week. They're nice, but I mean, certain demographics it just doesn't work. Um- Yeah ... but I hate that, like, everybody thinks that they sh- need to be there on Saturdays, you know? And if you want- Yeah ... listen, we saw that interesting conversation that popped up this week, and he's about how- Mm-hmm
[00:19:51] Jeff Compton: you know, the shops open on Labor Day, and they're open, you know, seven days a week, 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM. If people wanna do that, man, that's totally fine. If you can treat your people- You do you. Yeah, you can treat your people well, serve your customer, that's, that's all that matters. I don't care. I have a problem with people and how they treat technicians, and I have a problem with how people, certain people treat customers.
[00:20:14] Jeff Compton: I don't care if you open 24/7. It does not bother me. You're not gonna s- Yeah ... I'm not gonna take the high road and say that's, you know, against whatever book. I'm not saying that. Yeah. People need to be served. But- You have to do it as a team in the sense that everybody has to be, "Yeah, I really can see the value in being that for this- Yeah
[00:20:35] Jeff Compton: you know, for our customers." If they don't see it, you shouldn't be forcing them to do it. I have job opportunities coming in weekly, and I turn them all down. Why? 'Cause they want me there on Saturday, and I don't wanna be there on Saturday, you know? Not, at least- Yeah ... not in the summertime.
[00:20:51] Aniz Lavji: I mean, you can, you can project to the world opening seven days a week is the right thing to do.
[00:20:59] Aniz Lavji: It might be the right thing to do for your demographic- Mm-hmm ... because you have such a huge following.
[00:21:07] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:21:07] Aniz Lavji: You have com- like insane amount of cars that you need that day, fine. Good for you.
[00:21:14] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:21:15] Aniz Lavji: But I don't think it's appropriate to project to the industry, in my opinion- Yeah ... I'm not naming anyone, that seven days a week is the right thing to do for everybody.
[00:21:29] Aniz Lavji: I will tell you, in my opinion, I don't think so.
[00:21:32] Jeff Compton: Mm.
[00:21:33] Aniz Lavji: If you wanna be open, like I'm open six days a week. The reason is Saturdays for us is a huge day- Yes ... because people are off Monday to Friday.
[00:21:43] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:21:43] Aniz Lavji: And Saturday we don't stay the whole day. We close at 3:00. So if, and I've, I've got employees that they love working on Saturdays, and we, and we have so much fun.
[00:21:55] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:21:55] Aniz Lavji: We're recording TikTok videos, and- Yeah ... we call it Saturday Special.
[00:21:59] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:22:00] Aniz Lavji: Because there's always something crazy going on Saturday. Someone comes in with nine nails in a tire, or they come in for an oil change only and they got four bald tires, and they're like- Yeah ... "Oh, okay. Well, yeah, maybe I do need tires."
[00:22:12] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:22:13] Aniz Lavji: But, you know, with the culture in the shop, if my tech said, "I really don't wanna work Saturdays," say, "Okay, no problem." Mm. "I'll figure it out."
[00:22:22] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:22:23] Aniz Lavji: I will talk to someone else." One of the other guys that are here, "Are you okay Saturday?" "Yes." Mm-hmm. "Yes? Okay." But it's gotta be mutual. It can't be something like, "You're working Saturday, you're working Sunday.
[00:22:36] Aniz Lavji: If you don't want, you go to another shop a- and you can make your own schedule."
[00:22:40] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:22:41] Aniz Lavji: But it's, it's gotta be a, a partnership with your technicians and your team members.
[00:22:47] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:22:47] Aniz Lavji: It's not a one-way road.
[00:22:49] Jeff Compton: No. And, and, you know, I... And that's what I found when I worked at a tire shop, we were always open Saturdays because like you said, you know, a lot of people buy tires on Saturday.
[00:22:58] Jeff Compton: It's been proven in the industry more tires- Mm-hmm ... I think get sold on a Saturday in North America than anywhere else, right? It's just the way it goes. It's, it's the way it all- Yes ... seems to line up that people are like, "Saturday I'm headed to wherever to try and get four new tires for the family," you know, "car."
[00:23:13] Jeff Compton: And that's what they do. I totally get it. Yeah. Totally understand. Um, but it's the, it's the thing of what I always missed about that was I couldn't then be off Sunday and Monday as a tech. I had to be off, like it was gonna be Saturday I worked, so I would get Sunday off, and then, oh, let's give you Wednesday.
