Each car has to be clean, smoke-free, no major accidents reported to Carfax, no flood damage, no major body work, and something that I know when I sell it to a customer, it will be a great car.It's because I take so much care in vehicle selection that I give a free one year bumper-to-bumper warranty on these auction vehicles. It's my way of saying "thank you!" for trusting in me and the service that we provide here.

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Too often these days, dealing with businesses, large and small, local or not, is one great big frustration. Customer service is, for the most part, obsolete and price seems to be the major driver of many if not most consumer decisions. During my tenure as a Senior Editor for OpEdNews, I have striven to share stories of exceptional businesses whose values I admire and that do not share that blatant disregard for their customers. Northshore Automotive is one of them.

My guest today is Tim Fella, proprietor of Northshore Automotive, located in Wilmette, Illinois. Welcome to OpEdNews, Tim. Can you tell our readers a little about what you do?

Hello, Joan. Thank you for inviting me to this interview. As you stated, I am the owner and proprietor of Northshore Automotive in beautiful Wilmette. We service and repair all makes and models of automobile with a specialization on imports. We also do a limited number of used car sales where we offer quality cars in great condition at a fair price as well as locating cars that people are looking for.

How long have you been doing this, Tim? And how did you get started in the first place?

I've been in this business for just about 35 years in all. I found myself in need of a job so I started sweeping the floors and taking care of stock in a dealership parts department. Eventually, they saw how hard a worker I was and moved me up to full-time parts associate. That accounts for the first 15 of those years, when I moved up to parts manager and had to move from dealership to dealership. At that time, I found myself without a job. I had been let go because of some workplace politics. I had unknowingly offended someone who decided to throw around his power and there I was, all my years of work and loyalty counting for nothing. It was at this time that I decided I was done with the dealerships, and how they treat people - both employees and customers - and decided to open my own business. I have spent the last twenty years running my own shop, just trying to give the customers a place that is built around honesty, integrity, and actual customer service.

How's it going for you? How's it different running your own business than it was working for a dealership?

I am pleased to say that I have been very lucky and things are going very well! There are so many differences that sometimes it's hard to believe that this is the same industry as the dealership. There is job security that comes with being my own boss, versus always being anxious at the dealership that you are on someone's short list for termination. I like to run a straight-forward business; dealerships are awash with politics and I don't play those games. However, owning my own business has the added pressure of never knowing if or when the customers are going to come through the door. The biggest difference is customer service! When a customer walks through my door the first time, we try our best to show them how we are different and it's amazing how over time we build a relationship. I have customers that purchased a car from me, then brought that car back for service with me. Now, here we are years later and I am finding cars for their kids and servicing their cars. I have loyal customers who have been with me all these twenty years I've had my business, and I have seen their families grow and they have seen my own family grow as well. I'm a very lucky man.

I can attest to what you just said. In my old neighborhood, virtually every person brought their car to Northshore Automotive and had been for many years, if not decades. That's what I call customer loyalty! At some point, you chose not to advertise. How did you come to that decision and has it served you well?

I have focused on only two forms of what you could consider advertising - direct mail, in which we send out coupons to customers or my prefered manner which is to purchase space for ads in local programs or books. This includes various New Trier High School sports programs, Evanston Women's Club's annual yearbook, and the Wilmette Park District skating rink. This way, even if the money spent doesn't bring anyone in the door, at least I know that it's going to a good cause and right back into the community that has supported me and my business.

I have also found that the most effective advertisement is word of mouth from my customers. Not a day goes by without either hearing that a customer has referred us to a friend, or we have a new customer walk in the door and say that a friend sent them to us. This approach has served me very well over the years because anyone can pay to have their name posted on a sign, billboard, or in a magazine, but you have to really prove the value in what you do to have somebody put their recommendation behind you. We truly do have the world's best customers - they do this constantly and trust us to take care of their friends and family. In one case, I had a great customer who recommended us to three of her closest friends, and they all ended up becoming regular customers. These four ladies would schedule their cars for the same day at the same time, and when they arrived, they would pull out a deck of cards and have a very lively game of pinochle. I like to think there aren't many auto repair facilities in the world that someone would not only recommend to her close friends but then make it the setting of their semi-regular pinochle games!

