Shop View: Protech Automotive Services

May 1, 2023
A brand-focused Rhode Island shop with curb appeal, a pristine interior for customers and a signature scent.

Shop Name: Protech Automotive Services
Owner(s): Anthony Bodine
Location (city, state): Johnston, RI
Staff Size: 12
Shop Size (in square feet): 18,000
Number of Bays: 18
Average Monthly Car Count: 300
Annual Revenue ($): 3,000,000 

Protech Automotive Services in Johnston, Rhode Island, brings all the charm and hospitality of an upscale hotel under the hard, symmetrical edges of a handsome, industrial-looking building.  

Custom-designed and owned by Anthony Bodine, a New England Institute of Technology graduate, Protech Automotive Services has existed since 2010. 

A Different Type of Oil Smell 

Protech Auto Services is built on attracting one specific customer—the finicky. The shop is pristine from its waiting room to its bays. To top it all off, the shop even has a signature scent specially made by Bodine that wafts through the air in a Cinnabon-type fashion. He says customers love it and often ask for samples. 

“It's a fragrance-grade oil and it pumps it through the ductwork. It's not real strong. It's not real obtrusive,” Bodine says, reiterating that every detail matters. “I want perfection. And that's the type of customer that I want.” 

Front of House Excellence 

While Protech Auto Service doesn’t get a lot of waiters, its amenities and furnishing make it easy for those who do wish to stick around. The service advisor area has polished recycled glass countertops and the lobby has leather club chairs, a refreshment area, and study desks where customers can pop open a laptop or tablet.  

“First impressions mean a lot. When somebody walks in, we want to make a good first impression. We're adamant about our quality,” Bodine says. 

Exceptional Techs with Top-Flight Tools 

Bodine has seven technicians—five a-level technicians (four of them are master techs) and two general service guys. The shop has built-in toolboxes for a uniform look which leaves ample space in between the bays. The shop uses Hunter alignment, changer and balancer equipment. Bodine says he’s adamant about keeping tools and technology current. 

“We try to stay up-to-date on stuff and get these guys the tools they need to do the jobs and to do them to do them. You can't have the best techs in the world if you don't have the right equipment, the right facility, and you got if you've got poor working conditions,” Bodine says. 

“It’s absolutely going to affect your productivity, it's going to affect their efficiency, it's going to affect their morale out in the shop, which is going to negatively affect the entire the entire team, the entire company, and it's going to affect the customers.” 

About the Author

Chris Jones | Editor

Chris Jones is Group Editorial Director for the Vehicle Repair Group at Endeavor Business Media. He’s a multiple-award-winning editor and journalist and a certified project manager now providing editorial leadership and brand strategy for the auto care industry's most trusted automotive repair publications—Ratchet+Wrench, Modern Tire Dealer, National Oil & Lube News, FenderBender, ABRN, Professional Distributor, PTEN, Motor Age, and Aftermarket Business World.

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