Room for Growth

How one shop leveled up during the pandemic to create an oasis for their employees

By Nora Johnson

If 2020 taught us anything, it’s how to lean into the unknown.

Each week of the past year brought new challenges and hurdles, especially for small businesses. But the most innovative business owners took advantage of the slow months to focus on building their team and completing projects that may have fallen to the wayside or put off for some future, indefinable time.

Nicky and Jeremy McQueen of B.A.T. Boys in Branson, Mo., did just that, and jumped on the task of remodeling the upstairs of their 16-bay shop. The space now holds a comfortable and inviting haven for the employees at B.A.T. Boys, a small token of appreciation for the hardwork and dedication of the team during the tough past year.

Take advantage of downtime.

The beginning of summer in 2020 was an uncertain time for all. Around four months into the pandemic, numbers were low for many repair shops across the country, especially during a time that would typically be the busiest. To take advantage of the presumably extra time, Nicky and Jeremy decided to take on the large remodel process.

“We had a whole 1,500 square feet of unfinished area upstairs that was just being used as storage, and it was always our plan to finish it out as an employee break room,” Nicky explains. “We decided that since we were going to be slow because of the COVID-19 outbreak, we might as well just go ahead and get started.

Jeremy took on the role of general contractor, and with help from his dad and a few friends, completed all the framing and construction. A couple of local contractors came in to complete the electric and drywall, and then Nicky and Jeremy picked out finishings to finalize the space.

Ironically, the summer didn’t end up being as slow as anticipated, but with the jumpstart of beginning the remodel, the project was completed in less than 6 months.

Make your employees feel appreciated.

One of the largest motivations for the remodel was to make the employees at B.A.T. Boys feel recognized for their hard work and dedication to the shop.

“Our whole philosophy has been about making our employees a priority in our business,” Nicky says. “And so the last couple years we've really tried to do things that make our employees feel appreciated.

Even before the remodeled space, Nicky and Jeremy still made sure to show their employees how much they value their commitment by taking the staff out for team-building exercises a few times a year. They also provide full health benefits to each of their employees.

The 1,500-square-foot employee break room now includes a living area with couches and a TV, a full kitchen with a refrigerator and a stove, a workout facility including a handful of equipment, a staff bathroom, and room for extra storage.

“It was really important to us to give them a space where we could all just relax and hang out,” she says.

Do your homework.

Before jumping into a remodel or redesign, Nicky encourages owners to do ample amounts of research regarding inspiration, budget, materials, and contractors.

When Nicky and Jeremy were first designing their 12-bay shop, Nicky says she would look to surrounding shops for ideas on what she liked and what would work best for B.A.T. Boys. She then tweaked the inspiration to create the look and feel of their own warm and inviting shop. She did this again when imagining the new employee break room.

In light of having “too many cooks in the kitchen,” Nicky continued to lean on her and her husband’s vision, but made sure to include her staff in discussions on what they would and may not take advantage of in the space—making sure the added utilities would be of good use and worth the investment.

As for the cost, she has two pieces of advice—do your homework by pricing everything, and stick to the budget.