We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nikodem Blek. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nikodem below.
Alright, Nikodem thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So, let’s start with trends – what are some of the largest or more impactful trends you are seeing in the industry?
Everyone knows about Vinyl Wraps, they’re a cheap way to make your car the color you want it to be but the problem is that it’s “cheap” therefore it hardly lasts more than a year in California. I would never install that material because by the time I finished telling the customer what to expect they were completely turned off to the idea and I sold them on wrapping it with my paint protection film that comes with a 10 year warranty. Selling on quality has always been easier for me because of how I operate my business. Recently the market has been flooded with much higher quality color change paint protection film that also comes with a 10 year warranty. I foresee a lot of shops that offer paint protection film using these products because they understand the unique methods of installing this film. PPF (paint protection film) is installed wet versus vinyl that is installed dry. PPF is also tremendously harder to work with. In the near future there should be some pretty wild looking colors on cars coming out on the streets for us to drool over! It’s a great way to personalize your vehicle and protect it.
Nikodem, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Nick, I started out in the industry during the 2008 recession. Once I got into the industry I was like a fish in water. Starting out as a trainee and worked my way up to being an owner in less than 3 years. I’ve competed in world wide competitions and currently have 3 world titles under my belt. My company, Premier Armor, exclusively uses Xpel products for our paint protection, window tint, and ceramic coatings. These products protect your vehicle from the wear and tear of the road and keeps it looking brand new! Our mission statement is, Premier Quality and Premier Service, our customers know that our quality is the best in the industry and so is our service. We offer solutions that most shops would leave to the customer to figure out on their own. We take pride in the level of detail and service we offer. We offer the absolute best because we want to work with like minded customers who also want the same thing that have been under served and under delivered. You car is the 2nd largest expense in your life after a house, so we know full well how important it is to you to protect it and retain it’s value.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Staying true to my clients, even in the most difficult circumstances. I remember I had a vehicle that was worth over 7 figures in my shop and the paint pulled off the car when I was installing my products. At the moment I felt like vomiting but I picked up the phone and immediately explained the situation to my customer. Turns out the vehicle was damaged in transit and it was repaired which cleared my name of wrong doing. My client was very concerned because this was his first purchase of a 7 figure car but when the dust settled he became a life long client and even a friend/mentor because of my honesty. How you react in the most difficult circumstances is crucial, and honesty is always the best policy when it comes to that.
How do you keep your team’s morale high?
Always have a goal in mind for the future. When starting a small business people are putting their trust in you to grow and become something more than what you are now. A stagnant business is a dead or dying business. Frankly it’s a race against ever other business that is in the same industry. You team needs to know there is a reason they are putting their eggs into you business’ basket. That they will have room for great opportunities in the future. Of course not everyone might want that so at the core of this one must understand that getting to know your team on an individual basis is important to keep everyone’s morale high. Being on the same page is important in any relationship.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.premierarmor.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/premierarmor
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/premierarmor/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/premier-armor-corona