Wednesday, July 29th Team Meeting
Anderson/Greenville Location Update:
When the owner of EBS (Ellis Bike Shop) passed away unexpectedly, his wife was left with a business that she wasn't interested in running. Loc-Doc has had the intention to expand to the Greenville area for a long time, and took this opportunity to help her out and move into that area simultaneously. After two and a half weeks of meetings and negotiation, the acquisition finally became official on 7/28 around 5PM. Starting August 1st, Loc-Doc will be merging into EBS.
About EBS:
The company was started in the 50s and has continued to operate to the same high standard until the passing of its owner, who was also the on-call tech. Despite the name, only about 5% of its annual revenue is bicycle-related: a lot of locksmiths historically started out as bicycle shops doing small-parts repair and other metalwork, including companies like Eastway. Although most of EBS's money came from locks and keys, the name was kept for historic reasons.
Other than the late owner, EBS has two employees: Nan, who has run the shop for nearly 20 years and has amassed a wealth of knowledge and information; and Joe, who has been with the company for 10+ years, and is very skilled in facility management and maintenance. Nan and Joe will become Loc-Doc employees at the start of the new month and will join us for virtual meetings beginning Monday, August 3rd.
What to expect:
the SC techs who have been working out of their homes will now have a physical location to use as a base of operations
there will be more walk-in business; EBS does a lot of retail business and is used to customers browsing the shop, which is different to the service desk in our Charlotte office
increased service levels
EBS's calls will be routed to Customer Success
Accounting will have to begin working on integrating a huge book of business into our system
we will be inheriting Clemson University and all of the Anderson County school districts
EBS is also a significant Medeco dealer with their own keyways
for the first month especially, Chad will have to spend a lot of time at the SC location in order to oversee this transition (this doesn't mean he isn't available)
EBS's name will stay the same, at least for the first couple of months, but it will slowly be transitioned to a part of Loc-Doc in a way that is the most respectful of EBS's reputation and loyal customer base: ultimately, the goal is for it to be a Loc-Doc office with EBS's retro vibe
Thomas will work with the new employees to help integrate their method of business with Loc-Doc's culture
Chad will be offering bike-riding lessons*
A note about this transition:
We're walking into a 50+ year reputation that Ellis has. We aren't going to just storm in and turn it into Loc-Doc overnight. We want to make sure the customer base understands that we're still there to serve them as well as EBS did. They may see a 704 area code and worry that the change in leadership will mean a change in service quality. The original management did after-hours calls, which is something we're still deciding what to do about.
CHAD'S CHALLENGE: We must all handle this merging of two cultures (traditional vs. progressive) with patience, respect, and grace. We must stay positive, encouraging, and welcoming. We need to make the new employees feel like they've been here for years: get to know them, learn how we can help support them, and understand that they come from an organization that prioritizes taking direction in a space where Loc-Doc tends to encourage self-initiation.
2020 Vision:
What does the future of the organization look like? We now have several different branches: Loc-Doc Inc, Loc-Doc Security, The Lab at Loc-Doc, and Ellis Bicycle Shop.
Our goals at the beginning of the year were:
To support 40+ families through employment
To add 800 new customers
To tag 1800 doors
To share at least $100K in profits
The year has been a bit of a roller coaster but we're very close on the first three of these, and adding EBS's business to our own will help with all of them.
We are currently over halfway through with the year: what will the second half look like? Leadership is trying to position us for the best possible success, but it takes all of us being focused and intentional with our time and resources.
Focus on refined quality: a major thing EBS has - anything its late owner touched was done right. His vans were pristine; the facility was pristine; the way he took care of his customers was pristine. We too must focus on doing things the right way, not the fast way.
How are we communicating? Things will change when we bring in EBS. The level of communication has to get better in order for us to be successful. If we fail, it will lead to frustrated customers, team members, vendors, etc. If we go to a jobsite and fix a lock but don't tell anyone, did we actually fix it?
Fuel Gauge
Our mission is to help people protect their people and their property.
Money isn't the mission. Revenue is more of a margin by which we can determine whether or not we're doing good work. Each person at Loc-Doc has a role that helps uphold our mission.
*this is just a funny joke, you probably shouldn't ask Chad for bike-riding lessons