Charles Repair celebrates 50 years of family owned business

For the last 18 years though, the second generation of Rudniskis have been running the business. Charles’ sons Karl and Peter took over when Charles retired after a stroke. While there are plenty of great memories from the family business over the years, things weren’t easy when Charles had to step away.

“We didn’t think he would last, you know months, let alone decades,” Karl remarked after his dad had his stroke. “The phone would ring and I’d go to answer the phone and he grabbed my hand off of the phone, he wanted to answer the phone. So, I think he felt that he was being pressured to be put out of the business, which was a really hard thing for me and him.”

Peter echoed the same sentiment. While Charles had prepared his boys – with Karl running things in the back shop, while Peter was typically up front handling the parts department. Still, when it came time for the boys to take over the business, Peter found out there was a lot more to running the shop than he initially expected.

“It was definitely a lot more that was put on us, but , we wanted to be able to look after the business without having dad worry about it. So it was a learning curve.”

As many mechanic shops do, Charles Repair often had a coffee room for people waiting on repairs. Delivery drivers could stop and warm up their lunches in the microwave, or members of the public with some time to kill would just stop by looking for a coffee and conversation.

Charles Repair and Service always had product in stock and like it was then, as it is now, ‘If they don’t have it, they can get it.’ (Submitted photo)

Having a place that was welcoming to people was special to Karl growing up, and important to keep going in the years to follow. He believes that small efforts like helping people make easy fixes over the phone are a big reason customers have continued to come back for generations.

“We’re very, very busy, but it’s sure nice to be able to, you know, ‘I phoned you and I was having problems with my tractor, and you told me to check this, this, and this, and sure enough, that’s what it was.’ That’s what it’s about. I’m not here to change your oil and put a spark plug in. I’m here if you’re having problems, that’s why we’re here.”

You can’t tell the story of Charles Repair without talking about his wife Adeline, who served as the head of the parts department for many, many years.

“She was the best parts person I ever knew. I’d come in and she’d be able to give me whatever part was needed, just to know where it was in the shop. So she was (and still is) amazing,” said Karl.

There are some unique challenges to running a family shop especially when keeping mechanics up to date on the constantly changing technology being introduced in automotive and agricultural equipment. Big name brands often have their own schools to train their mechanics on how to service their implements.

“When one guy goes to school, the next guy will go to a different school and each one shares with the other mechanics of what they’ve learned. That’s the beauty of the shop. It’s set up as a school, so I’ve got a mechanic who’s probably one of the best in Canada in the back shop for two cycle (engines), or anything for that matter, and he oversees that back shop and each guy has been here a few years less, and each of them gain knowledge from each other,” Karl explained.

The other challenge family shops can face is sourcing parts. Sometimes that meant sourcing things from factories in completely different countries.

With so many years in the business, Peter said that they have their lines of communication well established to help find some of the most niche parts as well. In fact, instead of struggling to source parts from other countries, Peter said people have come from other countries to get parts from them.

“We used to have a gentleman that used to come from France every spring and drop off a list of parts for his tractor and pick them up every fall because he was out here visiting and he couldn’t get the parts for them in France, so he knew he could come to us to get the parts and then he’d go back home with them.”

Charles Repair and Service sells new and used equipment for lawn, garden and forestry. (Submitted photo)

Unfortunately, there won’t be a third line of Rudniskis to take over the family business when Karl and Peter are ready to retire as their kids have gone into different careers. While he would have loved to hand the keys over to his kids someday, Peter is also happy to know that this business his family has built has been able to provide that opportunity to chase their dreams.

“All our kids have worked here at one point in time. The customers over the years is what made us grow, so without them, we wouldn’t have been anywhere.”

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com

by Nick Nielsen

Charles Repair celebrates 50 years of family owned business

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