194 - The Strategy in Succession: The Story of Oswald Service & Repair

194 - The Strategy in Succession: The Story of Oswald Service & Repair February 25, 2026 - 00:57:04 Show Summary: This episode shares how Oswald Service and Repair grew from a 1939 service station into a multi location shop in Idaho Falls. It breaks down the realities of family succession and the damage caused by unclear roles and rushed promotions. The conversation highlights why outside experience can strengthen a returning successor. It also explains how professionalism and stronger HR practices reshaped shop culture. The Oswald Way is presented as the values framework guiding hiring, discipline, and hard ethical decisions. The episode reinforces the need for coaching, clear timelines, and a focus on building long term business value.   Host(s): Michael Smith, Chief Strategy Officer at The Institute   Guest(s): Kevin & Renae Oswald, Owners, Oswald Service & Repair   Show Highlights: [00:01:48] – The business began in 1939 as a classic full service station. [00:03:10] – A hard truth: the shop could only support one family. [00:04:00] – Leaving the family business built skills and perspective. [00:06:10] – Early roles blended selling, wrenching, and managing daily work. [00:10:20] – A nursing career provided stability during ownership transition. [00:12:10] – Imposter syndrome hit when stepping into community leadership. [00:15:35] – Raising professionalism standards changed shop culture and HR. [00:23:40] – Family succession failed without structure, clarity, and mentoring. [00:34:05] – A clear exit timeline prevents resentment and legal conflict. [00:41:55] – The Oswald Way guides ethics, decisions, and team alignment.   In every business journey, there are defining moments or challenges that build resilience and milestones that fuel growth. We’d love to hear about yours! What lessons, breakthroughs, or pivotal experiences have shaped your path in the automotive industry? Share your story with us at [email protected], and you might be featured in an upcoming episode.   👉 Unlock the full experience - watch the full webinar on YouTube: https://youtu.be/LbptEoPXC44   Don’t miss exclusive insights, expert takeaways, and real talk you won’t hear anywhere else. Hit Subscribe, drop a comment, and share it with someone who needs to hear this!   Links & Resources:  Want to learn more? Click Here Want a complimentary business health report? Click Here See The Institute's events list: Click Here Want access to our online classes? Click Here ________________________________________ Episode Transcript Disclaimer This transcript was generated using artificial intelligence and may contain errors. If you notice any inaccuracies, please contact us at [email protected].   Episode Transcript:   Michael Smith: Hi everybody. Thank you for joining us today. It's good to have y'all on board. I'm Michael Smith, chief Strategy Officer here at the Institute. I also have the privilege of running what we call the Legacy Program, and I am pleased to introduce to you today two of my dear friends clients, but friends more than anything who are in the legacy program. And the topic today that we're gonna talk about is succession. Succession has many terms to it, which I'll describe in a minute. But I wanna welcome Kevin and Renee Oswald again. Two dear friends that I have the privilege of walking beside. Welcome and thank you both for agreeing to come and to share your story with us. It's a fabulous story. Kevin Oswald: You're welcome. Michael Smith: Lots of Kevin Oswald: it. Michael Smith: Yeah. It's good to see you both. Thank you. So yeah, we're gonna talk about succession today and we're gonna talk about family businesses and you know, in our industry there were a lot of family rollovers in the business. And I don't know, maybe in the last decade or two that's lightened up a little bit. I, you have a long, deep, rich history. As a company and as a family, and you are a succession story unfolding. And so we just thought it would be great to just sit and visit a little bit. I said to the Oswalds before we started a family succession can be tender in terms of some hot topics, and they're welcome to tell me. That's a good question. We're not answering it and we're all good with that too. So we'll just dig in and chat a little bit. Kevin, can you tell us a little bit, because I love the story of you in the industry. But give us the background. What, tell us about your family. How'd you get into it? When, where'd you come from? How, how did you become a part of this? Kevin Oswald: Absolutely. So my grandfather started this business in 1939. It was the quintessential old service station where they came out with the bow, tie, the hat, and the bell rang and you ran. And went out there. You pumped the gas, you checked the tires, you, you checked the oil, you washed the windshield. And that's the type of business that we had. In fact, that service station model served our family up through three generations after my grandfather retired. My. Father took over the business. My father was in the business with my grandfather for about five years. Took over the business from my grandfather. And I can remember working at the service station when I was in high school. Washing those windshields were kind of the way that I built my biceps. And you know, my father, if you left one bug on that windshield, he made you go back out and do it again. So, you know, the, the service in Oswald's service is something that was instilled in me at a young age. In 2004, I purchased the business from my father, but there's, there's kind of a backstory to that too. Just shortly after I graduated high school, me and my father were talking and he said, Kevin. This business will only support one family. If you wanna stay, that's fine. I can afford to pay you $8 an hour, but I would recommend you go to school and you do something else for a living. Kind of my father's nice way of saying I don't want you to be in this industry and get out. So I, I did go to school for a little while. I ended up going to work for 14 years at other independent shops, and at that point in time when my father was ready to talk, retire. I came back into the business, but God, what valuable lessons that I learned. You know, not staying in the mainstream and doing things my father's way, but able to get out and look at how other shops operate and you know what they do, and bring that knowledge back into the business was something that was just really invaluable to the business. Michael Smith: Did the three was the third generation business that you bought in the same building? That your grandpa's was in, or had you guys moved around a little bit. Same building even, right? Kevin Oswald: No, same exact building. Yep, same building. So it was long about, I believe 2000 I took over in 2004. 