"The Three Jobs of a Shop Owner Are Marketing, Hiring, and Training" – Kevin Bird of JM Auto Service | Trust, Team Culture & Coaching
Kevin Bird of JM Auto Service in Eveleth, Minnesota, breaks down the three jobs every shop owner must master—marketing, hiring, and training—while sharing how he built customer trust, shaped team culture, and embraced coaching to grow his shop.

I’m Brad Hurlock, host of the Garage Grit Podcast and founder of AA Shop Marketing. In this Origin & Impact episode, I sit down with Kevin Bird of JM Auto Service in Eveleth, Minnesota.

Kevin shares the story of taking over a long-standing repair shop, the lessons he learned from corporate life, and how he’s applied them to running a 12-bay operation in a small northern town. He talks about the realities of earning customer trust, creating a culture where his team thrives, and why investing in coaching groups has helped him level up as an owner.

At the heart of this conversation, Kevin lays out a simple but powerful truth: the three jobs of a shop owner are marketing, hiring, and training. If you’re an independent shop owner, this episode will challenge you to refocus on what really drives growth and long-term success.

Listen anywhere: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/garagegrit
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Learn more: https://www.aashopmarketing.com/
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Timestamps:
00:00 – Introduction and Kevin’s background
01:35 – Overview of JM Auto Service and serving a rural community
06:30 – Balancing longtime customers with new ones
12:00 – Shop management, TechMetric, and building trust with customers
17:00 – Transitioning from previous ownership and shop culture changes
23:00 – Team dynamics, daily meetings, and culture outside of work
28:40 – Kevin’s path into shop ownership and lessons from corporate life
32:30 – Hiring strategies and building the right team
38:40 – The three jobs of a shop owner: marketing, hiring, training
44:40 – Marketing lessons, mailers, reviews, and Google visibility
52:00 – Training processes for techs and service advisors
57:30 – Moving from growth to consistency
1:01:00 – Loaner car program and liability setup
1:08:00 – Coaching groups, ShopFix, and the value of a tribe
1:12:30 – Closing thoughts and invitation to the Garage Grit community