Joliet auto body supply shop turns 50
Arnie's Auto Body Supply, Inc. turned 50 on Nov. 1, and this family-owned business in Joliet has an interesting back story.
Its owner, Arnie Munchalfen, was a successful barber with a dilemma.
“In 1969, long hair came into fashion and he specialized in flat tops,” Bill Munchalfen, Arnie’s son and co-owner said. "His clientele was greatly diminished and he was feeding a family of 11. So he had to do something different.”
Arnie then worked at a refinery and he worked at the steel mill to help support his wife Mary and their five sons and four daughters, but he wanted to be his own boss, Bill said.
(George Muchalfen mixes paint Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, at Arnie's Auto Body in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).
So Arnie mortgaged the house and "bought out the sandpaper and paint" from Northside Auto, which was going out of business, Arnie's son George Munchalfen said, “for a grand total of $8,000,” Bill added.
“He rented a building a block and a half away,” Bill said. “It had no shelving so he put all the paint in the middle of the floor and put in a phone line. That’s how he started. [Then] he bought used shelving from a guy. And he cut all the bolts off and put shelving into the store. He built his own counter. And he had mom and I working with him.”
(The window of Arnie's Auto Body Supply can be seen Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).
Arnie worked at the paint store from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and then cut hair from 2 to 6 p.m., which were his “most opportune times,” Bill said.
Bill, a college student at the time, ran the paint store in his father’s absence, which included delivering paint in his 1965 Mustang, George said.
“Mom was the bookkeeper,” Bill said.
“And the delivery person and collection agent,” George said. "When someone was slow at paying their bills, Mom explained she had nine children at home to feed and usually got a payment on [the] account."
Bill added, “Mom did not have a computer. She wrote all the invoices and statement by hand, which 20 hours a week of work." “While trying to feed nine kids at the same time,” George added,
Back then, George said, customers didn't want to patronize stores where the staff didn't know how to paint. So Arnie brought paint home, hooked up a compressor in the garage and painted a friend's camper, he continued.
A hailstorm on the west side of Joliet in the spring of 1970 gave Arnie's business an unexpected boost, George said. Most of the shops only wanted to use factory-mixed paint, so Arnie's competitors quickly ran out of paint.
"The shops said, 'How about that new guy on Hickory Street?'" George said. "And that got Arnie started in all the shops."
Bill said Arnie, who bought the store at 40, wanted to retire at 50 and worked out an 11-year buy-out agreement, Bill said. Arnie figured by the time he turned 65, his sons could support the business.
One skill that made Arnie a successful barber also made him a very successful auto parts store owner.
“He was a very outgoing person,” Bill said. “He was a likable man and knew how to talk to people.”
George, an introvert by nature, took improv classes and joined Toastmasters in order to develop those skills, he said.
(Customers and employees can be seen Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, at Arnie's Auto Body in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).
Arnie retired in 1979 as planned. On March 17, 1985, Arnie’s son bought the building. They’ve stayed competitive in a changing market, of which Bill cited several factors.
They don’t sell after-market parts. George has a chemistry degree “which is nice and handy to have,” Bill said. They attend seminars to keep informed on industry changes, trends and products.
Both Bill and George have served on boards of professional organizations, such as Will County Auto Rebuilders Association, which sponsors an annual car show, Bill said.
The shop has also hosted classes. It used to run an airbrushing class once a month and it still runs, as it has run for the last 13 years, a monthly class on pinstriping.
“We meet the third Wednesday from 6 to 9,” George said. Advertising is still mainly word of mouth, although the shop now has a Facebook page and a presence on Yelp, Bill said.
“I guess that’s the way to go nowadays,” Bill said.
(A pinstripe-cored Marlin can be seen bordered by artwork, paint, and auto memorabilia on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, at Arnie's Auto Body in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).
One customer drove up from Bloomington because Arnie's Auto Body Supply, Inc. "had a five-star rating on some media site," George said.
"So after his two-hour drive to get here, we spent whatever time he needed to set up a cabinet shop, how to build a spray booth, where to buy industrial spray guns, showed him the four different numbering systems for sandpaper," George said. "When he was leaving, he said now he knew how we earned the five-star rating."
The shop has built a solid reputation of quality products and staff knowledgeable on their use, Bill said. If customers have an issue with a product, staff can usually help them story it out, he added.
"Because of Chicago's graffiti law, we have customers drive an hour to buy our spray cans," George said. "We don't mix them ahead of time; it takes roughly five minutes to mix."
(A can of red paint sits on a counter Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, at Arnie's Auto Body in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).
Bill, 68, and George, 65, are now preparing to turn the business over to the next generation.
"We're relying on the twins, Nick and Katie – Bill's children – to keep this old store going," George said.
On Monday, read how business owners Arnie and Mary Munchalfen also built a family legacy.
(George Muchalfen mixes paint Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019, at Arnie's Auto Body in Joliet, Ill. The Joliet staple will celebrate its 50th anniversary in business this year).