Chapter 6..........1950's and 1960's..........The History of Dixie Sales Company

North Carolina Incorporation of Dixie Sales Company, June 30, 1950

In the June 30^th edition of the Greensboro Daily News, there was an announcement of the incorporation of Dixie Sales Company.  Dixie Sales Company, Incorporated by E.B. Snyder, L.H. Starmer, and J.E. Starmer.  Subscribed stock, $300.  Authorized capital stock $150,000.

Building For the Future – 327-29 Battleground Avenue Ready To Open February 1, 1951

In the October 18, 1950 edition of the Greensboro Daily News, the following article ran:  NEW DIXIE SALES BUILDING WILL BE READY BY FEB. 1^st :  The new home of Dixie Sales now being built in the 300 block of Battleground Avenue, will be completed by February 1, (1951)  according to Company  officials today.

Begun last week, the $60,000 structure will occupy the space where the Guilford County Health Department parking lot is now situated.

To be constructed from cement block and brick, the unit will be 125 by 130 feet, an increase in floor space over the present quarters of the firm on Commerce Place.

Inside the one-story structure will be many new features, including servicing and parts equipment.  A distributor of a national wholesale automotive parts house, the local business will offer drive-in service when the new building is completed.

In 1951, the Snyder’s and Starmer’s had a new building built at 327-29 Battleground Avenue totaling about 15,000 square feet.  Approximately half of the new building (329) was an automotive service department with large drive-in door in the front and one in the rear.  There were about 20 auto service bays, a service manager’s office in the left front and another work room in the right front used first as a break room and later for speedometer and taxi-meter repair.  In the left rear of the service department was a storage area with a small mezzanine.  There was a large ramp about half-way back that led up to the other half of the building.  That ramp and the accompanying rolling door were large enough for cars to go up and drive through.  In the early 1950’s, cars might be stored overnight in the back area of the parts department.  There was a small walk-up ramp by the service manager’s office that went up to the parts department, offices, cashier and waiting area.  The buildings left wall (south facing) and the right wall (north facing) consisted of windows about eight feet tall with the bottom about six feet off the ground.  The interior and exterior walls were built of cinder blocks.

The left half of the building had large plate glass windows facing the street.  The parts counter covered about 2/3 of the frontage and sat back about 20 feet from the windows.  The office area front wall lined up with the parts counters with one large open area in the front, with a cut-out in the glass where the cash register was and people could pay their bills, and then two small offices to the rear of the open office area. 

There was a mezzanine storage area over the office area as well as a storage area over the internal restrooms, with the parts department men’s room under the mezzanine steps, and two large locker and bathrooms opening into the automotive service department but structurally their walls were in the parts department.  The ladies room was in the front corner outside the office area as well as a waiting area open to the parts counter area.  The front of the auto parts side of the building made innovative use of glass blocks that can still be seen today at 327 Battleground Avenue where the Undercurrent restaurant is currently located.

You can see the office and cashier area to the right rear of the picture and the glass panel in the swinging door that led to a walking ramp down to the automotive service department in the early 1950’s.

The back of the office area appears to the right rear of the picture.  The stairs go up to a mezzanine over the offices used for general storage and a parts area behind wire running down a mezzanine over the mechanic dressing rooms and bathrooms in the service department.  The row of hanging belts soon became 4 rows.  The work area below was in the 1950’s and 1960’s a service area for speedometers and eventually became our UPS shipping and freight receiving area in the 1970’s.

327-29 Battleground Avenue in 1952

In 1969, there were parts and even radios on the shelves that worked with six volt electrical systems that hadn’t been used in automobiles for years.  Much of the work done in the service department in those days was rebuilding alternators and starters for large construction companies, car tune-ups and carburetor rebuilding, brake repair and front-end alignment, and speedometer repair and calibration.  The parts department was also selling OEM rebuilt carburetors, alternators and starters.  Every time a rebuilt unit was sold, an old core unit had to be returned to the manufacturer for them to rebuild and these were all stored in the back of the parts department by the hundreds until they were categorized, packaged and shipped back periodically.  It was a very dirty, oily area.

