From watching his father run the original store to helping mentor his own sons, Jeff Reeder of Reeder’s Auto Service Center truly knows what it means to put the “family” into “family business.”
At the early age of twelve, Reeder began working at his father’s auto shop, which was then known as Jim’s Standard Oil.
“It was kind of what people would think of working on the family farm,” Reeder said.
It wasn’t until he was 19, however, that Reeder knew he wanted to work with cars for the rest of his life. Although he knows most people would rather figure out their own career, Reeder decided to stick to something he knew and enjoyed.
“Most people think the grass is only greener on the other side,” Reeder said.
About 20 years ago, Jim’s Standard Oil moved from its old Central Ave. location (where the BP gas station is now in business) to its current one. There, it became Reeder’s Auto Service Center.
Reeder became manager in 1993 right after the move, restructuring the business and its team while his father took care of the financial aspects of the auto shop.
In 1999, Reeder, along with his wife, Sherry, took over as owners of Reeder’s Auto Service Center.
In 2002, they expanded, doubling the size of the business. The most prominent feature was their new oil change area. This expansion allowed them to service more customers more quickly. They could also take on fleet business, looking after a large number of cars from one company.
Reeder believes his success with the shop came from being taught by his father who, in his opinion, was one of the best mentors he could have had as a young boy.
In a traditional fashion, Reeder also has two sons that went into the family business, giving the service shop a three-generation name. When it was time to make career decisions, both Jacob and Jeremy Reeder chose to continue in their father’s footsteps. As kids, they worked in the car shop with their brother, Joshua, although the latter is now a chemical engineering student at Purdue University.
Advised by Reeder, his daughter, Stephanie, never worked at Reeder’s, although she was employed for a long time at Walgreen’s. Now, after just having her second child, she is a stay-at-home mother.
Another member of the family, Reeder loves to spend time with his Chocolate Lab, Eagle.
“I don’t take her to church or any restaurants, but she comes to work with me every day,” said Reeder.
Besides spending time with his kids and working on cars, Reeder enjoys activities such as camping, fishing, wilderness trips, skiing, biking, and kayaking.
“I’m an outdoorsy guy when I’m not working on cars,” Reeder said. “I love it.”
He and his wife also like to take vacations to places such as Canada, Wisconsin and Colorado. This winter, they will be spending Christmas in the Rocky Mountains.
Even though they enjoy seeing other places, the Reeders always love to be home in Portage.
“For us, it’s been a blessing to be a part of the Portage business community,” Reeder said. “Our customers are like our family.”
According to Reeder, the support of the Portage community is what keeps them running.
“They’re the ones that make it all possible,” said Reeder.
Written by Lydia Gerike