A Business Built on Engines and a Big Heart
When Bo Rodriguez (pictured to the left) was 14, his grandfather asked him, “When you get out of school, what would you like to do?” The pair were driving down the road together when Bo saw a local lawnmower shop pass by the car window. “I said ‘That’s what I want to do right there, Papa,’” says Rodriguez. “I want to fix lawnmowers and work on engines.”
Rodriguez’s grandfather pulled a U-turn and took him into the shop where he landed his first job. “I started on February 15, 1985. I’ll never forget the date,” says Rodriguez.
More than three decades later, Rodriguez is still working on lawnmowers and engines at his business, Bo’s Power Generators and Equipment Repairs.
This is his third dealership — that first job at the lawnmower shop eventually led to him buying the business. “I knew on that first day in 1985 that this is what I wanted to do, and I didn’t just want to be the worker, I wanted to own the business,” says Rodriguez.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Katrina forced him to close up that first shop. “I weathered hurricanes, tornadoes, break-ins, you name it. But after Hurricane Katrina, the insurance on the business and an issue with the landlord led us to close it down.”
After briefly opening another dealership with a partner, Rodriguez decided to shift gears and focus solely on repair work rather than selling new equipment — establishing Bo’s Power Generators and Equipment Repairs. “I started thinking outside of the box and realized repairs would be better investment,” he says. “We focus on parts, repairs, service work and repowers now.”
A Powerful Approach
When an engine is beyond repair, Rodriguez will recommend a repower. “I push repowers because it’s much more cost-effective than replacing an entire piece of equipment,” he says. Performing a repower can help a customer get a higher return on their investment and breathe new life back into their equipment.
He carries a variety of engines in his shop, but Rodriguez often steers repower customers toward Vanguard, the premier Briggs & Stratton line of commercial engines. “I’ve converted many people from die-hard Honda loyalists to Vanguard engines,” he says. “From the hundred-year legacy behind the company to the quality and parts availability — it just performs.”
With a handful of repowers regularly on his schedule, Rodriguez focuses on Vanguard’s differentiating factors to educate customers. “I show them the feature differences between the Vanguard and the Honda,” he says. “Honda’s never changed or updated anything, and Vanguard is innovating.” He credits the practical innovations of Vanguard, such as the cyclonic air filtration system that extends the air filter replacement interval to 600 hours, as a major selling point.
To stay up to speed on Vanguard innovations, Rodriguez relies on the Power Portal, Vanguard’s online dealer resource platform. “I’m on there all the time to get information I need,” he says. “I want to know what I’m talking about when I’m talking with customers — it just makes us a better dealership.” Rodriguez often prints copies of parts and other maintenance information off the Power Portal to share with customers, adding, “It helps me explain everything in detail, all your dos and don’ts to get the maximum life out of your engine.”
While he finds the resources on the Power Portal helpful, especially when it comes to educating customers, his years of experience working with Briggs & Stratton also contributes to his in-depth knowledge. “Briggs was the first engine I learned how to work on,” says Rodriguez. “I became a master technician with Briggs & Stratton when I turned 18 and I’ve maintained that title ever since.”
Rodriguez credits Briggs & Stratton and Vanguard as offering the best training he’s come across from an engine manufacturer. “I have just about every certificate that Briggs & Stratton offers. That’s the thing about Briggs — they go out of their way with training. That’s incredibly important in this industry.”
Above and Beyond
Throughout his career, Rodriguez has cultivated a reputation as someone who will go above and beyond to help solve a customer’s problem. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve repaired things at no charge because I don’t want any customers leaving my shop with a bad taste in their mouth,” he says. That attitude has helped establish his dealership as the go-to shop in town, where every piece of equipment is not only repaired but also cleaned and power-washed before heading home with a customer.
It’s also a standard he expects from those with whom he works. “I’ve seen Briggs & Stratton go out of its way to make things right in a way that no other manufacturer ever would,” he says. “I’m a Briggs guy through and through, and I’m very blessed with this business.”
About Briggs & Stratton Corporation:
Briggs & Stratton Corporation (NYSE: BGG), headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is focused on providing power to get work done and make people's lives better. Briggs & Stratton is the world’s largest producer of gasoline engines for outdoor power equipment, and is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of power generation, pressure washers, lawn and garden, turf care and job site products through its Briggs & Stratton®, Simplicity®, Snapper®, Ferris®, Vanguard®, Allmand™, Billy Goat®, Murray®, Branco® and Victa® brands. Briggs & Stratton products are designed, manufactured, marketed and serviced in over 100 countries on six continents. For additional information, please visit www.basco.com and www.briggsandstratton.com.
