AUTOINC. ONLINE - Shop Profile

Empire Auto Body in San Jose, Calif., and its owner, Jaime Garcia, Jr., are known for the customized fiberglass and body repair work they perform. The shop is also known for its knowledge of Corvettes. Because of this reputation, the shop had the opportunity to tear down, redesign and complete an action figure car that appeared in a nationally released movie in 1995. The vehicle is built from a General Motors Corvette frame.

The project began when an Empire customer and close friend of Jaime's referred the vehicle owner to the shop. According to Jaime, the vehicle owner was looking for a body shop that had the knowledge and expertise to complete the job, as well as the ability to keep the project low-key. He believes that there are only three street-legal modifications of this particular car.

When new customers learn of the work Empire performed on this vehicle, their minds are put to ease as far as the shop's ability. We receive so many compliments on doing the car that people just see our pictures and have confidence in our work, Jaime said.

As with any good movie, this special project was a team effort. At the time Jaime's son, Francisco, and daughter, Liza, were working at the shop and participated in the project. The two have now moved on to other career opportunities, but will forever remember this project.

In addition to their children, Jaime's wife, Liz, also works in the business. Liz handles the entire front office. She is responsible for all accounting procedures, including payroll. Liz also writes estimates. She was trained by ADP and Mitchell. The advantages of having family work together is there is more time for personal situations that arise. For example, when the kids were young my wife had the time to leave the job to pick them up from school. She also had more time to spend with them, Jaime said. (Left, Liz and Jaime)

His role in the business is not only being its owner, but also as manager, technician and estimator. In addition, he is responsible for parts ordering. Empire also employs three technicians: Adrian Moreno, Jaime Alamillo and Enrique Ascencio. These five talented and dedicated individuals make up the successful crew of Empire Auto Body.

This year marks a milestone for Empire. It was 15 years ago that Jaime opened the business. At that time, he and his brother were given the opportunity to purchase the business. His brother later left the business. Empire has been in the same location since opening its doors. The size of our business has tripled since we opened, said Jaime. Last year the Garcias expanded into the building next to the original location, once again increasing the size of the shop. The expansion was needed due to the continuing growth of their customer base. We are fortunate to be in a good location to serve our customers, said Jaime.

Based on its reputation and quality of work, Empire performs approximately 10-15 repairs a week. Jaime expects work to increase due to a recent contract with a direct repair program. The majority of the business Empire receives is from customer referrals. We have a lot of return customers and they recommend us to their family and friends, said Jaime.

To stay abreast of the latest technology, Jaime believes in ongoing training and education. He is trained by the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair (I-CAR). Jaime and his technicians regularly attend classes offered by DuPont, as well as other industry events. (Jaime with (l to r) Juan Bugauin, Adrian Moreno and Jaime Alamillo)

Industry involvement is important to Jaime. Empire has been an ASA member since February 1999. We joined ASA because we feel that ASA can do some good to help small businesses, said Jaime.

In addition to industry involvement, Empire and its staff are also involved in the community. We donate money to the local neighborhood parks so they can purchase carnival supplies, said Jaime. Being known within the community is vital to the success of Empire and the Garcias are happy to contribute. One of the parks is located directly across the street from us. The kids always know where to go to air up their tires and borrow wrenches to fix their bikes, he said.

Jaime plans to turn the business over to his children eventually. In the meantime, he plans to continue providing top quality auto body repairs and custom work for his customers.

Shop Stats

Name: Empire Auto Body
Location: San Jose, Calif.
Number of employees: 5
Square Footage: 3,000 What Garcia Likes Best: “Working on different kinds of cars. Doing the custom work for people who really enjoy their cars. ”

Member Shop has Ties to Hollywood

Shop Stats