A.J. Rasmussen found his way to the U.S from Horsens, Denmark in 1890. He settled in Texas three years later when he and John Christensen opened a bicycle repair business. After five years, they added sporting goods. Then in1903, they opened one of the first Ford automobile agencies.

Rasmussen bought out Christensen in1930, and changed the name to A.J. Rasmussen & Sons. It operated that way until the early 1960s. And while it's now called Bob Pagan's Sand Dollar Autoplex, that it's been consistently in business for over 100 years probably makes it Texas' oldest Ford dealership.

One time after Bob bought it, he and I were kibitzing when I asked, "So how's business?" He told me he loved car selling, but operating the repair shop was a worse nightmare than he'd ever believed it could be.

"Can't keep good help. Constantly have to redo bad work. Takes forever to get a car back when a customer brings it in. Look at all of those cars out there on the back lot waiting for parts and repairs. Customers aren't happy, I'm not happy, and to make matters worse, the shop isn't making any money."

Bob called a few months later  to ask me what I thought of Ross Perot's entering the presidential race. I evaded answering by responding, "That's not as important as whether or not you ever solved your repair shop problems."

"Stop by and I'll tell you a story you'll never forget," he said. I did that afternoon after my last appointment.

He had gotten a call from some fellow who had promised that he could organize and program any repair shop so that it would have lots of satisfied customers, would make big bucks, and mechanics would love working there so much they wouldn't leave. The fellow was going to give a seminar on Friday in the Beaumont area. It was free. Bob decided to go.

So the hotel conference room was full of car dealers, and each one of them had put his business card in a fish bowl. The guy leading the seminar reached in and randomly picked one. Ironically, it was a Ford dealer's.

"I'm going to call this shop. I've got the phone set up so that you can hear both sides of the conversation over the loud speakers." Then he made the tendentious call. The dealer's receptionist answered.

"May I have your service manager, please?" he asked.

"Those lines are busy, please hold," she said. And then they all listened to the inane music for what seemed to be a lifetime. Everyone in the room started chuckling nervously. Finally the service manager answered.

"I'm out here on the highway, and the clamp that holds my tailpipe under the car has broken. The tailpipe's dragging on the road. It's making lots of noise. Sparks are flying everywhere."

"What's the year and model of your car?" the service manager asked.

"It's a 1989 Fairlane."

"Let me transfer you to the parts department so you can see if they have that clamp in stock. I suspect we'll have to order it. Since it's already four o'clock, we can't get to your Fairlane today, so call a wrecker and get it towed in. We'll get it Monday."

"My family and I are on our vacation, and we're just passing through. That'll mean we'll have to spend the weekend here, and I don't know any wrecker companies anyway. Do you have any other suggestions?" the seminar fellow continued.

"Talk to the parts department manager. Let me put you on hold. After you find out if he has the clamp or not, he'll recommend a wrecker. How ‘bout you rent a car, finish your vacation, then come back through here and pick up your Fairlane on your way home? It'll probably be ready by then." Before the seminar guy was able to respond, the hold button clicked and the inane music resumed. Another several minutes passed, then the parts department answered.

"I've been talking to the service manager. Do you have a tailpipe clamp in stock for a 1989 Fairlane?"

"I'll see. Think we just used the last one." The inane music resumed for the third time. Several minutes passed. More nervous audience chuckles. The music stopped. The phone line opened up. Now everyone could hear the parts manager frantically thumbing through the gigantic parts catalog. "Nope, don't have one. Go ahead and get your car towed in. I'd suggest Acme Wrecking." Then he gave the seminar fellow the phone number. He didn't offer to call the wrecker for him.

"Thanks, I'll get back with you," the seminar fellow said, then hung up.

 {=====THE MIDAS MAN

Then he dialed another number. "Midas Mufflers. Earl the Pearl speaking," was the answer. The seminar man repeated his dilemma.

Earl the Pearl said, "You've got a coat hanger in your suitcase. Use it to tie the tailpipe up to your bumper."

"I can do that," the seminar man said.

"Great! Then tell you what you do. Drive to the first traffic light, hook a right, then go down about two-thirds of a mile. You'll see the Midas sign on your left. We're getting ready to close, but I'll wait for you. I've got a universal clamp that will fit your Fairlane just fine. You'll be back on the road in less than 30 minutes. It'll be eight bucks plus about four bits or so in tax."

Bob said that whole thing brought lambent tears to the eyes of everyone in the room. While they were cheering and clapping and giving a standing ovation for Earl the Pearl the Midas man, it was plain to them that they needed the seminar man's program, all umpteen thousands of dollars worth of it.

In fact Bob engaged him that evening. After rearranging the repair shop personnel and issuing new and more efficient job descriptions, plus installing a new computer program that keeps track of the service history of every vehicle that comes in, Bob's customers started wearing smiles. Even the mechanics began saying they loved working there.

Just before Bob moved his big General Motors dealership across the street next to his Ford store, he and I were standing there in the showroom doorway drinking a Coke. There were hundreds of new cars on his lot. I said, "Bob, how in the world do you sleep at night knowing the enormous investment you have in all of those units? Must be five, maybe six million dollars worth."

"Bill, I sleep like a baby. Stand here and watch what comes and goes past my store. We do the authorized warranty and service work on almost every one of those brands. Oh, I must not have told you. I love my service departments, and I love Earl the Pearl the Midas man."

Bob then gave me his best toothy satisfied grin.

Copyright 2007-William S. Cherry