Fletcher Lord III is President and CEO of Parts Warehouse Inc., operating as Bumper to Bumper/Crow-Burlingame, a company his great-grandfather started four generations ago. Today, Lord leads a team of 400 locations across a 12-state footprint in the South and Southwest, and he's also the newly seated Chairman of the Aftermarket Warehouse Distributors Association. He was honored with the 2025 AWDA Pursuit of Excellence Award for his people-first culture and commitment to workforce education.

In this episode, Lord talks about stepping away from the family business before coming back to learn it from scratch, building a culture that hires for the long term, and scaling a cohesive training program across a 12-state territory. He also discusses what he hopes to accomplish as AWDA chair, the real-world challenges facing warehouse distributors — from tariffs to vendor consolidation — and how Parts Warehouse is approaching AI without losing the people-first approach that built the company.

Most professionals didn't set out to land in the automotive aftermarket — they fell into it, and stayed because they loved it. James O'Dell, who leads continuing education programs at Northwood University's University of the Aftermarket, says that's exactly why ongoing learning matters so much in this industry: people are leading teams and businesses in a space few of them were formally trained for.

In this episode, O’Dell breaks down the data behind why employee development is one of the toughest challenges organizations face today, and makes the case that investing in people pays off in measurable ways — from profitability and productivity gains to stronger retention. He walks through what continuing education actually looks like, from industry-event credits to Northwood's four aftermarket credentials and degree programs, and explains the real cost of not investing in your team. James also shares some of the most memorable outcomes he's seen from Northwood's Leadership 2.0 program, including from his own career, and makes the case for why even seasoned veterans have something left to learn.

Imagine building one of the strongest supplier relationships in your business—rebates, pricing tiers, a rep who knows your operation inside and out—and then watching it quietly unwind after an acquisition you didn't see coming.

My guest today has lived that story more than once. Giorgio Andonian is managing director at NBB and a columnist for Aftermarket Business World, with more than 15 years of operational experience in the automotive aftermarket, including leading a regional tire chain through a private equity exit.

Giorgio breaks down what really happens to your parts supply chain when your supplier changes hands, why the 12 to 18 months after an acquisition announcement is the most important window you're probably ignoring, and what smart shop operators are doing right now to protect their margins before the next deal closes.