Established in June of 1992, Cam Duffy Autos has been a well-known name in the motoring community of Far North Queensland for more than 30 years. Motor Trader caught up with owners Cam and Andrea Duffy to learn more about how their business has grown from strength to strength over more than three decades.
Cam, can you tell us about your background in the automotive industry?
CD: I have been working on cars for more than 40 years. In 1982, I completed my trade as a motor mechanic. Since then, I have continued to train so that I can keep up with developments in the trade and improve my skill set.
You have built a multi-faceted business. Tell us about your core services offered.
CD: We have a mechanical workshop in Atherton at the very centre of the Atherton Tablelands. Until recently, we also had a workshop in Malanda. We have sold it to a local mechanic so that he can also build his future in the industry.
The Atherton workshop is an approved RACQ Mechanical workshop, and we have the RACQ auto glass contract to repair and replace windscreens and glass. We have several contracts with road service providers, but the main contract is RACQ for towing and roadside assistance. The statewide club is really one to be a member of as they provide the best assistance to its members, as long as the member has the correct cover they require for their needs.
We also provide a towing service to the public, all insurance companies and the Queensland Police Service. Finally, we have Duffy’s Car Rentals with 13 cars available to hire. This works well when people’s vehicles are being repaired either in a workshop or a panel repair shop.
Our move to provide the towing service has given us diversification in an ever-changing industry. We have continued to provide an honest and professional service over the years and we are still here going strong.
Are you still hands on in the business today?
CD: Yes, but in a different capacity to a motor mechanic. I’m more hands on providing roadside service and as a tow truck driver. I’m also an advisor to our mechanics employed at the workshop and several other mechanics around the state.
Who is in your current team?
CD: The Cam Duffy Auto team is led by my wife Andrea who manages all of the office tasks including administration, marketing and accounts. Andrea is supported by Taylor, Anne, Jann and Clare in the office. We have myself, Michael, Dwayne, Troy, Lachlan, Logan and Daine providing roadside service and towing services across the Tablelands region. Michael, Dwayne, Blake and Daine are also employed as mechanics in the workshop in Atherton when they aren’t out on the road in the tilt tray.
What are your greatest challenges?
CD: Finding and retaining great mechanical staff. We take on young people, train them up, they finish their apprenticeship, buy a hoist and go out on their own. We are proud that they are good enough to branch out on their own, but we also really wish they would stay.
How much importance do you place on social media for your business?
CD: Social media is the majority of our advertising strategy now, but word of mouth is still the most important.
Vehicle repairs and maintenance are a grudge payment for the majority of people, and they aren’t the customer we attract to our business. Prevention is better than being that person broken down on the side of the road. We have clients who have been with us since we first opened the doors to our business 32 years ago who have entrusted their car and their safety to our team. Those loyal customers are the kind we aim to attract to our business.
The media are also a challenge to every mechanical workshop. The media bangs on about the ‘unprofessional’, ‘rip off’, ‘dishonest’ mechanics in the trade on a regular basis. The keyboard warriors who don’t have faces are brutal, but decent people see past that. Social media can be crippling to a business. We have had to constantly prove to the public we are not that mechanic.
What do you see as the greatest advancement in technology for your business?
CD: We’ve stayed away from the Dynos but the systems and technology available is just mind-blowing. The advances in technology impact every aspect of the business, not just the office but also the technology in the motor vehicles. The advancements of technology in the automotive industry are where we need to keep updated with every bit of training offered to us.
Do you consider that the advancements in electric vehicles (EVs) will have an impact
on your business?
CD: Most definitely the EV industry will impact our workshop at some point. We have attended several broken down EVs on roadside call outs with issues. Our staff have attended the training that’s been available to us so far. We have three qualified technicians to disarm the electric vehicles in the event of an accident or as a part of the process for repairs.
What training do you do with staff?
CD: We enrol our staff in as much training as we can. The training is provided by both MTA Queensland and RACQ. Our apprentice Blake Peagham was the MTA Institute Apprentice of the Month in June and has finished his training with Antony [his MTA Institute trainer] this week.
What has been the greatest benefit of your MTA Queensland membership?
CD: Cam Duffy Autos has been a member of MTA Queensland for more than 20 years. During that time, we have appreciated the access to human resource services and advice to manage our staff. Our relationship with MTA Queensland and the MTA Institute as a Registered Training Organisation has also been instrumental in training many of our apprentices over the years.
What are your plans for the next few years?
CD: We probably won’t enter full-time retirement as this workshop is our way of life. We enjoy helping people so we will continue to run the business and look after our customers and our staff. The business is going from strength to strength, so we have no plans to quit anytime soon. Having said that the business is also very established and stable so Andrea and I can afford to take in lots of travel throughout Australia with our caravan.
What vehicles do you own?
CD: We have many! Queensland Transport love our registration cheque every year. We have five tow trucks with tilt slide trays and five Roadside service patrol vehicles. We have 13 passenger cars as hire vehicles. Personally, we have a Nissan Y62 for towing our caravan and a Mazda CX5 as Andrea’s daily driver.
What do you do with your spare time?
CD: We love to spend time with our grandchildren. Our family is our greatest achievement ever. When we aren’t enjoying time with our family we like to get out in our caravan and cruise around this beautiful country we live in.
What advice would you give to a young you starting out in the industry?
CD: Be honest and provide an outstanding service to people and you will succeed.
Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (August 2024)
13 August 2024