Pieces d’auto Lacroix – Lacroix Auto Parts is the 2018 Jobber of the Year. The team is seen here outside their Terrebonne, Que. location.
A five-store jobber run by two young brothers has been selected as the 2018 Jobber of the Year.
Pieces d’auto Lacroix – Lacroix Auto Parts, with five stores on the north shore of Montreal, have seen big changes since brothers Dany and Kevin Lacroix took over from their father, Sylvain, just two years ago.
They overhauled their system so that calls made go to a dedicated team of experts in a call centre, implemented technology to make deliveries better and expanded their business to reach more customers and offer an expanded line of products.
Striving to be the best is what drives the brothers. It’s what drives the whole family, too.
“Whether it’s Sylvain and snowmobiling, myself and racing or Dany who has always been growing the business a lot, we’re all about getting a new challenge and pushing hard on that,” Kevin said. “We’ve always taken on many challenges and, as of now, we’ve always performed really well in these challenges.”
Their efforts have been noticed by customers and suppliers alike.
Dany (left) and Kevin Lacroix outside their warehouse in Boisbriand, Que.“They’re modernizing the way of doing business,” said Emile Bergeron, Mirabel-based sales director for parts supplier Rockland World Parts. “Directly from my heart: They’re honest, transparent and very loyal to their supplier.”
“Honestly, all these improvements have helped us. At the call center, we talk to the best parts advisers. In addition, their distribution center is directly in Boisbriand. There is a lot of choice, a lot of variety and a lot of service, especially when it comes to technical assistance,” said Francis Vincent, co-owner of Les Alignements Joly in Laval, who has been a customer for more than 20 years.
The way the brothers see it, if they’re not trying to be the best, what’s the point?
“I think in life you need some goals otherwise life will be boring,” said Kevin “I am happy to be in the business because there’s a lot of challenge here. It’s all about finding challenges that make us get up in the morning and want to be here.”
Watch for the full feature in our July/August issue of Jobber News
It’s the same idea Kevin takes to the race track when he gets behind the wheel. He doesn’t race just to be there and have fun. He wants to win.
“If I’m not at the top, I don’t want to be there at all,” he added. “We made the parts store our goal and our challenge. Our father brought it to this point and the goal is to make it even more successful and bigger. And we’re working hard on that.”
And success can’t come without help along the way.
“Thanks to our employees,” Dany said. “They’re probably the biggest help we’ve had.”
They also highlighted the long-time and successful relationship the company has with Uni-Select, a partnership that has lasted more than 20 years.
“We have had very good support from them,” Dany said.
“I think everyone at Uni-Select, we can also call them friends,” added Kevin. “There have been different people at Uni-Select in these jobs – my father has always had a good relationship with Uni-Select – and the support is extraordinary.”
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