Building a reputation through quality craftsmanship and effective communication is a challenge for any business. The Barberic brothers have made it their mission.
Ensuring every vehicle that passes through their workshop is looked after with the greatest attention to detail, the Barberic’s philosophy is to never compromise on quality.
Brothers Robert Barberic and Phillip Barberic co-own South City Motor Body Works in Southbank, Melbourne.
Inching towards a decade of ownership, the Barberic’s have established a business known for their uncompromising high quality craftmanship.
An accountant by trade, Robert is in charge of all the back of house duties, while Phillip takes on the panel beating duties.
Depending on the extent of damage, Phillip repairs between five to ten vehicles per week.
With one employee in the painting department, Phillip and Rob handle the rest of the business as a unified duo.
Not in unfamiliar territory, the Barberic’s have a long line of family in the repair industry. Their father, Frank Barberic, was a panel beater for over 60 years.
“Phillip was my father’s apprentice, and taught him everything he knows,” Rob says.
“I have three cousins and uncles who are all panel beaters too. That’s where the initial interest in the industry comes from.”
Originally from England, the Barberic’s moved to Australia in 2013 after growing tired with the living pressures in their native country.
“I did a working holiday to Melbourne in 2007 with the intention of testing the waters,” Rob says.
“After my visa expired, I returned to England, but knew I wanted to move back to Australia permanently.”
A few years later, both Rob and Phillip made the permanent move to Melbourne and have been enjoying the better weather, and higher standards of living ever since.
Finding the right shop
After finding their feet in Australia and settling on the idea of buying a repair workshop in Melbourne, it took the Barberic’s a few years to find the right fit for them.
“We were looking at Southbank and areas close to Melbourne’s CBD for 2-3 years,” Rob says.
“We were looking to target the higher end of the market as it reflects the quality of work we do.”
The previous owner of South City Motor Body Works had been operating in the workshop for 30 years before the Barberic’s took over in 2016.
“It was one of those workshops where the owner was 78 and looking to retire,” Rob says.
“We actually saw the business for the first time on my 30th birthday, and exactly a year later, we completed the payment for the business.”
They initially relied on Phillip’s existing reputation and contacts within the industry to get a head start.
“We started off on a pretty good run, and it’s been kicking on since then,” Rob says.
Quality and care
The priority for the Barberic’s is always the quality of repair. Followed by a personal approach, they aim to always keep the customers happy.
“We have the philosophy; if we do the right thing, and don’t compromise on quality, then the results will follow,” Rob says.
“My brother has the highest standards of work of anybody I know.
“I spend a lot of time explaining to people what it is we’re doing with their car and why we are charging certain prices.”
“If we don’t see the same customers on a regular or repeat basis, we know that we need to improve.”
Glowing reviews
With a string of happy customers and nearly 200 five star reviews, their philosophy and commitment to communication has proven to be effective.
“We usually ask people to leave a review and be honest about their experience. That’s the best way to improve,” Rob says.
“When someone says they found us on Google, I think excellent, the review system is working. I always say it helps the next customer along.”
Rob highlighted how reading reviews where they went the extra mile to help someone makes it all worth it.
“Making the extra effort to help someone all comes down to the communication,” Rob says.
“Whether it’s explaining the insurance claim process or just in general what is going on with their vehicle we make sure they are aware of what’s happening.”
“We are proud that we see this reflected in the consistency of the reviews we receive.”
The Barberic’s find that customers are equally as happy with their cleaning services as well as the repairs.
“We don’t just repair the cars, we also clean the cars inside and out as part of our service,” Rob says.
“I always joke with my brother that in the reviews there is more praise for the cleaning of the car than the repairs sometimes.”
Refining processes
Edging towards 10 years of operating South City, Rob has found that their processes have developed well over the years.
“I like to think about the improvement of things like how I would see it on a graph,” Rob says.
“At the start of the business, the improvements were quite steep and now we are at the point where it has plateaued a bit.”
“I’d say we have reached a point where in terms of processes, and equipment, we are where we want to be.”
South City installed a new spray booth last year, and all the welding equipment is less than five years old.
“With the paint side of things, we have UV lights, red lights, and new technologies that help with colour matching,” Rob says.
True to their philosophy, Rob outlined how at the beginning of their ownership, the customers came before the running of the business.
“If you do things right, you’ll eventually get the rewards,” Rob says.
“We consciously decide to spend that extra bit of money on a panel stand that might be more expensive than the other equipment, but you get the value out of its use.”
“The goal is to always maintain the high standards, as complacency is always a real danger.”
The philosophy
With family in the industry, understanding and identifying the ‘right way’ of doing things comes as a second nature to both Rob and Phillip.
“Our father was very pedantic about the quality of work,” Rob says.
“Quality is everything. He taught us to never start bodging, because once you start, it’s hard to stop, and you’ll be doing it for the rest of your life.”
“We do all our repairs properly and how it’s supposed to be done.”
“We don’t cut corners and we approach each repair and task the same as the last.”
Maintaining the flow
With no intention of expansion or growing their tight knit team, Rob and Phillip are focussed on becoming a specialised workshop.
“In the future we may look at restricting the type of work that we do,” Rob says.
“For the business going forward it would be great to be more specialised.”
Happy with the location and operations of the business, making small adjustments is on the cards for the coming years.
“We have the lease for a few more years, and we plan on being here for a long time to come,” Rob says.
“We will keep on keeping on.”