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MSBF recently provided a significant boost for a local company expansion—and helped bring full circle a family business.
Carstar A&B, located at the intersection of Vivion Road and Waukomis Drive, recently expanded to five locations with financing in part provided by MSBF and the SBA's low-interest, 504 Loan Program. But the story actually began in 1962 when the father and uncle of the present owner founded the company.
"My dad and uncle started the A&B Collision Repair 45 years ago", explained Brett Bailey, Carstar A&B general manager. They had the original location in Riverside and one other.
The company did well and expanded to three locations. Then, in 1998, the uncle retired and Bailey's father sold their businesses to the Carstar Corporation, the worlds largest collision repair organization. In the move, Brett's father became North American operations president for Carstar.
"It was a good move but I was upset when we sold because I always wanted to follow in my dad and my uncles footsteps", Bailey recalled. "But it gave my dad an incredible opportunity and my uncle a chance to retire, and now here I am with not three but five stores!"
The Carstar A&B centers are in Riverside, Smithville, St. Joseph, on the Country Club Plaza and on Wornell in Kansas City. Approximately 92 people are employed at all five locations, which averages more than 650 car repairs each month, or about 8,000 per year.
"This is what I love to do; it's my passion", Bailey explained. "And I've always loved this community, so there was no thought of ever moving. It's really interesting because I got to learn the family-operated business, and now I can apply it."
The Carstar backing helps with state-of-the-art equipment, a critical factor with today's widespread use of uni-body construction and other features. All five A&B locations have earned several industry awards.
"One of great things with Carstar is we see a lot of technology when it's first released", Bailey said. "That's important is this business. But the most important thing is dealing honestly with your customers and that's what I've always enjoyed."
Used in conjunction with financing from a bank, low-interest 504 loans are designed for building acquisition, construction, renovation or other capital outlays such as equipment purchases. Using traditional loans for 50 percent of the project cost, MSBF typically provides 40 percent of the project and the borrower needs to inject only 10 percent of the project cost.
MSBF 504 and Revolving Loan Funds support business growth, including the creation and retention of jobs for projects in Clay and Platte counties, and across Missouri. Additional information is available by calling Finance Director Karine Decker at (816) 468-4989.