2011 is when I built the new shop and we moved from the service station just a block to the north to where our. Present shop in Idaho Falls sits. And so we got out of the service station model of it. We had some elderly people that especially some elderly ladies that came in and said, Kevin, I've never pumped my gas before and you guys are closing this service station. What do I do? And so they would come in every week to the shop. I would take them out, I would pump the gas for 'em. And of course I'd probably get a plate of cookies for the effort. And you know, it it, it, it was a good thing. It really was. So, and now we've got a son that is involved in the business. We've got a fourth generation going. I have two locations right now with a third one under construction. Michael Smith: Oh, beautiful, beautiful. That's a great story. And, and I, I am always intrigued by the story about your father saying, this can only support one family. And so with respect, it's my family. I'm gonna continue to feed and son, please go do something else. Right? And I, I love the integrity in that. I also love the. In some ways cutting you loose to the world, right? Just like you, I'm not gonna, you're not gonna be under my wing. We can't afford it, he thought, right? But also, you know, you gotta go out and make your own way, which is a beautiful catalyst to have to get up, get out, go try other things. So, Renee, I want to come to you in a second, but I want to finish an aspect of the story. Not so much where Kevin, but the independence that you worked in, you started as a technician. Right? Kevin Oswald: Yes. Michael Smith: And then were you selling at the other independents? Were you store manager somewhere along the way? How, what did you do? How far did you go before you jumped back in as the succeeding owner? For your dad's business. Okay. Kevin Oswald: So I first left and went to a a tire store and I kind of ran the alignment and brake shop at this tire store. And so, yeah, I was direct involvement with sales, with the public speaking with customers. And then once the sale was done, I'd, run over to the toolbox, put the car up in the air and take care of the work and get things taken care of. So that was about seven years at this tire shop. And, you know, the, the tire store this is where I was first introduced to a career path and I, I remember the owner of the tire shop saying, you know. If you do me a good job, I promise I will build you a store and you can manage it. So that was always the thought is I was going to climb up the ladder, I was gonna become a manager in this organization and manage a store. It came to the point where we started having kids and decided we don't wanna leave Idaho Falls. We love it here and the world is a cold, scary place, so we wanna stay here. And so I ended up leaving there and went to another independent alignment and brake shop in town and ended up managing that for seven years. Okay, so, and again, the person who owned this alignment shop also owned a body shop in town, and to this day it is still one of the premier body shops to take your vehicle to. I mean, just, attention to detail and everything that is done there. And you know, that's where I learned a lot of that from, you know, my first stop, I learned a lot about business. My second stop, I learned a lot about customer service and you know, how to take care of the customer and do things right. And then. I, you know, about a year before my father retired, I gave him a year's advance notice and said, I am taking the service station over from my dad. And the transition went well, but again, I mean, things that I learned on those two stops were just so invaluable and just gave me a leg up. Going back into the family business, Michael Smith: were you mentored? Carefully by the places that you went and learned or was this sort of deep water OJT in you go figure it out for yourself, or some combination of both. Kevin Oswald: You know, the first place? No we, we had regular training at the first place that they would bring me in and they would also send me to, so at the first place, no, at the second place it was, you know, here's my vision. This is the way that I want things done, and I've got a body shop to run, and we'll see you later. Michael Smith: Keep it going Kevin Oswald: money Michael Smith: and Kevin Oswald: I don't wanna Michael Smith: hear from Kevin Oswald: you. Yeah, exactly. And, you know, being able to have the autonomy to do that and, you know, and the trust he had in me was just, oh, just speaks volumes of the man. I just, Michael Smith: well, yeah, and, and you, from the standpoint, and I'm not blowing smoke at you from an esteem building standpoint, right? There's nothing like having to figure it out for yourself. And then when it's working, have them come and recognize that and then give you even more leeway. And I talk about confidence building, right? To get ready to do it on your own, to have that resource available. But to learn to stand without it is, yes, it's a key conversation about succession, especially family succession, like what you guys are working on. So fascinating. So I have more questions, but Renee, will you tell us a little bit. About your involvement in the family business, the Oswald family business. 'cause I know you spent great time in an other industry learning an awful lot, which you've brought back to the independent automotive service world. So tell us a little bit about yourself and you can start back in where you grew up or when you guys met, or first date or whatever, however far back you want to go. Renae Oswald: Well, what I'll, I'll just add to that is, you know, Kevin talks about being at the service station and. Cleaning the bugs off of the windshield? Well, it was on a well traveled road and so it was there were three boys, three Oswald boys that worked there and so many a time we teenage girls were driving by honking our horns and, you know, so. Yes, I remember those days fondly and you know, their boys, Kevin did have hair back in the day and Kevin Oswald: I sported a mullet. That was just, you did. Oh man. Renae Oswald: Yeah. Kevin Oswald: Yeah, it was great. Renae Oswald: So, yes, I mean that, the little service station has a big place in my heart. And I have been along for the ride. Kevin and I were high school sweethearts and so we married a couple years out of high school. I did pursue another career. I'm a registered nurse, so I really didn't have a lot to do with the business when we took it over. I think the benefit of me having my own career when Kevin purchased the business from his dad was, we were not completely dependent on that income like his parents had been. You know, it was, it was very much dad had to bring in the bacon or else they weren't going to eat, and so. I gave us a little bit of a landing pad for, for exploration with a new business and trying to figure out how to run a business and but I wasn't really truly too involved. I had my own leadership trajectory in healthcare and. Kevin and I would, you know, we would work a little bit on, on the service station or the, you know, repair business together, but mostly in a consultive way. Because I had my own thing going until it was