The award ceremony was a highlight of the Independent Workshops and Service Companies symposium, which took place on October 26 at the Vogel Convention Center in Würzburg. "All of the award-winning independent garages provide outstanding service work. They are representative of the many dedicated independent automotive businesses in Germany," said "kfz-betrieb" editor-in-chief Wolfgang Michel at the award ceremony.
The jury for the German Workshop Award is made up of representatives from the "kfz-betrieb" editorial team and Original Marken Partner. After evaluating the questionnaires received, the jury members visited the ten best independent garages on site. They assessed the external and internal appearance of the business as well as the company management, service marketing and customer care. "We were able to see for ourselves that the independent workshops are excellently equipped, have a high level of customer loyalty and continuously invest in the training and further education of their employees," emphasized Ingo Linka from TMD Friction Service GmbH and spokesman for the Original Marken Partner.
The jury members were particularly impressed by Ralf Voss' wide range of services, well thought-out business concept and classic car business. Around one sixth of the 5,500 regular customers of the independent workshop in the 2,900-soul community are classic car customers - and the trend is rising. The conditions for expanding the classic car business are good: "With over 50 years of professional experience, my father is an old Mercedes mechanic. He still knows the old techniques, which he passes on to the young people," explained Ralf Voss and emphasized: "If we look after our customers individually, then they will remain loyal to us."
The best independent garages in Germany are
1st place: Autohaus Voss, Rosendahl
2nd place: Auto Niedermayer, Neukirchen
3rd place: Auto Dorner, Welden
4th place: Autoprofi Frey, Attendorn
5th place: Peter Kühner car workshop, Untereisesheim
6th place: TS-Carservice, Schlüchtern
7th place: Autohaus Gäckle, Oberderdingen
8th place: Auto Maier, Garmisch-Partenkirchen
9th place: Bernhard Velten, Bruchsal
10th place: Autoprofi Heuer, Borken
"kfz-betrieb" is the most widely read trade magazine in the automotive industry and has been informing the automotive trade and service sector for over 100 years. "kfz-betrieb" is the official organ of the German automotive trade (ZDK), the professional interest group for around 38,000 car dealerships and workshops. News from the entire automotive industry is available at www.kfz-betrieb.de and in the daily newsletter. The parent company Vogel Business Media is one of the leading German providers of specialist information with 100+ trade journals, 100+ web portals, 100+ business events as well as numerous mobile offerings and international activities. Its headquarters are in Würzburg. The company celebrated its 120th birthday in 2011.
