Imagine how you would react if your company handed you a stack of 100 $1 bills.
For many, that probably sounds like a dream, but it’s exactly what happened to every employee of Classic Collision – a collision repair company – nationwide on August 19 and 20. The surprise gift was the company’s way of celebrating the purchase of its 100th location, which is in Oregon, according to Tracy Bryant, regional director. “It would’ve been easy to hand everyone a gift card or a $100 bill, but our CEO (Toan Nguyen) wanted to show the significance of what 100 locations really mean,” says Bryant, who has been with the company since 2017 and oversees seven locations in Georgia and South Carolina: Augusta; Grovetown; Aiken; Greenwood; Sumter; Orangeburg; and Myrtle Beach.
While he travels to each location, he primarily works at the 70,000-square-foot Augusta shop located at 3069 Washington Road. He states the company has 82 employees in the CSRA alone. A company executive traveled to each location to help distribute the money. “I was shocked they were giving it to every single employee,” including those at the corporate level, Bryant states. “We’re still celebrating.” Employees also received lunch and T-shirts from the company. For Eva Cotto, who has worked as a receptionist at the Augusta Classic Collision location for almost two years, the gift was a pleasant surprise. “That was an amazing type of experience,” says Cotto. “It was an amazing thing for the company to do for us.” She explains the company takes care of its employees, and no employees lost their jobs during the pandemic.
Like Cotto, Brandie Reville, a customer service representative who has worked for the company for about three years, was shocked when she received the gift. “I thought it was a pretty nice gesture,” Reville states. “It says a lot about a company when they do that for their employees.” Bryant says the company offers its employees much more than a paycheck. “We have a family atmosphere, and they get great benefits,” he explains.
Founded in Atlanta in 1983, the company has locations in eight states, including Alabama, Alaska, California, and Washington. Two years ago, the company had only 24 stores in Georgia and Alabama. The company provides a variety of services, such as vehicle glass replacement, wheel repair, alignment, and painting. Classic Collision also has certifications from Tesla and Mercedes.
