What does a 55-year-old, second-generation shop owner do when he still loves the industry but realizes he can’t be immersed in the daily grind forever? His two sons haven’t expressed a desire to take over the business, and he’s leery about taking on a partner due to a bad experience he had years ago.

Where there’s a trailer, there’s a truck

Bartlebaugh’s dad retired from the business in 2020 and passed away two years later. Bartlebaugh said it was an extremely difficult time for him. “I pretty much walked around in a fog all through 2023,” he related.

Fortunately, the trucking business was still riding its post-pandemic wave at that time. Bartlebaugh’s shop was thriving with 20 technicians. But then the freight recession set in. Business started to soften, and the shop downsized to 16 techs, six or seven of whom operate mobile service trucks depending on demand.

One of Bartlebaugh’s technicians, Javier Berber, worked for Bartlebaugh’s dad 20 years ago before being lured away by Jim Sr.’s former partner. That technician’s return was a powerful full-circle moment for Bartlebaugh.

“I was looking for peace and stability in my work life,” Berber said. “My previous employer was considering a relocation to Phoenix, but the work environment was toxic anyway. I needed a positive change. My brother and some other family members worked for Bartlebaugh and always spoke highly of the company. That gave me confidence that I would be making the right decision if I returned.”

“Javier is both a trailer and truck technician,” Bartlebaugh pointed out. “He brought a big fleet customer with him when he returned to our shop in 2022.”

A few years after Berber’s return, Bartlebaugh hired Peter Cooper, a trucking industry operations and business consultant. “Peter said that if he owned my business, he would start turning it into a truck repair shop on day one,” Bartlebaugh recalled.

So that’s what Bartlebaugh started doing. He already had a couple of accounts that were feeding his shop some light truck work. When more accounts started asking if they could do the same, Bartlebaugh hired a couple more techs who could work on both trailers and trucks. He also began exploring a potential name change for the business. He settled on JB Fleet Solutions this summer when he discovered that the name was available for use in California, and the website domain was also available.

“The legal name of the business is still JB Trailer Service because I didn’t want to go through all the hassle of legally changing the name,” Bartlebaugh pointed out. “We just established a DBA (doing business as) for JB Fleet Solutions so the market didn’t think we could only work on trailers anymore.”

Now Bartlebaugh needs to determine how deep he wants to go into truck repair.

“Every trailer customer has a truck pulling their trailer,” Bartlebaugh said. “So it’s a natural extension of our business. But you can get yourself in trouble with truck repair if you’re not careful. I’m going to have to invest a tremendous amount of money in tools, equipment, and software. And the deeper we go, the more training we’re going to need. We have to be careful not to overpromise and underdeliver. We can’t risk the relationships we’ve built with fleets over the years.”

Bartlebaugh will be sitting down with his three existing truck techs to discuss what services they feel comfortable offering.

“I don’t think we’re going to be swinging motors or doing any aftertreatment service anytime soon,” Bartlebaugh said. “There isn’t a lot of opportunity for that type of work out here in California anyway. With the CARB laws, there isn’t a lot of older equipment on the road. So we’re mainly looking at things like routine truck PMs, brakes, suspension, maybe some electrical work—the types of things our existing trailer customers need on a regular basis. In California, domicile fleets need the equivalent of a DOT inspection every 90 days. Now we can do those inspections for both truck and trailer.”

With so much opportunity in front of him, Bartlebaugh has also begun working with another consultant, Nils Vinje. The two have begun developing a plan to grow the business, which could include acquiring another truck repair shop if the right opportunity came along.

JB Fleet Solutions will also continue to remain true to its roots in trailer repair. On that note, Bartlebaugh sees an opportunity to gain market share in the box truck segment due to their expertise in liftgate repair. JB Fleet Solutions is actually a certified dealer for the Maxon, Palfinger, and Waltco liftgate brands.

“We’re now able to maintain the powertrain, repair the trailer, and service the liftgate,” Bartlebaugh related. “That provides a lot of value to our customers and makes their lives easier, which is ultimately what we’re trying to do.”