[00:23:32] Jeff Compton: Well, we all know how when we're trying to go to four-day workweeks and how everybody- Yeah ... loves their, their, their weekend, long weekend's even better, how not having the two days consecutive really breaks things up and it screws things up because- Yeah ... you know, you, y- you could be home that Wednesday then, Anis, as an example.
[00:23:48] Jeff Compton: Well, the kids are all gone to school. You know, the wife's gone. What are you doing with your day off? You're probably... Like- I could- ... for me, I went back to the shop and, and worked, you know?
[00:23:57] Aniz Lavji: I'd cut the grass.
[00:23:58] Jeff Compton: Yeah. '
[00:23:58] Aniz Lavji: Cause I've been lacking on that, I'll tell you that much. Oh. I, I'm doing it any chance I get.
[00:24:06] Aniz Lavji: Some point- Yeah ... during the week when I have a minute, and I'm kinda half-assing it because it's just as, you know. Yeah. I, I tell people all the time, again now, that the one thing that we never have enough of is time.
[00:24:21] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:24:21] Aniz Lavji: And how you choose to spend your time will shape you as a person.
[00:24:27] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:24:27] Aniz Lavji: If you wanna spend your time at work seven days a week, and literally you might as well plant your feet in the ground- You do you.
[00:24:37] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:24:37] Aniz Lavji: But if you wanna have time for yourself, have time for your family, and continue to have a family, because what's gonna happen is your family's gonna start resenting you. Mm-hmm. They're like, "What's more important?"
[00:24:50] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:24:50] Aniz Lavji: Is it gonna be your job or is it going to be us?" And I'll be frank, I have not been the best.
[00:24:57] Aniz Lavji: I have not spent the time with my family that I have needed to.
[00:25:02] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:25:02] Aniz Lavji: I focus more on work, and that's not right, but I'm taking the steps and I'm hiring the people.
[00:25:09] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:25:10] Aniz Lavji: Unfortunately, it takes a little bit more time for me to get to this point, but like I said, you have to start somewhere.
[00:25:16] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:25:17] Aniz Lavji: And I want to be at the point where, like you said, take a couple extra days off and just be home, uh, with my wife and kids- Mm-hmm
[00:25:25] Aniz Lavji: sometimes, right? Because they're gonna get older and they're gonna go to college and this and that, and then you're gonna think, "Well, crap, now I've got the store. There's just my wife at home and my kids are out."
[00:25:37] Jeff Compton: Yeah,
[00:25:37] Aniz Lavji: they're only- You don't get that time back ...
[00:25:38] Jeff Compton: they're only little once, right? You know? Yeah.
[00:25:41] Jeff Compton: They're only little once, and that's the... Y- you know, you, you've gotta hold onto those memories and build those memories. Somebody says that, like, all you do in life is make memories. You don't make money, right? And somebody very smart said that. And, you know, it's that chasing of today's rewards, the money- Yeah
[00:25:59] Jeff Compton: to provide later memories sometimes doesn't... We... It's a, it's a terrible investment because by then we've already lost so much. And, and, you know, family then doesn't become a priority for our family. You know what I mean? Like, it's just, we see it where children grow up in certain de- you know, types of family units, and being tight-knit and close is not a priority, right?
[00:26:24] Jeff Compton: It's- Yeah ... they're career dr- we used to call them career-driven. You know, she was a career-driven- Yeah ... woman, he was a career-driven man. Oftentimes you talk to their, you know, children or significant others and they say, "Yeah, there were sacrifices made." Big time. And, you know, as long as, again, it goes back to the, the thing.
[00:26:40] Jeff Compton: As long as everybody's cool with it, it's cool, but I don't think most of the people, like, if you looked at them and you go, "Oh, congratulations, you've amassed all this wealth Um, do you have any regrets? And the most of them would say, "I wish I'd have spent a little more time doing this or that. I wish I'd have gone-" Yeah
[00:26:56] Jeff Compton: fishing a couple more times," or, you know, went to a Blue Jays game or something like that, like stuff that we miss, you know?
[00:27:03] Aniz Lavji: Well, you know, one thing I can say is, you know, listen to your significant other.
[00:27:10] Jeff Compton: Mm.
[00:27:10] Aniz Lavji: They're giving you signals.
