Paving the Road Forward: AASPMN Updates and Strategies for 2025
Published in AASP-MN News – Thomas Greco Publishing
Change is inevitable, and 2024 was a year of many changes for Minnesota automotive and collision repairers.
From technological advancements and differing hiring practices that impact individual shops to the AASPMN’s decision to hire a new legal team and the dissolution of the national AASP organization, things look a lot different than they did a year ago. However, amidst the many transformations in the automotive landscape, one thing remains constant: AASPMN persists in its efforts to champion shops and pave the way forward to advance and improve the industry in the North Star State.
As AASPMN builds on last year’s momentum to carry its initiatives forward into 2025, Executive Director Linden Wicklund shares some insights on the biggest achievements of 2024 and how the motion initiated in the past will carry the organization into the future from a stronger position.
AASPMN News: What were AASPMN’s biggest accomplishments in 2024?
Linden Wicklund: I’m proud to say that we saw a lot of positive momentum regarding several important initiatives last year! The association continued to see an increase in member engagement as more shops participated in the various programs offered, and we were happy to see new faces at our monthly member meet-ups. Our Annual Leadership Conference in March generated a lot of interest with strong attendance and favorable feedback from attendees and exhibitors about the networking opportunities, plus we saw significant growth in participation in the workshops on the first day of the conference.
Legislatively, we introduced legislation to improve the Regulations of Claims Act: Minnesota Statute 72A.201, proposing the clarification and elevation of several provisions related to total losses, reinspections, the timeliness of insurer responses and under-indemnification by carriers. Although we did not receive a hearing, we were able to advance the bill, gaining buy-in from legislators and finetuning our efforts so we can continue to advocate legislatively for all our members.
Our workforce and educational initiatives proved beneficial to members as well – between MNCARS and the connections we’ve made with local tech schools, we’re noticing an increased interest in local automotive programs that has resulted in shops being more successful when they need to hire new technicians.
AASP: How will AASPMN use that momentum to strengthen its initiatives and support members as we enter 2025?
LW: During the upcoming legislative session, we plan to pick up on the momentum we built with our proposed legislation in 2024 to push that bill forward and ideally see it through. We are grateful to the Fryberger Law Firm for the 23 years they dedicated to supporting our organization, but we are excited to move forward with Larkin Hoffman, which boasts a full team of legal professionals with industry-specific knowledge that members can access for business questions.
Access to their team is just one of the benefits AASPMN provides its members. Our partnerships with over a dozen businesses allow shops to tap into savings on everything from business coaching and training to credit card processing fees, marketing tools and employee benefits. Strengthening our numbers allows us to offer better discounts, and we encourage everyone to take advantage of what’s available through the association, but also through the local government. The Department of Labor’s Dual-Training Pipeline program offers shops the ability to recoup costs associated with training their employees. Anyone whose employee is attending tech school or who has an employee interested in pursuing continuing education through an industry-recognized program is eligible to apply for these grants. The company pays for it, and the state reimburses them. Auto service was added last year, and we’re hoping to get collision repair added in the next year.” (More information available at dli.mn.gov/pipeline.)
With more involvement in the association’s events comes more feedback, and we’re using the information provided by attendees to ensure we’re delivering more of the training and networking opportunities that members actually want to participate in. Moving forward, we will continue to host workshops and committee meetings, but based on feedback, we will alternate between hosting these events in-person and virtually to make them more accessible to those who find the travel time prohibitive. It’s thrilling that we’re generating more interest in what we’re doing across all fronts as more shops have become engaged and dedicated to helping effect positive change in our industry.
The other big change coming in 2025 is a new website with improved online and social media presence. With all the information and connections we have to offer members, it is critical they can find what they need from us quickly and that we pop up more frequently on the radar of members and non-members alike, so we can ensure the resources we offer are available to those who need them.
AASP: What are AASPMN’s most important priorities for 2025?
LW: The reason this association exists is simple – to support independent auto service and collision repair shops. One of the most important ways to do that is legislatively, so we are going to continue advancing what we’ve done in the legislative space. We’ve already seen some defensive wins, meaning we’ve prevented harmful legislation from being passed, but moving forward, we are hoping to go on the offensive and get new language added into Minnesota law that will aid and protect our members’ businesses.
To ensure we are able to do that, AASPMN will continue its outreach to shops in our market. As shop owners retire and new ownership takes over, we are seeing a reduction in the number of independent shops with MSOs gaining traction. I’m convinced that independent shops will always have a place in this industry, though, so we want to make sure that they are aware of our existence and informed about our ongoing efforts as we continue offering the tools and resources they need to be successful in this changing field. We have been an ally to automotive and collision shops for over 50 years, and it’s important to grow and strengthen our position through transitions in shop ownerships to ensure our members retain their independence and are able to continue offering the safe, reliable repairs that Minnesota drivers depend upon…and that they deserve!
AASP: AASPMN offers a lot of exciting opportunities for members to get involved, and with everyone hanging new calendars on their walls, what events should shops be planning to attend in the coming months?
LW: Our first large event in the new year will be our 23rd Annual Race for Automotive Education, taking place February 24-27 at ProKart Indoor Racing in Burnsville. Since its inception, this fundraiser for our Automotive Education Fund has disbursed nearly $340,000 to students through our scholarship program. I’d also encourage shops to pay attention to the Minnesota State Transportation Center of Excellence’s calendar of upcoming career fairs at schools around the state (their calendar is available at minntran.org/events); these events offer great opportunities to interact with future industry professionals and encourage them to pursue automotive careers.
Our 2025 Annual Meeting and Leadership Conference will be held at the Mystic Lake Conference Center on April 28-29, with a format that includes a half day of workshops on Monday with a full day of education on Tuesday. We’re hoping to see an even larger number of shops bringing their teams to connect and establish a lasting momentum that helps propel their businesses forward. It’s a great forum for industry leaders to network and learn from one another, as well as from industry-recognized speakers from all over the country.
And stay tuned to AASPMN News for updates about what additional opportunities arise to address the many changes and disruptions this industry faces regularly. Our association’s success over the last half century is tied directly to our ability to shift and modify our programming to meet our members’ needs, so we rely on every one of you to guide our programs and give us direction on the areas we need to hone in on so we can continue being the strong resource shops need as they pave the way forward into 2025 and beyond.
