When Mike Jennings purchased a long-time rental store three years ago, he put together a new business plan. The owner of D.I.Y. Equipment Rental and Storage in Marshall, MI looked at ways to improve his equipment lineup and store, advertise, reduce costs, and, of course, increase profits. Three of the plan’s four elements - improvements, costs, and profits - had a common theme, to focus on equipment reliability.
It was a natural fit for Jennings who had worked 15 years as a maintenance technician and later oversaw a large maintenance operation.
“When asked about surviving in the rental business, there are so many areas that can make a difference, but from my perspective, having reliable equipment is second to none,” said Jennings. “One of the first things I implemented was to clean equipment every time it was returned. When you clean equipment you can find something that needs to be fixed immediately or spot a potential issue like a worn belt or loose bolt.
“I know some rental stores require customers to clean equipment before returning it. We don’t. Even if a customer cleans off the dirt and grime before bringing it back, we give it another cleaning," he explained.
Jennings noted he also developed a preventive maintenance plan for his computer, one that follows OEM recommendations. “The last thing you or more importantly, your customers, want is to get equipment home or in the field and have it quit after 20 minutes of operation.”
As he put it, having reliable equipment is a key component to providing excellent customer service, one that also includes being friendly to customers and educating them on equipment operation.
D.I.Y. Equipment Rental and Storage has a customer mix of 65 percent homeowners and 35 percent smaller contractors. One of Jennings' goal is to modify his business plan to bring in more contractors. Currently, he noted his store is very busy on weekends with DIYers, but more unpredictable during the week. Bringing in a few more contractors would help grow the business while evening out the work week.