[00:27:12] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:27:12] Aniz Lavji: They're telling you that it's too much.
[00:27:15] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:27:16] Aniz Lavji: I mean, they're telling you that you're addicted to your business, and I can guarantee you people that are listening have heard the same damn thing from their significant other-
[00:27:25] Jeff Compton: Yeah
[00:27:25] Aniz Lavji: and I bet you 99%, they're right.
[00:27:29] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:27:29] Aniz Lavji: You know, this business is like an addiction because we feel so connected to the industry. Yeah. We love the industry, and we're all in.
[00:27:38] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:27:38] Aniz Lavji: But sometimes, and a lot of times, it overtakes our personal and emotional priorities-
[00:27:47] Jeff Compton: Yep ...
[00:27:48] Aniz Lavji: and we start prioritizing the job, the shop, the work more than our family.
[00:27:56] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:27:56] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, I'm guilty of this for a long time, and I've... You know, I'm making changes as- as quick as I can to reclaim some time-
[00:28:07] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:28:07] Aniz Lavji: with my family. I mean, doing this 20 years, and again, because I've had some training last year, I've talked to so many people and gotten advice, and it's changing my mindset on what my true priorities are.
[00:28:24] Aniz Lavji: Yes, it's important to make money and grow the business and, you know, go travel for training and do this and do that, but what are you doing it for?
[00:28:34] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:28:35] Aniz Lavji: You're, you're not doing it for your health. You're doing it for your family. You're doing it to grow generational wealth so you don't have to fricking work when you're older.
[00:28:46] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm. And we... I had an interesting conversation with somebody yesterday about that generational wealth thing, and I think that's a fine line on a slippery slope, I really do. Because we've seen it sometimes, y- like in these where people are building for generational wealth. But they sometimes build to a level where the children suffer a result of that.
[00:29:06] Jeff Compton: They face no hardships. Yeah. They face no, you know, um... And I'm not saying that they don't have to work. That's not what I'm saying. But I mean- They're
[00:29:14] Aniz Lavji: spoiled. Say it.
[00:29:16] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Yeah. It's the situation sometimes is like I'm trying to build this business to pass on to my kids. Sometimes the best... Like, look, let's talk about Miss Tanika again with what she's doing.
[00:29:25] Jeff Compton: She wants her son to go, when he's done training at UTI, and go work- Mm-hmm ... for other employers, so he knows- Yes ... what it's like to be, "I didn't just, like, go through my trade school, come home, work in the family shop. I never had another employer that busted my balls- Mm-hmm ... or fired me or any of that kind of s- I never had that."
[00:29:43] Jeff Compton: Well, some of those people, I've been around them in my tenure in the career. Mm-hmm. Um, i- that was a shortcoming for them that they didn't, because they never worked- You don't get
[00:29:53] Aniz Lavji: those battle scars.
[00:29:54] Jeff Compton: Yes. You don't get that little bit of thick skin, that jaded sometimes mentality that you might have. You don't get exposed to the way different people do things, going back to the beginning of the conversation.
[00:30:04] Jeff Compton: Yeah. How they do it, you don't learn from them. You just literally assume the throne, and then all of a sudden- The same way of thinking from 40 years ago is still prevalent- Yeah ... but you're not growing the way you used to.
[00:30:17] Aniz Lavji: No, you just get handed, m- uh, y- you know, a place in the business. Yeah,
[00:30:22] Jeff Compton: yeah.
[00:30:23] Aniz Lavji: And, uh, you know, it, it's funny, my kids are young, like, you know, uh, two, six, and nine.
[00:30:29] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:30:30] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, my nine-year-old is saying, you know, "Daddy, can I get a cell phone?"
[00:30:36] Jeff Compton: Mm. "
[00:30:37] Aniz Lavji: Sure. You know what? You should get two." And he looks at me, he's like, "What do you mean?" It's like, "No, you should get two."
[00:30:43] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:30:43] Aniz Lavji: They're cool."
[00:30:44] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:30:45] Aniz Lavji: So when you start working, I'm gonna take you myself. Buy two."
[00:30:50] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:30:51] Aniz Lavji: Uh, you know, "Just make sure you're working hard enough to pay the bill."
[00:30:55] Aniz Lavji: Said, "What do you mean? You're not gonna buy it?" I was like, "Hell no."
[00:30:58] Jeff Compton: Yeah. "
[00:30:58] Aniz Lavji: You want something, you come work at the shop."