There were 11 people employed in the automotive service department, all specializing in certain service areas.  In the 1960’s and early 1970’s there was a technician who serviced lawnmowers and small air-cooled engines. By the mid-1970’s, my Dad, Ernest, decided we really shouldn’t be in that service business as it required a lot of his attention.  Thereafter the automotive service department had 10 employees.  Two serviced and rebuilt carburetors and performed tune-ups.  Two serviced and rebuilt generators, alternators, starters and repaired entire electrical systems and wiring.  Two serviced brakes and aligned vehicle front-ends.  One serviced speedometers and taxi meters, while also testing and calibrating speedometers, usually for people with speeding tickets.  There was a shop-cleanup man who also picked-up auto parts from car dealers or local auto parts jobbers that Dixie Sales Company (DSC ) did not have in our own inventory.  There was an assistant service manager and a service manager who managed the entire department. 

Vehicles were normally driven or towed –in through a large overhead door stopping by the service manager’s office just to the left.  The service manager or assistant service manager would write up a repair order stating what the owner wanted serviced and provide a cost estimate and the time the vehicle could be picked up by the owner.  The location at 327-29 Battleground Ave provided a perfect location for auto service for vehicles owned by people working downtown.  That address was about three blocks from “The Square,” where Elm Street intersected with Friendly Ave and a block away from West Market Street. The downtown office environment was vibrant during that period and many people worked downtown.  There were many small restaurants providing breakfast and lunch.  Leaving a vehicle at DSC for service was convenient for workers who could easily walk to their offices and return in the afternoon after work to pick up their vehicles.

Automotive Service and Parts Department Evolution

When Joseph Leahy opened Dixie Rubber Company around January 23, 1910, there was no question what the company’s primary business was: repairing and vulcanizing automobile tires.  As the article about the Dixie Rubber Company in the 1910 issue of The Daily Record Souvenir Book stated: “It is a line of industry of which scarcely anything is known by people outside the auto trade and very little by those in it…and that “this is one of the best equipped plants outside some of the largest tire factories.”  In a January 23, 1913 ad, stated that “If It’s Made of Rubber – We’ll Fix It!”

But by 1911, when Joseph Leahy moved the business to 212 North Elm Street, he stated in a September, 1911 ad that he was now carrying a line of auto supplies and parts for aeroplanes.  When he moved into the 212 North Elm Street location, he changed the name of the business to Dixie Sales Company to reflect the diversification of his business.  But Leahy’s focus was still tire repair and sales as reflected in a January 23, 1913 ad, stating that “If It’s Made of Rubber – We’ll Fix It!”

By 1915, Dixie Sales Company was selling a full line of Goodyear and Firestone tires, Texaco gasoline and motor oil, drive-through repair advice and free air for your tires.  A sign on the front of the 115 West Market Street location stated “Expert Service on Generators, Starting and Lighting Systems.”

With the move to 109 South Davie Street in early 1921, the front of the location had a Goodyear Service Station sign; the words “Vulcanizing” and “Retreading” were displayed prominently, as was “Automotive Electrical Work” and “Vesta Battery Service.”  Dixie Sales Company was the exclusive Goodyear Tire Dealer for Greensboro.

In 1924, a new Dixie Sales building was built at 234 Commerce Place where the company remained until 1939, just before the start of WWII.  This building and the larger building they moved into across the side street (Sternberger Place) to 238 Commerce Place in 1939 served Dixie Sales and its customers well until 1952.  It was most likely these two Commerce Place locations invited growing the drive-in automotive service business as well as the rebuilding/remanufacturing of detached alternators and generators.  Drive-in automotive service as well as selling headlights, horns, tires, Briggs and Stratton locks and keys, radio installation and repair, as well as eventually Briggs and Stratton air-cooled engine parts and engines for use on washing machines.

H.E. Snyder (Henry Emmett) was the resident electrical expert.  E.B. (Ellis Bowers) Snyder was general manager.  J.E. (James Ernest) Starmer joined the company in 1937 when he was 17 years old and worked on the parts counter.  Ernest’s father, L.H. (Leander Hoy) “Jack” Starmer also continued to work at Dixie Sales.