very fortunate because in January of 2020 I left healthcare and, you know, what happened in 2020 with COVID. Yeah, it was timing. And I had, I had started a podcast of which there was one sponsor and it was Oswald Service and Repair. And so it, it was great. I had started getting more involved in the community and really starting to represent our business. So I think if you looked at my involvement in the business now. It doesn't make any sense, but I'm more the face of Oswald service because I am more present in the community. I am you know, IO oversee our marketing efforts and really anything that is an outward representation of Oswald service. So that's kinda where I got involved. I will say that it was an interesting transition for me because. WW we were running the business and doing the best we can and doing well. You know, we've, we've had a good business and definitely has done a different level of business than his father's business was for sure. But I walked into the to networking room with all sorts of business operators in eastern Idaho, and I felt like such a fraud because I had been in healthcare for, you know, decades and I did not really know what I was doing. And I kind of felt like we as business owners. Didn't really know what we were doing. We were just really fortunate that it had worked out well. Clearly we must have known something because it was working well, but we hadn't had that imposter syndrome heavy being in that room with influential individuals in our community. And so that was a, that was a good lesson for me in the fact that I had had all this confidence in the career that I was in and then making this switch. I felt, you know, like I was right back to having to prove myself and, and feel like I needed to be a member of, of that room. You know? Now I realize none of us know what we're doing. We're all just doing the best that we can. And it's a, it's a facade. If, if anybody watching this is like, oh, the Oswalds have it together, it is not true. Like we are just figuring it out as we go along and we have great advisors and individuals that we surround ourselves that have helped us to be successful. So that's what I see as my role. In our business. I am truly, Kevin and I have been on a journey trying to figure this out because it was so his thing, and then I come, you know, in and I'm like, Hey, I'm a part of this too. And for us to really figure out how to be partners has been a struggle for us. But we are like, I just feel so strongly right now that we are, you know, in sync, in step we're respecting each other's role. And each other's input in this business, and it has very much amplified what we've been able to do, especially over the last five to seven years. Michael Smith: Yeah. I am so impressed by how you two operate, not only together, but also the company that you run and the leadership position that you've established in the marketplace that you're in. Renee, I wanna build a little bit on your leadership in healthcare conversation. If, if we can when, when you came over. From healthcare and you looked at our industry, and you're not gonna hurt anybody's feelings if you give us a hard truth or two. What did you learn in healthcare that you looked at, you know, when you got into the family business and looked around, Hey, there's some things I can bring to the table right away that we need in our industry. What, what, what could you share with the folks that are listening to, to raise the bar a little bit on the way we might see some things that you got to see from outside. What did you, what did you see when you came back? Renae Oswald: Well, I did work for a big corporation and it was very professional and you know, I, I worked with a lot of very professional individuals and I, I tell you, I really had to. Adjust when I would come into the shop because we didn't always act very professional and it wasn't so much to our customers, but definitely in the back, you know, in the back shop. It, we took this business over, like Kevin said, in 2004. And I had seen the evolution through, you know, since we got married and, and y'all know it has changed, you know, things that were. The way that behaviors were in the, in the shop have definitely improved over the years, but I did come in with the perception a little bit. Like it felt very our shop and I was coming from a corporate world where I was like, these are, these just don't always align. And I kind of had to separate myself, well, this is the way man PA works and this is the way corporate works. And so it was a little bit of a difficult transition to say, no, we couldn't, we can, we can function this way. We don't have to be ong, let individuals behave in a way that is not reflective of professionalism. It's okay to raise that bar and, and, and project something that is really a more professional, more polished. Organization. So it, it was rough for me and probably as a woman too, because it's not necessarily an environment that is, you know, woman dom dominated. And you know, I came from nursing, which typically is, and so that was also an adjustment for me to I, I didn't feel like I fit in and, and I've, again, it's been a great marriage, not only just because we're married, but in being able to figure out that partnership and. And how I can have a voice. And Kevin's been really great about allowing me to do that. And, and we have definitely evolved in our behaviors all the way around the shop. Michael Smith: Yeah, no, and I, and I'm, I'm intrigued by your, you know, healing humans background to come to the healing cars world, right? Where the customer experience the bedside manner, right? The way we treat you treated patients in the healthcare business, and not necessarily by the healthcare systems, but by the patient care on the ground. Some, some of that translating to, into the on automotive service business about how we love our long-term value, LTV customers too, right? So many lessons. Renae Oswald: So many parallels too. Mm-hmm. I mean, when I think about Kevin, and I would say this all the time, he would be like, you're lucky because your patients can talk to you. And I'm like, yeah, it's true. I mean, the majority of my patients could tell me what was wrong with them or give me symptoms and all sorts of stuff. And you all are having to really, you know, work with something that maybe will give you a signal and then you have to, you know, really locate where that problem is. There's a lot of parallels and I think. He, there was a bit of an injustice in the fact that if a physician makes an a, a mistake, well, it's practicing medicine, but if a technician makes a mistake, you know you're crooks and you're all of these other things. So it is kind of, it was interesting to look at those parallels and how much they paralleled. Now, obviously human life. Has a lot of value. And I'm not trying to say that an sure, you know, engine is the exact same. But there were so many parallels in the fact that we are in a service industry. Our role is to serve our patients