[00:31:01] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm. "
[00:31:01] Aniz Lavji: And I will mark down how many hours you work, and I will pay you, and I'll put it in this thing. And if you wanna blow your money on a cell phone- Yeah ... no problem. But just keep in mind, you're gonna have to pay $60 a month-
[00:31:16] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm
[00:31:16] Aniz Lavji: to keep using it, to keep pressing those buttons." Yeah. If we don't train these younger generation, younger kids, that money don't grow on trees, like my parents used to say, and tell, and explain to them that, like, everything costs. Yes, you've got new Nikes on, you've got new Pumas on. Yeah. You're wearing the nice, uh, Spider-Man hoodie and- Mm
[00:31:39] Aniz Lavji: stuff like that, but, but Mommy and Daddy had to work very hard-
[00:31:45] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:31:45] Aniz Lavji: to get this for you.
[00:31:47] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:31:48] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, for myself, I don't go out and buy new clothes. I wear plain colored T-shirts. Yeah. And the damn T-shirts can be five or six years old, but there's no holes in it, I'm okay with that.
[00:32:00] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:32:00] Aniz Lavji: But my kids, nope, I make sure, school's coming up, if they need something, I don't care how much it is, I'll make it happen.
[00:32:09] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. They get their stuff.
[00:32:10] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:32:11] Aniz Lavji: But, you know, that's just a, a parent mentality. We do everything for our kids.
[00:32:16] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:32:17] Aniz Lavji: So if we're doing everything for our kids to nurture them, why do we say no to training? Why do we say no to advice? Yeah. Why do we say, "No, I don't believe in this," when the whole industry is telling you this is the way?
[00:32:35] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:32:35] Aniz Lavji: So if we don't want to nurture our business, don't freaking complain when it goes to shit.
[00:32:42] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:32:42] Aniz Lavji: Sorry to swear. No. But people will talk about all these other things where, you know, well, I'm with my family and stuff like that, and you're nurturing your family, fantastic. But when someone talks about training and you disregard it, and you don't want to make any effort to go to training, even locally- You wanna nurture your business to grow it.
[00:33:06] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:33:07] Aniz Lavji: You have to go to training or at least go to something local.
[00:33:12] Jeff Compton: I think of- But- I think of these events and I think about, like, I think about families like the Burris', right? The whole family's there. You know what I mean? They're on another level. Like, uh, Keith, Keith and Liz Perkins, their two daughters are there at every show.
[00:33:26] Jeff Compton: Like, they are completely immersed in the training and they're completely immersed in the business. It is just part and parcel that, you know... And I don't, I don't know what Keith and Liz have planned for the future, like, i- if that's what the two daughters wanna assume that business, I don't know, and it's not that important that I know.
[00:33:46] Jeff Compton: But here's the thing, when they're in it, they're all 100% in it. And I think too many times in this industry we sit back and we just wring our hands and we say, "Oh, it was always been like that and it's always gonna be like that." And through networking, like with you and, and, you know, all the people I've been so blessed to meet in the last four years of- from my first show was ASTE 2022 before it was ASTE It, it changed my life.
[00:34:12] Jeff Compton: I can't say that enough. That first show, I walked out of there, I was not, I wasn't currently employed, I wasn't in love with this industry, and I was in a really bad spot. And Lucas brought me and, and sat me down and showed me these incredible people, and I came away and I have not looked back since, and I have never been back in that place that I was since.
[00:34:35] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And it's, it's like my life was saved. You know what I mean? Yeah. That's what these, these events can do for you people. You just have to go in there with an open mind and, and be poured into, as I keep saying. Be- just try to be 1% better, you know? Yeah. Uh, as Josh taught me, and you will come out of there, I guarantee you, having a better year than the year previous.
[00:34:57] Jeff Compton: There's just no way-
[00:34:58] Aniz Lavji: Just, uh, like Tanika says, drink the Kool-Aid.
[00:35:01] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
[00:35:03] Aniz Lavji: Have a sip.
[00:35:03] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:35:04] Aniz Lavji: And by the time you realize it, you've finished the jug.
[00:35:07] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Yeah. Oh,
[00:35:09] Aniz Lavji: sh- And then you realize, you know, this is what, this is the way.
[00:35:14] Jeff Compton: Look at her. She's completely 100% invested now in, in what we're all trying to do here.
