Rudy Schmid Total Car Care adapts to the challenging times

When Diane Schmid-McCall and Paul J. (PJ) Schmid took over Rudy Schmid Total Car Care, the siblings were told the third generation of a business — their generation — did not typically see success. 

“We were told right off the bat that, as third generation, you’ve got about seven years and then you close the doors,” Schmid recalls. 

His sister concurs. “That’s the generation that usually brings the business down and does not succeed,” Schmid-McCall says she was told. “This many years in, we’ve been able to overcome that stigma.” 

Now, nearly 30 years into their partnership as co-owners, they have indeed proven any early naysayers wrong, as Rudy Schmid Total Car Care draws nearer to a century in business.

Rudy Schmid Total Car Care is an auto body and collision-repair shop, located on Syracuse’s northside, that has been in business since 1930. 

Their careers in the industry started at young ages, as they grew up in their grandfather’s and then father’s business. 

“He was my dad’s shadow growing up,” Schmid-McCall says about her brother. “He loved the hands-on work and he learned the trade that way.” 

After they began working at Rudy Schmid Total Car Care in their teenage years, their father approached Schmid-McCall and Schmid when they were 25 and 28 years old, respectively, about purchasing the business. While they admit they were relatively young to be business owners, they had been inadvertently training for the responsibility for years, they say. Another reason their father knew it was time to turn the reins over to the next generation, Schmid-McCall says, was the rate at which technology was evolving, both on the administrative side of things and within the mechanics of the vehicles themselves. 

The generational change in leadership had its challenges, especially as the rest of the staff adjusted to their former coworkers becoming their bosses. Throughout the transition, the siblings’ similar goals and core values united them in camaraderie. 

“We’ve really been strong about having each other’s back,” Schmid-McCall says. 

As time went on and the business grew, their responsibilities and skill sets became more defined. 

“Because we grew up together, we knew each other’s strengths and we knew each other’s weaknesses, in a good way,” Schmid-McCall says. “We were there to support each other.” 

That strong bond helped the duo lead their team through ups and downs of nearly three decades in business, most recently successfully navigating their 17 employees through the COVID-19 pandemic. Schmid-McCall notes the business’s annual revenue was up about 6.5 percent from the year before, as the fiscal year was concluding at the end of June. The owners say were grateful for that, given the circumstances. 

When the shutdowns began in the early weeks of the pandemic in March and April of 2020, Schmid-McCall and Schmid feared they would be forced to reduce their workforce and quickly developed a plan to have two separate shifts, to keep their team employed and complete their scheduled workload. They soon received good news, though. 

“Our business was deemed essential, so we started from a place of gratitude because we were able to keep people employed and take care of our customers,” Schmid-McCall says. “So, we’ve been very humble and grateful through all of that.” 

Brother and sister agree that the most difficult challenge of the pandemic was the uncertainty. From the pockets of silent phones and light schedules to frequently changing restrictions and guidelines, they kept open communication with their staff a top priority. Schmid-McCall says their employees responded well, being respectful of each other and all policies. 

“They hung in there with us,” Schmid adds.

The owners are proud to have been able to keep everyone employed through the last year and a half, only having to furlough three people for less than four weeks. 

Though they are thankful to have the worst of the pandemic behind them, Schmid-McCall explains that the automotive industry has not yet completely returned to normal, given the supply-chain challenges.

“There’s still a lot of uncertainty. People want to get back to their lives. You’re seeing that at airports. You’re seeing people on vacations. You’re seeing more cars on the road,” she says. “But we still may struggle with getting materials to fix their vehicles in a timely manner. I think that could be another six months at least.”

Like nearly all businesses, Rudy Schmid Total Car Care saw changes in protocols throughout the pandemic, some of which will remain, including sanitization practices and openness with employees. 

Looking to the future, the business owners plan to continue making connecting with younger generations a top priority as a key to attracting new employees and clients. 

In the past, Rudy Schmid Total Car Care clients were typically repeat referral clients, people whose families and friends had become familiar with the company’s reputation over the years. Now, competing with larger businesses like Goodyear, Monro, and Midas, as well as smaller independent businesses, the owners aim to keep people aware of how highly they value personal connections with their clients. 

“We try to let people know that when you come here, you’re not a number,” Schmid says. “We try to personalize it and make it more of a customer-service experience.” 

In terms of staffing, the team has no plans in the works for a fourth generation to take over the business but hopes to recruit more young people into the auto-repair field. Schmid-McCall says it might require more input from all trade industries together to inform parents and guidance counselors of career opportunities available in those fields. 

Rudy Schmid Total Car Care is located at 228 Hiawatha Blvd. in Syracuse. In addition to collision repair, its services include rust proofing, vehicle maintenance, and fleet service.