or our clients or our customers. And yeah, tons of parallels throughout that. Michael Smith: Yeah, and the parallel, and I love this 'cause I about every group I ever speak to, I will say to our industry, this is one of the most difficult small businesses that I've ever seen, and I will frequently reference healthcare as the other one. Right? Human physical systems, mental systems are complex. Lift the hood on a car. Nowadays, all the computers and the chips is as well. Very complicated businesses. And Renee, you made an interesting point. Physicians practicing that they're practicing medicine. We're not supposed to practice anything. We're supposed to get everything right a hundred percent of the time. Nothing ever fails when we're done. No parts break on the way out of the dr. I mean, it's just, it's a different perspective of the world. Physicians and nurses are respected professionally. Our industry tends to not be seen at the same level or in the same light. So fascinating. Kevin, what And, and again, we're gonna get to succession. But I love the sort of the interplay about how you run your business and what you see. Renee walked back in from healthcare. What did she bring as an insider that you saw, you know, your own version of it? What, what did she bring to Oswald that's now there that you guys didn't know you needed, but now it's here. Right? Tell, tell us a little bit from your angle. Kevin Oswald: Oh, professionalism. The, the human resource aspect of it. You know back in the day I was practicing cowboy justice. You know I, I remember a technician that upset me and I told him to get the blank outta my shop, and I pushed his. Toolbox out into the parking lot. And, you know, those are the kind of things that Renee brought in and he, she was just like, you know, cowboy, you can't do that. You, you've gotta rein it in a little bit. There's certain things that we need to do. You know, our program that we go through you know, Idaho is an at will state. We can. Fire for any cause or just cause I should say. And she brought in a progressive discipline within our organization where, hey, you know, you made this mistake. How can we help you? And being able to use that progressive discipline to help our employees improve. And at the end of the day, if they're not going to improve you know. I'm sorry, we tried, but this just isn't working out. And I, I don't push their toolboxes outside anymore, but offer to help them move their toolbox or whatever we need to do and go from there. But yeah, you know, it was just shenanigans in the shop, you know, the, the eighties and yeah. And I, I'm gonna author a book someday and it's gonna be entitled, A Thousand Things You Can Do With Break Clean, you know, just, you know, things that you used to do back in the shop and she's a hundred percent right. You know, it would never fly where she's at. And so, you know, it, it, it, it's fun being able to take the aspect of professionalism and bring into the shop, but. It's also fun to be able to still have that light spirit in the shop, excuse me. And you know, and be able to come to a place where it is fun to work and come to a place where you feel valued. And that that's everything that she brought right there. Michael Smith: That's beautiful. Beautiful. And thank you Renee for bringing it to our industry too. Right? There are a lot of good, wonderful players out there, and there's an awful lot of room for us to continue to, to grow and to bring that value back to, to the communities that we, that we all love and serve as best. We know how. It's great. You mentioned the fourth generation. Can you tell us within the parameters of your comfort zone, tell us about those two boys and what have you told them about the business and how did they both get a little bit into it and how did they look at it and where are they now? And I, fascinating story again to your family privacy comfort level. What might you share with us? You have a wonderful story. Kevin Oswald: You know, I think this is something that both Renee and I are gonna talk back and forth about, but you know, the boys were in the business and you know, it was always the dream that they would take the business over and I would retire and we would hold hands and sing kumbaya and head off into the sunset. And that didn't happen. There were some things, especially with my eldest son that we did not anticipate, we were not prepared for. And you know, I, I take accountability and responsibility for what happened there with him. And I mean, if you wanna expound on that a little bit, Renee. Renae Oswald: Yeah. I mean, so I guess what I will say is, I'll back up. We never really. Expected either of our boys to be in the business. We were very clear with them as they were growing up. Like, you do not have to do this. This is not what we expect for you to do. We don't, you know, if you walk away from this, that's absolutely fine. Michael Smith: So not to interrupt you, but just to add to this, like you said to them, we take the weight of the fourth generation off your shoulders. There's no family guilt. There's no family pressure. We're saying to you straight up, if you wanna do something else, you can. If you want to be in you. Absolutely. I love that. That's such a. Wonderful gift to give to them that you did right to take, to make it an optional choice, not a forced one of, even a subtly forced one. Renae Oswald: It was a good gift. Although I feel like we took it back later, but Michael Smith: the story continues, Renae Oswald: right? Yeah. I mean, so our, both of our boys knew, you know, like that's fine that this doesn't have to be our role. So our oldest son, actually, he did go to college and he was in his second semester, I think that he was finishing that up. He went on, you know, to like a summer job and it didn't, it was not his fit. So he called us and he said, Hey, can I come? And we, they had worked in the shop during their high school years, so they'd had some, you know, he'd had some exposure to this. And he is like, this isn't gonna fit for me. Can I come? I wanna come home and I wanna work for you guys. And we were like. Yeah, this is a good business. This is gonna be great. You don't necessarily need college. We can teach you the things that you need to learn here. We're happy to bring you in. And that's where it kind of started. So it was at that point where we were like, oh, well this really could be fourth generation. And, and then we got kind of sucked into the romantic idea about that. Right? Because here's another fun thing about our story. We have Kevin's grandfather and grandmother mechanic, married to a nurse. We have Kevin's mother and father, mechanic, married to a nurse. We have, he and I mechanic, married to a nurse and our son. Guess what his. Fiance was studying nursing, right? She was gonna become, she's gonna be a nurse. So we got really sucked into this romantic idea that we had this fourth generation of technician and nurse, and it was all of this. And I think that that also puts some pressure