[00:35:19] Jeff Compton: Like, she said the same thing. She comes from a... Like, she had a successful business. Mm-hmm. But in the sense that it wasn't like... I mean, it wasn't, they weren't gonna lock the doors on her. But I mean, it wasn't doing what it could have done now. And she talks about how, like, all the people that she came and met and have been able to network with put her on that path to where it's like she sees now this future.
[00:35:43] Jeff Compton: She doesn't have to be... She can step away from the business and the business runs perfect. Yeah. You know what I mean?
[00:35:49] Aniz Lavji: And that's amazing. And I- Yeah ... I've told her, I was like, "You've done absolutely amazing." In the past year, her business with her podcast that's- Oh ... skyrocketing. And-
[00:36:04] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:36:05] Aniz Lavji: she's now, she's recording at ASTA.
[00:36:08] Aniz Lavji: She recorded at, um Tools
[00:36:13] Jeff Compton: Yeah
[00:36:13] Aniz Lavji: And in a very short amount of time, like she's really grown it, and- Oh ... I'm super proud of her.
[00:36:18] Jeff Compton: We're, we're all gonna be trying to ca- catch Miss Tanika within a year, I think. I think it's just, it's- Well ... it's inevitable. I think she's, she's right on the pulse of, of so many of the shop owners, right?
[00:36:30] Jeff Compton: I think that like she has that perfect vibe of, you know, warm, welcoming, you know, easy to talk to. Uh, you know, she looks great on camera. Like there's so many pluses that she has- Yeah ... going for her that it's just we're all gonna be trying to keep up. And Jean, JeanAnn SaintGrace is the same. Like I love watching...
[00:36:50] Jeff Compton: I mean, I love watching all of the podcasts. Like you and Frank have yours. I watch that. Like I don't listen to music anymore. I listen to podcasts all day long- Same ... that help me get to know people within my industry, and help me to see different perspectives within the industry. And I'm not saying everybody needs to be as ate up about it as we are.
[00:37:09] Jeff Compton: I'm not saying that. But man, y- people can no longer, I think, Anis, put their hand up and go, "I'm all alone out here." No, you're not. No, you're not. Yeah.
[00:37:19] Aniz Lavji: You may think you are- Mm-hmm ... but if you don't put in 5% effort-
[00:37:24] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:37:24] Aniz Lavji: to see if there's a better way to do things, you will be alone.
[00:37:28] Jeff Compton: Yeah. By choice. By
[00:37:31] Aniz Lavji: choice.
[00:37:31] Jeff Compton: By choice. Yeah. And you can't say, "I didn't know about it." That's the thing. We can't sit here and say, "I didn't know there was a better way to do this," because we're filling up the conversations constantly all day long about every little issue that everybody talk about, and I don't... I- when somebody says, "Oh, I never heard of that," I just, it makes me wanna scream at a wall.
[00:37:51] Jeff Compton: Because where, why are you not investing the time at least to, to interact with your brothers and sisters in the industry and talk with them about what are they doing that's different than you're doing that seems to be successful? Why are you not having those conversations? You- Get out of your own flipping way, drop the ego- Yeah
[00:38:09] Jeff Compton: and the attitude, and get out there and start to improve, you know?
[00:38:14] Aniz Lavji: The preparation for expos for me begins at the beginning of the year.
[00:38:20] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:38:21] Aniz Lavji: I'm already putting it into my calendar that this is my goal.
[00:38:24] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:38:25] Aniz Lavji: Like a ASCA, for example, no questions asked, I'm going. If there's another expo I can go to time-wise and schedule-wise, definitely gonna try.
[00:38:38] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:38:39] Aniz Lavji: But something.
[00:38:41] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:38:42] Aniz Lavji: Make some sort of an effort.
[00:38:44] Jeff Compton: I gotta ask you, Anis, before we wrap it up, what's the one piece of advice that you can give people as the shop owner from a financial standpoint that you're able to make it work? What did you... Any tweaks or little adjustments that you make in order to be able to pay for the trips?
[00:39:00] Aniz Lavji: You know, for my shop in particular, we're very blessed.
[00:39:04] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:39:06] Aniz Lavji: We've been doing it 20 years. And, you know, all my employees get paid, I get paid. I-- You know, we don't have issues with our parts suppliers and stuff like that. But when it comes to the training, if you want to go, you will make it work.
