Family to family: Local business now Auto Value

Change is hard.

But change after 42 years?

Not too bad, said Doug Wencl, who, after more than four decades with Carquest, has shifted gears.

The auto parts business started by his father in 1982 is now operating under the Auto Value banner.

The new partnership became official Oct. 21.

“It was time for a change,” said Wencl, who has been at the store from the beginning. “It’s a big step, but it needed a different identity. After it’s all said and done, as of right now, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

The business joins St. Cloud-based Automotive Parts Headquarters Inc., a family-owned distributor of aftermarket auto parts. Wencl’s store remains independently owned – and APH was willing to wait for it.

“They first approached me about 17 years ago,” Wencl said, “and they kept knocking on the door.”

The company would send him merch every once in a while, not willing to give up.

Things began to change direction about 11 years ago, when Advanced Auto Parts bought Carquest. Stock shares dropped, and the customer service to stores wasn’t where it should have been, Wencl said.

While those things eventually began to improve with a restructuring, “things got stale, and we needed something different,” he said.

It took a year of talks “before we fully decided to hit the ‘go’ button,” said Trinity Emery, Wencl’s son-in-law.

He has worked there for 12 years and was promoted to outside sales in 2023.

“We knew what we didn’t like with Advanced Auto,” Emery said. “We knew all the hard questions to ask when we started venturing into it, because when you’re not happy with something, you know what you do want.”

They visited other APH stores and distribution sites and liked what they saw.

“These guys treat us less like a number and more like a partner,” Emery said.

The Owatonna store is one of 300 APH partners throughout the Midwest, 100 of them independently owned.

“They want you to succeed,” Wencl said. “They’re like what Carquest was back in the ‘80s; they have so many more things on our shelves that we can utilize and sell to people” – and customers are already noticing.

In addition to a complete overhaul of the storefront, Auto Value is a recognizable name that people trust.

“I felt good along the whole process,” Wencl said, “because of who they were and what they represented. It’s all turned out for the better.”

Still, he said, it wasn’t an easy decision: “I don’t think it ever is, when you’ve done something for 42 years,” Wencl said, something he also shared with the CEO.

People are afraid of the unknown, “and making the change is the unknown,” he said.

“I wondered what the heck I was doing at 63½ years old,” when learning new line codes and getting familiar with the inventory can be a challenge.

“It’s different – in a good way – because of what they offer,” Wencl said.

APH had a crew of nearly 30 people over four days complete the renovation of the storefront and the back storeroom, as well as other areas.

“We didn’t do anything,” Emery said. “They did it all. They took care of us so well, in the whole changeover.”

The feedback has all been positive; “everyone’s been super happy with it,” he said.

That includes the store’s founder, Myron Wencl – sort of.

“Dad is still reserved, to some extent,” Doug Wencl said. “He was very appreciative when he walked in the store and saw everything.”

Myron, who retired more than 20 years ago, came in during the renovation, Emery said.

“It was full-bore chaos here, and he was blown away by how much they were changing and doing,” he said. “I asked him what he thought, and he said, ‘I don’t know yet.’”

APH, which started 100 years ago as a machine shop/bushing company, feels like the right fit, the men said.

“They made it feel a lot easier to change, because they’re still family owned and operated,” Emery said. “They feel like an old-school mom-and-pop business. I have the cell phone (number) of the CEO – I’m no fancy person, but I can call him if I need something.”

“He’s just a genuine guy,” Wencl agreed. “The whole team is.”