on him. He, he was fine in the business and, and he was successful in the business. He actually worked more as a service advisor for us. And then we had a transition with our, one of our locations, and we needed a manager tomorrow. And we were like, well, of course that's gonna be our son, because he's the natural heir of all of this. And so we just, we didn't really ask him. We said, Hey, kid, you are now expected to go run this because it's the natural progression of your trajectory. And so here you are, you've just been deemed a manager. Did we mentor him into that role? No. Did we have a lot of structure for him to be able to step into that role? No. Were we there holding his hand and really helping him figure out how to do this? Well? No, and he did the very best that he could, but honestly, Michael, I think we fried him. I think that because of our structure, lack of structure, lack of clarity, this kid is. Well, the one that would line up his toys in a row, he needed structure and he needed clarity and we did not provide that for him. Well, and he was so kind to us, and he stayed around for longer than he should have until it was absolutely detrimental to his mental health, his physical, you know, just everything. He's like, I just don't wanna do this anymore. And you know, I, I do give Kevin and I a lot of kudos 'cause even, you know, at that time we were like. We could tell it was obvious. We were having performance issues and there were things and we were like, you know what? You're right. And we wanna support you in whatever that next step is. And so he's been able to go and, you know, do something which we just see him blossoming every day 'cause he is so excited about. So it's fun to be able to see that. And the other bonus to that was when the older brother got out of the way. We've really been able to see the younger son who, who, who, who decided to do this straight out of, you know he, he, out of high school, he was, he was like, yeah, I wanna be in this business. We've seen him blossom into something that, I mean, we have no worries that this business is gonna be in great hands because he's Michael Smith: repressive young man. Renae Oswald: Yeah, he's gonna do a great job, but only until his brother, you know, it had to be that he kind of stepped out of the way. Before the sun really blossomed. Michael Smith: Well, you, you guys did what almost everybody does. You get ready to promote somebody who is you. You want them in the new role and we tend to move people into the role and help. They'll figure it out as they go and some of the stuff that we talk about all the time in the legacy program, but also. Us is to make sure that we can think about these career paths and figure out what's next for each individual and try to pre-prepare them, right? Get them ready before we promote them from being a master of their current position to being an apprentice of the next one. And in the apprenticeship, some people struggle, right? Some people, like you said, need a lot of guidance. Some people love the freedom to do that, but everybody's different in that way. And so we always tend to do that. And having this. Progression is a possibility in front of people. Gives them something to aim at. It also gives them a chance to feel comfortable that they, you know, you're knocking imposter syndrome components off of them with everything you teach them before they need it. Then when they step into it, being right next to them and saying, okay, you're on your own but you're not. Right. Each of us has an arm up in battle, if you will. So go do your thing, but you're never gonna be alone right here. These are all ways we can make this easier, but then we only. Do that. If we have time to stop and think about it. And I love the way you said it. It was like, we needed it. We needed it. Now he's the obvious era apparent. Congratulations, you're promoted now. Go make it work. And then you guys went off and worked on the business and it's like, like somehow genetically he's supposed to know what you all have learned over the course of your lives. Right? So, and we do this all the time. Everybody does this all the time. And, and even non-family businesses do this all the time. So I, this is a story well, well worn. It's been told a lot. So, but not to go too deep. He's happy now in his next iteration of a, of a, of a, of a, A pathway. Right. So that makes Thanksgivings easier when you all get together, when there's all that business pressures not in the middle of it. Right. So, Renae Oswald: well, you know, that's been the good thing I will say about our family is that we have been very open and transparent, you know, through all of this and try to be very honest about, yeah, we realize we own, you know, we kind of set you up to fail and. We own that. And so it really has been able to maintain relationships. And I am super grateful for that with our boys. It, it did strain their relationship, you know, and working together. And I think that there's some healing left to do there, but for the most part, nobody's os you know, nobody's not talking to each other. And you're right, Thanksgiving is fine and it's. And it's a good, it's good, but it, I do, I would caution anybody who's listening and contemplating this in their life, and especially if they are that kid that's in their family business, that's like, I don't know if I really wanna be here. Don't, don't wait to have those conversations because I know it's hard. It's so scary. You don't wanna go to your parents or whoever it is and say, I'm not sure that this is for me. But it has been, like I said, it started taking a toll on his mental health because he was trying to keep it all together when he didn't need to. You know, it, the honesty and just being transparent, the sooner the better, so that either you can, you know, rectify the situation you're in or change. And again, terrifying 'cause of the unknown, but honestly, watching him now and see how happy he is in what he's doing, I wish that we could have given this to him five years ago. Michael Smith: Mm-hmm. Well, and that, and you, you, if it happened now, you would. You had to go through this to figure it out. Right? Which is a beautiful thing of you sharing with other people to think about as well. So tell us about your second son. He stepped up out of the shadows and into the light with his older brother Stepping aside I'm assuming you didn't trust him into general manager role overnight and, and leave him on the flagpole in the wind. Right. That he's taken a different path. So, and again, this is part of. What we're sharing here is what's different about your second son who, who I think the world of both of them, right? They're both wonderfully young men. And, but tell us about the second one and what you're doing differently given what you've learned. Right. What's the, what's your pathway of support for his succession interest at this point? Kevin Oswald: Collaboration. That is the biggest thing right there. What I take from Nick is we just assumed. We