That's for sure! Very cool. How did you get into the used car business, Tim? Everyone seems to hate and mistrust car salesmen and it's been like that forever. Why did you take that on when you already had a successful repair shop? Weren't you worried it would sully your stellar reputation and be more trouble than it was worth?

After about four years on the service side, I really started to register how many times a customer would ask if I knew where they could get good used cars. I came to the conclusion that, although there are plenty of used car lots out there, there was a supreme lack of a service that was desperately needed: somewhere you could get a great used car at a reasonable price. So I took the values and principles I had successfully applied to the auto repair business and started the used car side. I was never really worried about sullying my reputation because I stand behind the cars I sell the same way we stand behind our repair work. I offer great used vehicles and I only ask my fair profit.

I had to make a decision when I first started in the used car business. Was I going to be the guy that marked all my vehicles way up and leave room to negotiate? No! That's not me. If there is even the slightest question of the integrity of a car, it goes right to auction. If I feel that a car is a great option, then we fix what needs to be fixed and put it on the lot at a price that's fair for both parties. It's a simple and straightforward approach that I would appreciate if roles were reversed.

Take this couple that came in recently. They had been referred to us by a friend and entered our shop as most people do when used car shopping, tense, wary, and very ready to bolt. My employee Ryan and I greeted them warmly as we do all customers and we took a moment to get to know them to find out their needs and what they were looking for. We explained to them how we conduct business and they seemed to relax. Ryan spent the next two days patiently working with them, going over each car they were considering and giving them the information they needed to make the best decision. In the end, they decided on a wonderful Camry. Then, they asked how much they needed to put down to hold the car. Our response was our usual: a handshake while looking us in the eye with the assurance that they were serious about the car. This blew them away so much that they promptly asked Ryan if they could give him a hug. We are here to provide a much needed service for our customers, a great product at a great price, no pressure, no games. This couple has since sent others our way, and for that we are grateful.

I bought a car from you four or five years ago. I didn't worried for one second that I might be getting a lemon or a bad deal. And it's true - there was absolutely no pressure. It was an education as well as a thoroughly pleasant and novel experience. You carefully steered me toward what you felt would serve me best in the long run. I really really wanted a Prius. You could have just accepted my request. Instead, you firmly told me that I just didn't drive enough to justify the extra cost. Your refusal could have cost the sale. But, with a commute of less than three miles a day round trip, I reluctantly had to agree. I ended up with a 2007 Honda Accord which fits my needs just fine. You're very careful about all the cars you offer and you include a warranty on each one. Tell us about that, please.

Of course, Joan.

What are you looking for when you shop at an auction?

I try my best to make sure that when I am selling a car to a customer, that it is going to be exactly what they need. That's why we take the time to get to know our customers and exactly what they will be using the car for. Whether I am looking for a customer or looking for my lot, my standards are very high. Each car has to be clean, smoke-free, no major accidents reported to Carfax, no flood damage, no major body work, and something that I know when I sell it to a customer, it will be a great car. I do all of my homework before I head to the auction, inspect the cars at auction, and then if they are the right price and I win, I have them inspected again once they get back to the shop. If they don't pass any of these inspections, then they don't make it to my lot or customers. If they do pass, then we fix what needs fixing on the vehicle and get it ready for the customer. It's because I take so much care in vehicle selection that I give a free one year bumper-to-bumper warranty on these auction vehicles. It's my way of saying "thank you!" to my customers for trusting in me and the service that we provide here.

No wonder we all like buying cars from you! Moving beyond cars for a moment, what do you enjoy doing in your free time, presuming that you have some? Do you live at the shop or are you careful to find a balance between the various aspects of your life?