[00:39:24] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:39:25] Aniz Lavji: You will make sure that when you're setting up your parts matrix, that you have it factored in a little, little chunk, but that little chunk adds up over six, seven months.
[00:39:39] Aniz Lavji: And just think of every week, take a little chunk and transfer it into a savings account, and just name that savings account training.
[00:39:48] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:39:49] Aniz Lavji: And when it comes time to register, you won't even realize. Just set an auto-
[00:39:54] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:39:55] Aniz Lavji: you know, 80 bucks a week- Mm-hmm ... or something, and all of a sudden, by the time four months have gone by, you got 1,500, 2,000 bucks there.
[00:40:05] Aniz Lavji: Now it's like, "Okay, I can do this." But-
[00:40:08] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:40:09] Aniz Lavji: you know, the advice I can give is give it a shot. You don't know what you don't know.
[00:40:15] Jeff Compton: Yeah, 100%. You can add... You know, think about this. If you didn't wanna make another single change, if you went and just put like $1 onto your door rate, and you took that dollar, your hourly rate- Mm-hmm
[00:40:26] Jeff Compton: door rate, whatever you wanna call it, and you just put it into an account like Anis said. Well, how many hours did you sell last year? Right? You mean to tell me that extra dollar per hour won't pay for training? That's your excuse is you can't afford it? It's, it's, it's, it's BS. It's, it's, it's hogwash. It, it's, it's just scared to go up.
[00:40:48] Jeff Compton: It's scared to invest in yourself. Stop being scared, people, to, to invest in yourselves in this industry. It's not mean that you're gonna come home from... I say it all the time. You're not gonna come home from these courses and all of a sudden be the, the local EV expert, or you're not gonna be the local air conditioning expert.
[00:41:05] Jeff Compton: It doesn't work like that. Yeah. But you are gonna be able to come home and refine your processes that help your production, that help your efficiencies in the shop, and then all of a sudden you're making more money than you were last year, and you didn't have to- And
[00:41:19] Aniz Lavji: also... Sorry, go ahead ...
[00:41:22] Jeff Compton: and you didn't have to, you know, uh, all of a sudden, you know, buy a big fancy piece of equipment necessarily.
[00:41:29] Jeff Compton: You just had to come home and refine your process, and then all of a sudden you're now making money that can buy that new AC machine or that new alignment rack or some ADAS, whatever it is you wanna do. Scan tool. Yeah. It's those little bit of tweaks in the process that allow you to afford that. That's my point.
[00:41:46] Aniz Lavji: Just have a plan.
[00:41:47] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:41:48] Aniz Lavji: And, you know, sometimes when you have a job that you've got 2.5 hours into, and you f- finished it in 2.3 and you're thinking, "Oh, I better chop it down a bit"- It's okay. That extra .2- Yeah ... you deserve it.
[00:42:07] Jeff Compton: Yes.
[00:42:08] Aniz Lavji: And think of that extra qu- extra, I use air quotes, .2, put that into the account and say- Yeah
[00:42:14] Aniz Lavji: "That's from my training."
[00:42:15] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:42:16] Aniz Lavji: But don't discount your labor because you're worth it.
[00:42:20] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:42:21] Aniz Lavji: It's okay.
[00:42:22] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And
[00:42:23] Aniz Lavji: don't- The shop will continue to prosper if you have a .2 extra here and a .2 extra there, because that may be the little difference it is to go to some training to bring you up to the next level.
[00:42:35] Jeff Compton: Yeah. Or, you know, you don't have to go to a training event to learn about proper parts markup margin- Yeah ... and proper, you know, um... If you decide tomorrow, you come home from an event and you say, "Okay, no more customer supply parts 'cause it's, you know, I'm missing out on that profit," and you take that profit and you don't spend it on anything else, you don't buy a piece of equipment, you don't put more money into your payroll, whatever.
[00:42:58] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm. All of a sudden, that little difference pays for the next trip that you wanna go on. The- Definitely ... all of a sudden, you know, if you run a labor matrix and the car is five years old and the job is supposed to be 2.5 and you bump it 20% and you're at 2.8, all of a sudden that .3, just like Anis says, goes in the account for training.
[00:43:18] Jeff Compton: That's all we're trying to talk about, people. We're not trying to say you're ripping anybody off. Yeah. You're not being ripped off by paying for this training. It's- Yeah ... nobody's getting ripped off here. The customer-
[00:43:28] Aniz Lavji: Profit's not a dirty word.