never asked him what he wanted to do. We just said, here you be the manager of our Rexburg location. See you. Bye. Had we sat down and assessed his hopes and his dreams, figured out what he wanted to do and worked collaboratively, lead with him and get his buy-in on what was going on, I, I think we would've had a different outcome there. And that's just a mistake we're not going to do with Jacob. You know, we want to be able to have a, a clear. Career path with him. Let him know of my intentions as far as an exit strategy goes. Put a timeline on that so he has something to look forward to. Renee and I have a relative that took over their family business and for years and years. Dad, when are you gonna sell it, dad? When are you gonna sell it? Well, we'll get around to it. Well, maybe in a couple of years. Well, we'll have to sit down someday and talk about that. And it got to the point where, I mean, things went. To court to try and accelerate this process. And now, you know, it's to the point where the father and the son, they don't even have a relationship anymore. Yes. I'm so sorry. And, you know, had the father in that instance, been able to give some clarity to the son and get their buy-in on what was going on and together create a plan for succession. I mean, things would've looked much different. Now, I understand as an owner, that's a really hard thing to do because you know, you're talking to a person and me. Who's not really goal oriented, it's just fly by the seat of your pants and I'll get it done when I get it done. But to be able to have something out there that is in writing that says, okay, in 10 years from now, I plan on taking a step back. Seven years from now, I am going to promote you to you know. An area manager or something like that, and, and give them a career path, something to look forward to. And then they know when the heck you're gonna get out of the way. And they're, I'm, you know, I, I liken my son to a hunting dog. I mean, he's just sitting there. Buy you wagging his tail and he's looking up at you like, I'm ready to go get that duck. I'm ready to retrieve this, and I'm just waiting for you to release me so I can go do my job. And, you know, that's, that's what I see with my son and I see myself just being able to say, go and, and just release him and be able to let him run after that duck and retrieve it. Michael Smith: What a wonderful potential energy. Device sitting next to you in your son, he is cocked up and ready to go. And what he needs from you is a plan and guidance and patience and mentoring. And also the command. Once in a while, it's like, okay, go get this one. Go get that one, and there's another new experience to be had. It really leans back into a mentoring model, a long-term career development model. Right, which I know I'm gonna ask you a little bit more about what you're doing organization wide, but this does open that door to the concept that people who work with you are thinking about their lives beyond tomorrow. Right? A lot of 'em show up to do their job today, but it's like, well, what's this gonna turn into a year from now, five from now, 10 from now? You guys built this beautiful you've expanded, right? You didn't start the business. You took something much smaller than it was. A generation ago and have turned it into something much bigger, much more successful. And you're in growth mode, right? I mean, you're, you're, the systems you're putting in are allowing you to punch the accelerator and make this thing a true legacy company. Generational wealth building machine, which of course is of interest to the family members that might step in behind you, but there's a lot of learning to do. Not just you guys, also of, of course, but, but the, the generation behind you and not just pushing 'em out there at the end and saying, okay, it's a decade out. We're done. Good luck with this and wipe your hands to it, getting 'em ready, you know, knocking that imposter syndrome off one bite at a time. So, Renee, I know you grew up in healthcare. There was more of this there. But would you speak not so much from the healthcare perspective, but what, what you see you're bringing into Oswald? Along these lines, what are you guys building that is gonna make this different for your son and for the, maybe the generation that follows this one too, right? And your family. Renae Oswald: Yeah. Thanks for that question, Michael. Because I was just thinking as you guys were talking, I, it sounds real easy to, I mean, when we just say it, we'll have a plan and present the plan and, you know, follow this and have some clarity. But one of the pitfalls that we fell into and, and unfortunately what our first son was a collateral damage kind of was, is that we didn't have our own clarity at all. We didn't know, I mean, we were just following the model that we were kind of shown, you know, like build it and then the, the kid will buy it. Michael Smith: Yep. Renae Oswald: And you know, we'll step away and we'll be, landlords, and that may absolutely be what we end up doing. I'm not really, you know, I mean, but we didn't really see. Our vision as being the legacy. Just like you talked about, we did not see that vision we needed to have. It happened to be you in our lives, you know, to help get, help us paint that picture a little clearer. We were just hitting a brush stroke here and there. And so we had to go back and really understand that for ourselves because there's no way you can teach that or mentor somebody else into that role when you don't have it clear yourself. Absolutely. Michael Smith: Right. Renae Oswald: That was probably some of the best work that I think that we've done over the last few years and and where we're going because we have really been able to. Identify our vision, mission, values, and we have shaped absolutely everything af after what we call the Oswald Way. And it's the list of 10 values that we live by, you know, that includes our mission and vision and who we are and what we're doing, and. I'm telling you, we get off track and when we have to come back, we pull that out and we're like, wait a minute. We know what the answer is here. It's the Oswald way. Well, we didn't have that. We didn't have that to be able to present to our son five years ago or whatever to be able to say, this is where we're going. Is this the, is this where you wanna be? Is this the path that you wanna go down? So I really feel like we are much more structured in clarity. And clarity is kindness. If anybody follows Brene Brown, you know, we hear that a lot, but I believe it to my core that clarity is kindness. And sometimes we aren't willing to say the hard things because we think we're protecting people and we're actually causing more harm. We don't have to do it in a cruel way, but truly being clear is kind. And I see that more and more with our operation. That we still get sucked into some of the ways that we've done stuff. It's easy to do. But we can, we can see that you know, that that guiding principle that's leading