For the first 15 years, at least, I'm sorry to say that I did live at the shop. It's a sacrifice that had to be made. And, although it has allowed me to be where I am today and to have the success that I have, I am sorry about what I had to sacrifice to that end. Unfortunately, I missed a lot of my daughter's life and the milestones of her growing up, because so much of my time and attention had to be invested at the shop. This, of course, means that I'm not as close to my daughter as I wish I could be. She has truly become a beautiful and remarkable young woman and I'm sorry every day that I missed out on so much of her growing up. That realization has been the catalyst for change and allowed me to have a much closer relationship with my son, as I try to not repeat the mistakes I made the first time around.

Another realization I came to is that finding the right person to act in my stead at the shop was pivotal to being able to take a step back from the business and focus more on my family life. Fortunately for me, just such a person came along this past year - my manager, Ryan. As soon as we started talking, I realized that he was a man of integrity who really cared and would be a great fit. He has been a great asset to the business and has helped give me the peace of mind that the business is well in hand when I need to be with my family. So, now I do find myself being able to find more time for family trips, and to watch my horses run at Arlington and other venues.

You definitely deserve that. Do you anticipate ever retiring? Could you walk away from your baby?

As soon as I hit the lottery, I'm out! On a serious note, I'm not sure that I'm the kind of guy that could fully retire. I'd miss the rush of a bidding war at auction over a clean car, the interactions and seeing the smiles on the faces of happy customers, and the feeling that comes with a sale of a great car or taking care of an existing one. A feeling that when you have a happy, grateful customer that maybe in some way, even a small one, we made a positive impact on their life in an industry and service overwhelmingly filled with the negative. That being said, I do anticipate taking a larger step back from the service side. Ryan really does have things well in hand and it would allow me to focus more on the used cars. Maybe I will start buying one-way tickets to Florida, California, or Vegas, pick up nice cars with no rust and enjoy nice leisure trips back here. That would be a pretty good way to spend my twilight years, I could still get great cars for customers, enjoy the auctions, and yet get to make up for time spent behind the desk.

Sounds great, actually, Tim, you riding off into the sunset!

Don't you mean driving, Joan?

Honesty AND a sense of humor. Who could ask for anything more? Thanks so much for talking with me, Tim. I had to twist your arm to do this interview. I hope it wasn't quite as bad as you anticipated!

Not bad at all, Thank you, Joan, for having me!

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Thanks, Ryan. Without your help, this interview would never have gotten done.

Northshore Automotive website

Testimonials: 100% of customers would refer friends and family to us.

Authors Website: http://www.opednews.com/author/author79.html

Authors Bio:

Joan Brunwasser is a co-founder of Citizens for Election Reform (CER) which since 2005 existed for the sole purpose of raising the public awareness of the critical need for election reform. Our goal: to restore fair, accurate, transparent, secure elections where votes are cast in private and counted in public. Because the problems with electronic (computerized) voting systems include a lack of transparency and the ability to accurately check and authenticate the vote cast, these systems can alter election results and therefore are simply antithetical to democratic principles and functioning.



Since the pivotal 2004 Presidential election, Joan has come to see the connection between a broken election system, a dysfunctional, corporate media and a total lack of campaign finance reform. This has led her to enlarge the parameters of her writing to include interviews with whistle-blowers and articulate others who give a view quite different from that presented by the mainstream media. She also turns the spotlight on activists and ordinary folks who are striving to make a difference, to clean up and improve their corner of the world. By focusing on these intrepid individuals, she gives hope and inspiration to those who might otherwise be turned off and alienated. She also interviews people in the arts in all their variations - authors, journalists, filmmakers, actors, playwrights, and artists. Why? The bottom line: without art and inspiration, we lose one of the best parts of ourselves. And we're all in this together. If Joan can keep even one of her fellow citizens going another day, she considers her job well done.


When Joan hit one million page views, OEN Managing Editor, Meryl Ann Butler interviewed her, turning interviewer briefly into interviewee. Read the interview here.

While the news is often quite depressing, Joan nevertheless strives to maintain her mantra: "Grab life now in an exuberant embrace!"


Joan has been Election Integrity Editor for OpEdNews since December, 2005. Her articles also appear at Huffington Post, RepublicMedia.TV and Scoop.co.nz.