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Restoration Challenge

Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 8:43 pm
by JEBar
John Heister is a long time friend .... he owns 4 car dealerships and like most every other business in the country his has been hurt by the Covid-19 outbreak .... a quick drop in business reached the point where John knew he had to start cutting hours or laying off mechanics and other folks working with him .... I don't know where he came up with the idea but he went out and bought 14 classic vehicles in various states of repair .... he divided the mechanics from all 4 dealerships and gave them a car to restore .... they perform their regular duties for half a day or until they are out of work and then work their classic .... at the end of the challenge the cars will be auctioned .... the winning team will be determined by which team improves the value of their classic the most ....that amount will be donated to charity ... profits from the sale of the others will help pay the salaries .... to me that is one really innovative way for John to keep is businesses going and his employees paid

http://www.hiesterautomotive.com/restor ... llenge.htm

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 9:46 pm
by The Wiz
Very smart. Now when I see him on TV, I will be giving him a thumbs up.

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 9:58 pm
by markiver54
Great idea! I wish the classic we're trying to sell was in the mix!

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 10:51 pm
by BigAl52
Old saying when the going gets tough the tough get going. Good idea.

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2020 10:57 pm
by fortyshooter
That is a very cool idea!

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 12:12 am
by Grunt67
Good old American ingenuity. :D

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 7:26 am
by JEBar
at automotive dealerships having a stable workforce is a major plus but all too often, they have significant turnovers .... the folks who work for John are very loyal and think the world of him .... his mechanics are having a ball with this Challenge .... from what I'm told, the good natured spirit of competition between his dealerships is being channeled in a very positive way ....

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 8:55 am
by cooperhawk
I have a kinda similar story. My neighbor is an expert on Red Wing Pottery. In fact he's written three books on the subject, runs the Red Wing Pottery Museum, and has his own store, "Larry's Jugs" where he buys and sell them along with all types of antiques.
Well, of course he got shut down by the virus and the state.
What Larry has done is go go online. He puts items on sale on Facebook every day and if someone buys an item he ships it to them.

https://www.facebook.com/Larrys-Jugs-An ... 2397103236

He's managing to keep his workers busy through all this.

Re: Restoration Challenge

Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2020 8:57 am
by JEBar
outstanding .... my bet is there are many similar stories out there