us and we can pull ourselves back to that. And so I think going forward, that is what's making the difference for us is. That we have something that we're working towards. And you know, Kevin talks about not being goal oriented and he really undersells, you know, himself. Maybe he doesn't have a list of 10 things that he's like, yeah, I'm gonna reach these goals. But he's always been very driven in making sure that his, he didn't wanna fail on the third generation. Right. We didn't want the third generation to be the Oh. You're the statistic where you close the business and you know, we haven't, we have, you know, quadrupled, I would imagine. I think you know what dad was ever able to do and so where it might not be real clearly written, he definitely is a very driven individual and the Oswald Way has really helped give us that guiding principle to continue that trajectory in a way that is very values based. Michael Smith: Right, so I love that. Renee, Kevin, when you guys have internal conversations with the team, the Oswald Way, how do you use the Oswald Way on a sort of a. Momentary basis, right? It comes up all the time. You go back to the Oswald way a lot. So like when does it come up? How do you use it, the clarity that you have? Give us an example or two if you wouldn't mind. Kevin Oswald: Oh, absolutely. It's all the time. You know, you buy a part from the parts house, you put the part on the vehicle, oh, crud that didn't fix it. Do I put the part back in the box and return it as defective or. Is it it? It is what it is. You know we made a mistake and we need to eat this part. Well, Oswald service you know, we need to eat this part. We had a situation where vehicle came in a long time. And he said that there's a horrible noise coming from the engine and it's not running well. We bring it in and find out it has eight quarts of oil in it and the capacity is four. And of course, it cavitated and air into the system and it ruined the engine. Well, guess who did the oil change a month and a half before. It was us, but this particular vehicle was still under factory warranty. With Honda, we could have easily said, Hey, let's just drain four quarts out of this thing and tell 'em to take it to Honda, that you know, the engine's bad and it should be under warranty. And that discussion did come up. But as me and my manager looked at each other in the eye, we just both shook our head and said, we can't do that. I mean, that was an expensive thing that we had to do. But I mean, those are our guiding principles. I mean, if you're gonna talk it, you have to walk it and you have to show people that that's the way that we do business. And by people I mean your employees. Yep. Michael Smith: I love that, Kevin. Thank you, Renee. This, this nobility I like to. Use the word in this kind of a scenario as a platform for the Oswald Way, how does that resonate with your community leadership work? You're sitting in community groups with the business leaders of your region, getting to know them. You operate this way. You have to have their respect. How does, how does this help you guys to, to build local presence and reputation and brand strength? Brand value? Tell us a little bit about that. Because I know coming from the outside, this is very clear for you. Right. And how this works so Renae Oswald: well. It's actually really fun, Michael, because it's, it's a surprise for people when I start talking to them about this and they're like, you're an automotive repair shop. I mean, yeah, we are, and we've got our crap together. Excuse my language. But, you know this is the way that we wanna function. And, you know, I mean. When you sit in business meetings, you sit with other business leaders, you hear them talk about mission, vision, values and all of that kinda stuff. But how many of us, and I will say this, coming from the corporation that I was at before, we had beautiful mission, vision values, and we never looked at 'em. I don't believe that they live by them. And so it's, it's a, it's really, it's a real test for us. And it's a good test for me because I love for somebody to say, well, you're an automotive repair. Why do you have this? And I, you know, you guys are crooks. I can't believe that you would even claim to have this kind of stuff. I love that kind of challenge because I can say, yeah, we have a responsibility to live up to what we're saying that we're doing, and I want you to test us. And the minute that we're not living up to the Oswald way on our website, we actually, and we actually promote this. Like we publish it and we say, if you ever see us not behave this way, I need you to call us out on this. I want you to be, you have permission to hold us accountable. If you ever see me functioning this contrary to this in our business, in the community, however we're doing it, I expect you to call me out on it. And so it's been really fun to be able to represent the Oswald Way and to have. I mean, there's probably a point, 1% chance where I'm a little bit worried like, oh gosh, are we really doing this? But for the most part, we are. And to be able to say, you know, test us. I, and, and I want them to show us if we're not living that way, so that we can improve. And that is what we use it for as our clearing call and our you know, this is now, if we're not living to this. This is how we can improve. So it's fun to use in the community. It's fun to be a little bit different in the industry. I love it. Michael Smith: Absolutely, and, and you know, it, it's statistically absolutely true that the masters of every industry are ma more mature, not just age, but experienced people who have higher level social thinking. Than people who are young, immature, and just getting into a job. And so the more you, we've talked about this a lot internally in the groups that we're in and someti in our time together. The more you walk this out internally and externally, the more you become a beacon in the industry. But that serves you from the standpoint that the very best team members, the greatest leaders, the people who are the masters, who are they? Some of 'em gave up long ago hoping they would ever find a shop that walks the way you guys walk. And all of a sudden they bump into you and they go, oh, this is weird. Could it be true? I didn't think this industry had a lot of folks that thought that. That way when they find you, you are the great. Treasure box. They want to take their gem that they are and jump in and be part of it, and it changes everything because when they show up every day and they live it and walk it and breathe it because it's theirs as well, then the customers feel it. And when the customers feel it, the community feels it, and literally it becomes real. