Long-Time Auto Body Shop Manager Turned Property Damage Appraisers Franchisee Is Excited to Take His Small-Town Charm to the Erie, Pennsylvania Market

***Ryan Stokes was born and raised in a town of 369 people in rural Arkansas. Growing up, he had always dreamt of leaving his hometown of Fayetteville and moving to a bigger city on the East Coast. However, after graduating high school in 1999, Stokes met his wife and his life in Fayetteville began to fall into place.

Career background

He has had a lengthy career working in numerous auto-body shops and even managing a few of them. He got his start with Property Damage Appraisers (PDA) working as an office manager for five years, during which he received multiple certifications including the Master Appraiser Certification and the Master Manager Certification, both from PPG. Stokes began franchising with PDA in June 2018, when he acquired the PDA, Philadelphia location.

He was even named as the top-performing PDA location in the nation after taking over the business. Stokes recently opened his second PDA franchise in Erie, Pennsylvania, on September 23, 2019. He has plans to get the business on track, including a one-and-a-half-day turn around on completed appraisals.

Stokes is also planning on expanding throughout the Erie market, which as of right now covers approximately 250 miles east of Erie. He also has plans to launch his own scholarship fund sometime in 2020.

**I was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and raised in Winslow, a town of 369 people. The town is a very rural, middle of nowhere, pass-through type. I graduated from Winslow High School in 1999 and started working right after.

I began working in the auto industry, with University Auto in Fayetteville. I then managed Tanksley’s Auto Body for three years before moving to Royal Coach Autobody where I worked for seven years. I became one of the first I-Car Gold class shops in the area.

Pda experience

After that, I worked as an office manager at PDA for five years, which is where I got my start with the brand. I received the Master Appraiser Certification and the Master Manager Certification from PPG. I am also Heavy Equipment- and RV-Certified.

I have had the top-performing office in the nation with PDA Philadelphia after taking over in June 2018.

I had always had plans of getting out of my hometown and moving to the East Coast. However, I met my wife in Fayetteville after high school and things just fell into place. I’ve been married now for 18 years, with five kids.

Why did you choose to go into franchising? What was the trigger moment that led you to become a franchisee with PDA?

I worked for PDA for five years as an office manager. During that time, I fell in love with the brand and structure. I’ve always had an eye for high-end shops and companies that provide a high-end service; and I knew PDA was one of those.

I signed with PDA in July 2018. Philadelphia was my first office. We opened the second location, in Erie, Pennsylvania, on September 23, 2019.

Market growth plans

Yes, I have plans for growth in the Pennsylvania market. The Erie market has a lot of potential.

We are working diligently to repair the damages in the Pennsylvania market—it was an underserved market and the product was very hit-and-miss. My plans are to get the cycle time correct across the entire territory and get our service to a place that clients will come to expect and appreciate.

In our first month of owning the Erie office, we were able to average a one-and-a-half-day cycle time, which is basically unheard of for a territory of such large scale. All of our guys are heavy equipment, auto and property-certified, which means we provide the best-in-class service to the community. The Erie location, as of right now, only has two employees, but that number will increase as we continue to expand our business.

PDA is my first franchise. I was previously a part-owner in a body shop, but that was independently owned.

Do you provide any interesting services, work with any other local businesses, charitable organizations, or prominent individuals in the community?

No, not currently. Erie reminds me a lot of where I grew up; it has a small-town feel, sort of underprivileged, so I would like to start doing things to give back to the community. For 2020, we have talked about and will hopefully implement some sort of scholarship program, to help someone in our local community go to college. One of my daughters is going to college soon, so that’s something that is very near-and-dear to my heart.

**One of my employees in Pennsylvania, Dave Bourges worked in a body shop for years and years and all of a sudden came down with a very rare illness. It was pretty debilitating for him, he is a single father of three kids and this illness put him in the hospital for over six months. After he started to recover, he needed to go back to work, but couldn’t go back to the body shop as that was too tough on the body.

This led him to begin working with PDA because he knew he could do this job well, while he was gaining his strength back. Working at PDA provided him the flexibility to take care of his family and recover from this illness. He needed a flexible schedule where he would be able to get his kids to and from school.

In the first months of his recovery, he was only working part-time, but as he regained his strength, he started taking on more and more hours. He is now one of our top-performing appraisers. Working with PDA allowed him to recover from his illness both physically and financially, being able to pay back his medical bills without worrying too much.