[00:43:29] Jeff Compton: Exactly. Um, closing thoughts, Anis. What are you really excited about, other than seeing me again?
[00:43:35] Aniz Lavji: I, uh, other, yeah, other than that. Uh, I, I'm excited to meet a lot of the different industry, I'll call them industry leaders- Yeah ... like yourself and, uh, a lot of the other people. And I, I think the one thing I wanna do is when I see a lot of these people that really helped me grow in the past year is like I hear Tanika saying is give them their flowers.
[00:44:02] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:44:03] Aniz Lavji: Because a lot of times, you know, the ho- the podcast host and other leaders, they give out a lot of free information, a lot of, uh, advice on the podcast. You know, it's free to be kind.
[00:44:18] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:44:19] Aniz Lavji: Say thank you.
[00:44:20] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:44:20] Aniz Lavji: It, it doesn't hurt. But my plan is I wanna give everyone their flowers when I see them because it's changed everything for me, whether it's training or just companionship and having that kind of relationship with so many different people- Yeah
[00:44:36] Aniz Lavji: that's changed me as a person.
[00:44:38] Jeff Compton: Yeah. And, uh-
[00:44:38] Aniz Lavji: And, uh, I... my plan this time is I wanna give back.
[00:44:41] Jeff Compton: Yeah. You and I now are able to reach out back and forth to each other about, like, "Anis, I got another one of these darn Teslas here. Like, what am I..." You know? And, and you could say, "Jeff, I got this Jeep here." And, and we didn't have that a year ago.
[00:44:55] Jeff Compton: You know what I mean? Yeah. And it's just become from connecting and building a rapport and, and getting comfortable with one another to be able to say, "Hey, I've got this problem." Because I think sometimes we get all up in our feels and we don't wanna show other shop owners or other technicians our vulnerability, our, "Oh- Yeah
[00:45:12] Jeff Compton: they're gonna think I don't know how to do this if I ask." None of that happens. None of that happens, you know?
[00:45:18] Aniz Lavji: And, and you know, I, I challenge people, anyone listening, if they're having the nervousness of coming to ASTA or any expo, you know, please reach out to me. I have no problem talking to you. I will call you- Yeah
[00:45:36] Aniz Lavji: if that's what it takes.
[00:45:37] Jeff Compton: Yep.
[00:45:38] Aniz Lavji: And let's have a conversation. Tell me what's going on.
[00:45:41] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:45:41] Aniz Lavji: And I will tell you more of my story and whatever I can do to make it a more positive experience and, and help because, you know, I, I got the help from people when I was there, so I really feel that it's my duty now to give back as much as possible for the industry.
[00:46:01] Aniz Lavji: And that's, in my own po- podcast, that's what I like talking about the most, is just giving back.
[00:46:06] Jeff Compton: Yeah. So that's what we
[00:46:07] Aniz Lavji: have- I don't want any negative energy.
[00:46:08] Jeff Compton: And that's what we have to do, we have to plug your podcast. So tell us a little bit about it.
[00:46:13] Aniz Lavji: I wasn't gonna bring it up, but- No ... uh, so, uh, within the year, uh, Frank and I, which we met l- 'cause I listened to your podcast, he was your guest.
[00:46:23] Jeff Compton: Mm-hmm.
[00:46:24] Aniz Lavji: So we started a podcast called The Shop and Tread Talk Podcast.
[00:46:28] Jeff Compton: Yeah.
[00:46:28] Aniz Lavji: And, uh, it's on Spotify, Apple, uh, we're on YouTube as well. Yeah. And it's very, I'd say low structured podcast to the point where we don't edit much at all. It's very raw, which we like. We just, we don't want it to be too buffed over and-
[00:46:47] Jeff Compton: No
[00:46:48] Aniz Lavji: and everything. Just keep it real and just talk to different people from the industry and have fun.
[00:46:53] Jeff Compton: Yeah
[00:46:54] Aniz Lavji: And that's the main thing. You know, we're, we're doing it. It's, uh, free mental health counseling for us, you know? Mm-hmm. So, so, you know, we, we really have a good time, and we've had- we've got to meet so many cool people through that, and I'm gonna be meeting some of them in a few weeks.
