"It’s a difficult industry ... I spend most of my time trying to sell something that is basically unreliable—and that nobody wants—for more than they can afford to spend." So said Richard Robbins of Reliable Transmissions Limited, in Queens Village, New York, with his tongue planted only part way in his cheek.

It doesn’t take long in conversation with Robbins to realize that humor is a device that has served him well over the years. And at the base of the humor is often the truth. Robbins truly does recognize that his is a difficult industry, and that the customers he comes in contact with are rarely happy to see him. But it is those very customers that are the basis of his concerns, and winning them over "for life" his goal.

It was the mid-1950s, and Robbins grew up in his father’s gas station, pumping gas and servicing cars. His father, Mac Robbins, did business with a transmission wholesaler, who eventually talked Mac into dropping the gas station, and buying his business—Reliable Transmissions Limited.

Transmissions had no particular interest for the younger Robbins, but business did. As he grew older, his business interest focused elsewhere, far afield of gears and line pressure. Robbins went into candy manufacturing. It worked for awhile, but some 22 years ago, he returned to his father’s shop.

The next several years were typical of a father and son in business together, according to Robbins. Especially when the younger man—who knows he possesses great, innovative, business ideas—clashes with the older man’s tried-but-true ways. Thankfully, said Robbins, his father won out most of the time. But doing something different and innovative to secure a broader customer base is still never far back in Robbins’ mind.

When Richard bought the shop 10 years ago from his father, his knowledge and understanding of the business had increased considerably. Mac, who according to his son, is "86 going on 65," still comes into work every day to work on the books, and tend to a few other administrative tasks. "He’s a very stabilizing force in the business," claimed Richard, who is obviously still glad to have his father about the shop.

Since the inception of the business, Reliable has primarily been a wholesale rebuilding shop, with many commercial fleet accounts that are as old as the business itself. They continue that trend today, with only about 10% of their business being retail. But it’s a trend that Richard plans to alter in the future, along with expansion of the business. Wholesale has been good to Reliable, but he wants to offer the retail customer the same level of quality, dependable service that the others have enjoyed.

Having realized a few years ago that they had outgrown their facility and needed to relocate, Robbins set about building a new shop from what was basically an existing "three walls and a roof." The new building was, at 16,000 square feet, over three times the size of the previous one. Robbins solicited input from all employees, to make the new structure as well thought out as he could make it. Each of the 12 rebuilding stations has a drain system that runs directly into a 4,000 gallon underground waste-oil tank. Each station also has its own exhaust system to capture the over-spray of cleaners and solvents used on the bench. The building is heated by clean, in-floor radiant heating, and is designed to "look good to the customer." Robbins described the process as a "real costly battle," but one that was necessary to take his business into the next twenty years.

As they begin to settle into their new environment, Reliable Transmissions has the ability to do the job. 14 lifts, including one rated at 25,000 pounds, fill much of the floor space. Eight installers keep nine builders occupied at their work stations, and four employees do nothing but pick-up and delivery. One person is on a continual cleaning mission, three handle outside sales, and one other functions as a service writer. Even with rapid access to major parts distributors, Robbins finds it necessary to maintain a soft-parts inventory valued at over $100,000. And, stacked in crates, are over 1,000 cores.

The majority of employees at Reliable are long term, with many in the 10-15 year range. With a laugh, Robbins said "I didn’t think I treated them particularly well, until I started hearing these horror stories from guys at other shops." A good, competitive wage, along with paid holidays and sick days, is the basis of their package. Eight-hour days with weekends off gives them a predictable schedule, and just recently, Robbins instituted a profit-sharing plan for those with over three years employment. Next year he hopes to start a health benefit program. Most importantly, he said, is that Reliable is a good place to work, with people who basically get along well with each other.

Changes in the industry—predictably those in the technical arena—are as much a challenge for Reliable as any other shop. The complexity of today’s transmissions don’t allow for the quick rebuild. "For the first time ever, I’m in a position of having to have more builders than installers," he said, in reference to the time it takes to work on each unit.

Currently, Reliable Transmissions moves about 100 vehicles a week through the shop ... a number that Robbins hopes to increase to about 125, as soon as they recover from the recent move and become more organized. Towards that end, Robbins also recently brought a junior partner into the business. Robert Lopilato now oversees the operations end of the business, and has brought with him the technical expertise to match the business acumen of Robbins.

To deal with the technical challenge, Robbins brings in experts every few months for a week of training and refresher work. Whenever feasible, technicians attend training seminars and programs sponsored by ATRA and other sources. Robbins is currently investigating the possibility of installing computer terminals, capable of downloading technical data on specific units, at each work station.

Another area of change that Robbins is aware of concerns the demographics of his service area. The ethnic composition of the Queens neighborhood within New York City has changed significantly over the years, and Robbins continually strives to be culturally sensitive to the needs and concerns of his clientele. By establishing better, more meaningful links with his customers, Robbins feels he can expand his clientele, and avoid many of the misunderstandings inherent in cross-cultural business operations.

In planning to expand his retail sales, Robbins faces no shortage of challenges. The area in which he operates has its share of transmission repair businesses which advertise unrealistically low rebuild prices. An unsuspecting customer soon realizes that the advertised price covers little more than a technician’s glance at the vehicle, and the actual cost for the completed work is always many times more than what they were led to believe. To avoid such conflicts, Robbins is in the process of creating "fact sheets" that detail the cost of each type of transmission. A basic price is given, then the cost of typical additions that may be incurred are listed as well. In this manner, the customer—both retail and wholesale—has a firm set of numbers from which to make an informed decision.

There are other marketing strategies churning around in the mind of Richard Robbins; the biggest of which he has already initiated. The presentation of a clean, modern facility already sets them apart from the competition, and this, he knows, will not be lost on the customer. He will soon offer free loaner vehicles to customers while their vehicles are being worked on. And when each customer picks up his or her car, they will find a small present awaiting them: a small bag containing a can of tire flat-fix, a flashlight, a pre-paid phone card worth a couple of bucks ... and a copy of the ATRA Golden Rule Warranty.

And is Robbins confident of the course he is setting for Reliable Transmissions? He said it best: "We are not just a shop in Queens Village or Queens, but a force in the (New York) metro area. We are New York’s largest and nicest facility...we are the best."