Build it Like You’re Gonna Sell It: Four Shop Owners Share Hard Lessons

The Diesel Connect Shop Owner Roundtable is always an event. As the third day of the conference draws to a close, everyone crowds back into the main ballroom to hear directly from the people running heavy-duty repair shops.

(Want to know more about Diesel Connect? Behold, the 2026 schedule and some photos from past conferences!)

2026 was no exception. Fullbay Chief Customer Officer John Whittet joined Peter Cooper of Ascend Consulting to moderate a discussion with four particularly memorable shop owners:

• Ashley Sowell of Integrity Fleet Services in Texas.
• James Martin of Diamond Fleet in Pennsylvania.
• Jim Bartlebaugh of JB Trailer Service in California, whom we’ll call “Jim B.”
• Jim Fowler of Michigan MD Alignment in Michigan, whom we’ll call “Jim F.” 

To recap everything that was said and shared in this particular SORT would turn this into an insanely long article, so we will, as usual, point you toward the actual video that you can watch at your leisure. In the meantime, we’ve pulled out some of the most interesting takeaways.

Can You Pull A Disappearing Act? 

Many shop owners are deeply entwined in the workings of their shop. And by “deeply entwined,” we mean they only leave the shop for two hours a day (if at all), days off are a distant memory, and sleep…well, sleep is for people who don’t own shops. 

But a healthy business shouldn’t depend on one person being present for every decision, question, and minor emergency. That’s why Peter (and Fullbay) has always encouraged shop owners to delegate — because successful delegation means you can actually leave the shop without it burning down. 

So, how did the quartet on stage fare?

“As far as I know, everything’s running all right,” said Jim B., sharing that his service manager had texted him with a question for the first time all week just that morning (Thursday). “I’ll find out tomorrow when I get back.”

“What do you attribute that to?” John asked.

“Delegating. You gotta start delegating some of your jobs,” Jim B. said. “As a business owner, you wear lots of hats … you gotta learn to take some of those hats off and hand them to other people.” 

Delegation, by the way, is not just about giving an owner the freedom to sneak away for a few hours. It also gives employees room to develop judgment and confidence. You want your people to be able to think on their own and function without you; if they can’t, then yeah, you will be chained to the shop. Forever.  

Profitable On Paper Could Mean Broke At The Bank 

Raise your hand (er, virtually) if this sounds familiar: your shop is hella busy. Trucks are rolling in and out. Money is indeed flowing, but it doesn’t exactly seem to be hitting the bank account. So like…where does it go?

Lots of places.

Cash gets trapped in accounts receivable. It ends up tied up in parts sitting on inventory shelves.

“For us, it usually came down to two things,” said James. “Either the AR, or inventory, or both, got away from us.” It taught him, he said, “to manage the AR, to not be afraid to call in 35, 40 days when it’s just five days overdue and ask for the money.”

“I remember that kind of call,” John mused. “Do you remember the first phone call you had to ask that question?”

“Yeah,” James replied. “I tend to be an introvert, so I’d rather send an email.”

(Same, James. Same.) 

“But it usually works better to get on the phone when they hear the owner/founder, and maybe you share what the challenges are. Maybe you just ask them, ‘Hey, are you satisfied with the work we did? Is there anything holding you back?’” 

Usually, he said, the money would come after that, unless there was a serious problem.

Ashley had some additional advice for the shop owner looking to grow: check your ego. Sometimes an opportunity looks exciting, but a shop owner gets swept up in the potential of it, not realizing that a big chance is gonna require upfront investment. “Never let your ego or pride get in front of you to where your cash is going with it,” she advised.

Build It Like You’re Gonna Sell It 

Peter posed an interesting question for the panelists: Are you building something that’ll run forever, or do you eventually want to sell it?

He — and we — encourage shop owners to think about succession even if they have no intention of selling their operation. Because it’s not just about selling (nor is it about hiring Brian Cox to show up and give your employees/offspring a pep talk…although if you manage to pull this off, please let us know). 

It’s about protecting your family and the people that work for you.

What happens if you have no succession plan and you are, in Peter’s words, hit by a bus?

Well, chaos, probably. 

Your shop may end up in the hands of your family, if you have any, and they may have no idea how to run it or what to do with it. Bills, payroll, customer commitments, and other things that depend on knowledge only the owner possesses may fall to the side. Key employees and customers may leave because no one knows what’s going on. Logan Roy types might swoop in and cannibalize it for parts. And so on and so forth. 

So you should have some kind of plan, if only to protect the people — family and employees — you’ll leave behind. 

“I make my owners that I work with … build a ‘If I Get Hit by a Bus’ book,” Peter said. “If you’re the only one in your business that can do this … what are you leaving for someone else to deal with?”

On Being Everyone’s Everything 

Later in the conversation, the panelists were asked what surprised them most about becoming shop owners. The answers were less about trucks, payroll, or business strategy, and more about the number of unofficial jobs that came with the title.

“[The most surprising thing for me was] going from owner to therapist to technician to life advisor to accountant…all within five minutes of a conversation,” Ashley said.

Jim B. agreed with that sentiment. “Sometimes it’s like, man, I’m not your therapist,” he said. He wants them to succeed outside the shop, too, and he’s willing to help — but he acknowledged that employees sometimes bring him some unusual situations. 

“Which should also make you feel proud,” Ashley added “because it means they trust enough in you to ask you and talk to you about things. … You’re doing something right.” 

Panelists’ Favorite DC Takeaways 

A big part of Diesel Connect is the education shop owners can receive. Yes, the networking is important. Yes, the food is even more important. But the most, most important thing is what folks take home to try out when they go back to work.

Each panelist named one (okay, sometimes two) things they intended to do as soon as they got home: 

• “Get myself into a Monday-morning routine and … spend at least an hour a week [reviewing] data and numbers.” – James.
• “I’m gonna … figure out what our true [effective] labor rate is. … I’m actually nervous to see the number because I’m probably not gonna like it.” – Jim B.
• “Take some leadership accountability and make sure my team knows those clear [expectations]. … And number two is really getting back on our social media … it’s so important.” – Ashley.
• “I want to do that 8 AM every morning: ‘This is what we’re doing today. This is what I expect of you. This is what you can expect of me.’ And getting some written standard procedures for some of the items that we do regularly.” – Jim F. 

Check Out The Roundtable! 

As fun as this recap was, it only covered a tiny portion of what this group discussed. They also touched on topics like:

• Why Ashley considers her employees the best investment she ever made.
• Why shop culture is so dang important.
• Why service managers can become an owner’s most valuable ally.
• Why doomscrolling is bad (it is! Resist the doomscroll!).

If you’ve got an hour to spare, grab a cup of coffee and watch the whole video. 

And if this kind of “diesel pros helping diesel pros” thing appeals to you, may we recommend the Diesel Community? It’s free, and it’s full of shop owners and industry pros exchanging advice, answering questions, and helping each other work through some of the strange situations this business can produce. Really, it’s just like Diesel Connect, minus the food. Which…well, we’re working on that. 

(Editor’s Note: No we aren’t. You must bring your own snacks to the Diesel Community.)