[00:47:10] Aniz Lavji: Yeah. We're, we're both, uh, Frank and I, are really excited about that.
[00:47:13] Jeff Compton: Yeah. You guys have had some great guests, and that's, that's the beauty of it, right? Like, you, you, you have a guest on. I have lots of guests on, and I've never met them in person. I have them on, and then finally when I get to go to, to an event, I get to shake their hand a- and, and talk to them.
[00:47:29] Jeff Compton: And, you know, oftentimes we sit back down at the event and we have a beer or we record another episode, and it's like I get addicted to seeing people's, like, first time experiences at these events. Because you could pass them in the hall, right? And everybody's running crazy busy, and you can see- Yeah ... the smile on their face is just, like, you know- It's different
[00:47:48] Jeff Compton: you're witnessing something really cool happen in their, in their business- Yeah ... and in their life, and I mean, that's just, that's very addictive. So I wanna thank everybody, like, for listening as always, and again, like, I can't wait. We're, like I said, we're probably 10 days away, so this ep- this episode will get released before we go to ASIS.
[00:48:05] Jeff Compton: So if you're sitting on the fence, there's still spots available. Um, if you're thinking, "Oh, how am I gonna make that happen?" Just make it happen. Just go. Trust me, you will not come away from there feeling like it wasn't the worth- a worthwhile investment. You're gonna come away- Worth every penny ... from there going, "Man, I've, I, I've met so many new friends."
[00:48:27] Jeff Compton: It, it's like going to summer camp, if you ever got to do that. Yeah. Like, it's, it's... You meet so many new f- exciting people and, and all that kind of stuff, and then you come away with these tools and these nuggets, as Anis said, to make your business the next step to take it there. And man, that, that gets addictive.
[00:48:44] Jeff Compton: So-
[00:48:44] Aniz Lavji: Very ...
[00:48:44] Jeff Compton: you know. Anis, my brother, as always, man, I love talking to you every time, chance I get. You too,
[00:48:49] Aniz Lavji: man.
[00:48:49] Jeff Compton: You know, I can't wait-
[00:48:50] Aniz Lavji: This is a full circle moment listening- ... to your podcast, and now I'm on it, so-
[00:48:55] Jeff Compton: Yeah ...
[00:48:56] Aniz Lavji: it's, it's a crazy experience, and thanks for having me on.
[00:49:00] Jeff Compton: Oh. Hey, you, listen, this is not gonna be the last time.
[00:49:02] Jeff Compton: Not gonna be the last time. We might
try-
[00:49:04] Aniz Lavji: Well, hopefully we'll get a chance to record ASTA.
[00:49:06] Jeff Compton: Yeah. You and I and Frank can all sit down and, and, you know-
[00:49:09] Aniz Lavji: 100% ...
[00:49:09] Jeff Compton: uh, I can't wait to see everybody there. You know, I'm so excited for everyone. Um, as always, I gotta thank, you know, the people that make this possible for me.
[00:49:18] Jeff Compton: You know, uh, like Anis ear- mentioned earlier, the best software in the world, TechMetric, you know.
[00:49:23] Aniz Lavji: TechMetric, baby.
[00:49:24] Jeff Compton: I couldn't, I couldn't do what I do without TechMetric. And Launch Tech USA, you know, uh, we still have... We're running a promo on their tools right now. You get a discount code. So by all means, if you're on the fence about coming to this event, you know, or, or buying anything, a tool, software, reach out to either one of us and talk to us and say, "Hey, tell me a little bit about this."
[00:49:45] Jeff Compton: Meet us at the expo. We'd love to sit- Please ... and have a talk with you. So everybody, I love you. I can't wait to see you at ASTA. Wheels up in, like, 10 days. Uh, I'll see y'all there. Anis, brother, thank you, bro. Thank you.
[00:50:00] Jeff Compton: Hey, if you could do me a favor real quick and
[00:50:03] Jeff Compton: like, comment on, and share this episode, I'd really appreciate it. And please, most importantly, set the podcast to automatically download every Tuesday morning. As always, I'd like to thank our amazing guests for their perspectives and expertise, and I hope that you'll please join us again next week on this journey of change.
[00:50:20] Jeff Compton: Thank you to my partners in the ASAP Group and to the Changing the Industry podcast. Remember what I always say, in this industry, you get what you pay for. Here's hoping everyone finds their missing 10 millimeter, and we'll see you all again next time