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy when the belief structure becomes real and it's, and you've got it. The Oswald way is the, the flywheel, if you will. You just keep spinning it faster and faster and it has a big, makes a bigger and bigger tornado, a bigger, bigger impact. And you guys are, be doing this beautifully and your son get to the opportunity to walk in and join you. Nick, on his own path, Jake possibly. Coming alongside, right? To see what, what his his part of this would be and the attunement that you have to him and to his future and his career is absolutely precious. Would any comments on that then? I want to take it one step further and a little bit of time that we have left. Any thoughts about this with you all? How does that resonate with you? That's your hearts, right? Renae Oswald: Kev Kevin Oswald: you know, it's just really kind of romantic to me just to think about having my son in the business, having this fourth generation. And for the longest time when Nick decided to leave the business you know, it. It really kind of hurt because again, as I said earlier, I just thought it was gonna be the three of us going off into the sunset and having to shift. And you know, it changed my mindset and go, okay, you know, we need to concentrate on Jake. We need to concentrate on his success. We need to make sure that you know, the mistakes that we made with his eldest brother. We try to write that with him, and I, I, I think it's wonderful. Michael Smith: Mm-hmm. That's beautiful. Renee, your, your thoughts at this point to share? Renae Oswald: I think just based off of something that you said about how people in the industry can see it. I, I'm telling you, the team that we have right now is beyond what we ever thought we could have. And we just had an individual that left our organization. We hired him, you know, it was one of those like, oh, he is gonna produce, he's just this little, you know, and he was a machine. He could absolutely do work and do it fantastically, but, and Kevin can speak to this, he knew he wasn't the right fit, but we thought we can make it work. I don't know why we continue to keep trying to convince ourselves that we can do this. Right. And of course, he ended up being miserable in our organization. It was not the culture that he wanted. He wanted to be a burner producer. Scorch the earth. I don't care who I, you know, take down in the, in the process. And man, he is an amazing tech for whoever he's working for now. I mean, they're, they're going to get some great work outta him, but what we saw was it was not the right fit. He, he didn't fit in our culture because of how we behave. And that's okay. That's absolutely okay. But the team that we have now are exactly like you just talked about. We, where have these gems come from? Like we are just so fortunate to be able to have individuals who are not only technically competent and so good at their work, but they are. Aligned with the Oswald Way and they appreciate what we're trying to build. And we have one individual, bless his heart, who had said yes to a different shop and I'm so sorry to one of our competitors, but then took that back because. They were like, we see where you're going. We wanna be with you. And so we're, we're coming on your training. And, you know, we didn't offer him anything really different than the other shop did. It's just the vision and the way that we have it organized was what he, that's something he wanted to be a part of. So that's, that's such a compliment. Michael Smith: Mm-hmm. That's brilliant. And, and I will just say this, to add to what you're saying, it isn't just to leaders in your business, this trickles down from a career development standpoint. It trickles down in your conversations about performance and about, you know, pay. Everything you guys do is aligned with the Oswald Way, and when you walk it as consistently as you do. And you're giving your, your team something to believe in, right? And what it ends up doing is drawing people who believe in the same thing to join you in what you believe in, and then collectively you're making the difference that you wanna make in the world that you live in, and that that rubs off. The customers feel it and perspective, new team members feel it, and, and in a odd kind of a way, which works out best in the end. Even people who might be there that don't feel it. Feel it because then they feel maybe this isn't the best place for me. And it gives them clarity about where to go and find their future joy as well. This is you know, I, it, it plays out very similar to what you're doing every single time and it's, it's an iterative. Process that takes time to get its momentum up. But once it does, it takes on a life of its own. And you guys are building something very noble, something very powerful. And the beauty of having your family walk in behind you is just, I mean, that's just, that's got to be icing on the cake of all of this, which I, I know how you both feel, right? It's, it's it's almost tear making, right? It's so deep and, and, and beautiful. So listen, thank you both. So much. Anything else you wanna share with our folks before we peel out either of you? Any wishes or anything for them? Any recommendations before we go? Renae Oswald: I, I would just say we can't thank you enough, Michael, for being our Sherpa through all of this because, you know, we've, we've been with, we've been with coaches for much of our business ownership and they have taken us, every one of them have been so valuable in our lives. Have taken us different places in different steps in this organization, in, in our organization. And we are, we're with the right individuals now that are taking us to that next step. And so I just highly recommend coaching and mentoring in whatever form you can get that as business owners, it's worth absolutely every penny of your investment. Michael Smith: Yeah, we couldn't agree more. Thank you, Renee. Thank you for that. Your kind words too. Yes. Kevin, final thoughts for our folks that have joined us? Kevin Oswald: Yeah, absolutely. I just wanna reiterate what Renee was talking about again, and Michael. Thank you. You know, we always say that we need to work on the business instead of in the business. Now I'm working on the business and I feel like I am. Now transitioning from working on the business to a new level of working on the value of my business. And so you know, I'm transitioning from the day to day to building value in my business. You know, doing that for, you know, expansion, acquisition working on our culture, working on our pro our processes. And you know, this is a mindset that I didn't have two years ago. And, thank you, Michael, for you're welcome. Opening my eyes to something else that was out there. And yeah we're going full guns. So Michael Smith: my privilege to walk beside you. I'm deeply proud of you two, and I love what you're building, so just don't stop, just keep going. We're watching you, the whole market's watching you. Thank you. And thanks to everybody who came to join us today. We hope there's lots of nuggets here for you. And if you want any more information, we are here. We'd love to chat with you. So Oswald, again, thank you. More power to you. Keep going. Can't wait to see you in the headline. Love you guys. Bye. Thank you.