Staff writer
Mike and Doug Regnier took time on Thursday to celebrate Marion Auto Supply’s 50th anniversary in Marion with a pancake lunch.
What does it take to make a business last for 50 years?
Location is important. A survey conducted in the 1960s concluded that Marion was in the most desperate need for an auto parts store. Heeding its advice, the late Jack Regnier opened Marion Auto Supply March 1, 1961.
Jack Regnier was also the figurehead, the face of the business. Using the people skills he would later display in two separate stints as Marion mayor, Jack was instrumental in public relations and marketing for the shop.
He was also active in community events.
“He loved Marion,” his wife, Marge Regnier, said.
However, the most important part of public relations was being a hardworker and reliable for customers. Even fielding calls at 2 or 3 a.m., Jack would come back to the shop to provide a desperate customer the right part he would then help install in a broken down vehicle.
“Sometimes I worried about him, but he always came back,” Marge Regnier said. “He knew how to work on everything. He really helped people on weekends.”
The business has also benefited from a strong, consistent family commitment. Even after graduating from college, both Mike and Doug Regnier returned to Marion to work in the store.
“Doug spent his childhood here,” Marge said.
The Regniers’ two daughters, Kathy and Pat, also worked in the store. Marge kept the books until 1999 when the Regniers bought a new computer.
“It was time for me to leave,” Marge said. She was 70 at the time.
Jack worked in the store up until his death in July 2005. Mike and Doug promptly took over ownership to ensure the business stayed in the family.
The store has survived two floods, — one in 1961 and the other in 1972 — lean economic times, and there was even a fire next door at Hett’s Auto Repair in 2005.
Although the fire did not reach Marion Auto Supply, Jack Regnier thought the store was a goner. When asked what he would have done if the store had been consumed in flames he said, “I’d have started building a new store the next day.”