1950’s - 327-329 Battleground Ave Automotive Service Department

Ellis Bowers Snyder Passes September 12, 1963

Funeral for Ellis B. Snyder, 69, of 2611 Walker Ave., who died last night in Wesley Long Hospital after an illness of 10 weeks, will be held Saturday at 2 PM at Forbis and Dick Memorial Chapel.  Dr. Wilson O. Weldon, pastor of West Market Street Methodist Church, will officiate and burial will be in Westminster Gardens.

Snyder was president and general manager of Dixie Sales Co. here.  

He was a native of Burbank, Ohio, but had lived here 43 years.

He was a member of the official board of West Market Street Methodist Church, a member of the Exchange Club, the VFW, the American Legion, the 40&8 Club and a naval veteran of World War I.

Surviving are his wife, the former Mary Diggs; there daughters, Mrs. Erskine Wimberly of Hartsville, S.C., Mrs. John W. Brand of Ambler, PA., and Mrs. W. F. Webster of Hickory; one brother, H.E. Snyder of Greensboro; and eight grandchildren.

1964 – Celebrating 50 Years in Business

A 1964 news article in an edition of Greensboro Daily News:  AUTOMOTIVE SUPPLY FIRM MARKS 50^TH ANNIVERSARY - Fifty years of automotive supply and service were celebrated today by Dixie Sales Co., Inc. of 327 Battleground Ave., a firm whose present ownership began in 1914.

On March 1 of that year, L.H. Starmer and F.E. Snyder, his father-in-law, opened for business on Washington Street in the McGlamery-Sutton Auto Co. building.

Today, company officers include J. E. Starmer, president; L.H. Starmer, vice president; Mrs. E. B. Snyder, secretary-treasurer; and H.E. Snyder, assistant secretary-treasurer.

Currently in its parts department, Dixie Sales stocks original equipment for major automobiles.  Part are sold to new car dealers, independent garages, service stations, and fleet operators.  The firm specializes in electrical and carburetor equipment.

A staff of eight mechanics, a service manager and assistant service manager run the Dixie Sales service department, which is equipped with the latest testing devices and equipment for speedometer, tune-up, electrical systems, front end and brake repairs and service.

The firm has migrated to several locations since its establishment 50 years ago.  There have been six different sites for the business.  In 1951, Dixie Sales settled at its present location on Battleground Ave.

IGONC Magazine Article on Dixie Sales Company’s Automotive Service Department -  Fall 1985

In the fall 1985 edition of the IGONC’s quarterly magazine The Voice of the Independent Garage Owners of North Carolina, was a three page article with pictures titled Dixie Sales Company: A Greensboro Institution.

Beginning on page 4, the article is as follows:  
Turn to “Auto Repair” in the Greensboro Yellow Pages and the name Dixie Sales doesn’t exactly leap off the page.  All you’ll find is a modest “space listing,” with an abbreviated description of the company’s many specialties: Engine Tuning, Ignition, Carburetors, Brakes, Shock Absorbers, Speedometer Testing and Repairing, etc.

Yet visit the spacious garage at 327 Battleground Ave, 15 work stalls full and a staff of 10 bustling about, the phone ringing, it seems every minute on the minute, and you may conclude this activity is supported by extensive and aggressive advertising.  In a way it is – but the only advertising done by this 71-year-old company, with the exception of its simple ad in the yellow pages, is by its legion of satisfied customers.

In fact, Dixie Sales Company is as much a Greensboro institution as it is a business.  Recently a local radio call-in show had an auto repair instructor as a guest, and the host and the guest engaged in a lively discussion about the difficulties in fixing carburetors.  A lady called in to set them right.  “if you want to get a carburetor fixed, take it to Dixie Sales,” she directed. “They’ve taken care of our cars for years and they can fix anything.”  The guest expert responded, “Well to tell the truth, when I’ve got a problem with my car, I go to Dixie Sales too.”  And the host chimed in, “I’ll make it unanimous – I’ve always used Dixie Sales myself.  Maybe we should send them a bill for this advertising.”

That kind of reputation for excellence and fair price, built over many years is the reason that Service Manager Clarence Martin is one part traffic cop, one part service chief.  Some of his mechanics are booked three weeks in advance, and virtually all work is done on an appointment basis.  How busy is the shop?  Well, in October 1983 they began with work order #00100, and on the day of a visit from THE VOICE they were using work order 19,314.  That figures out to about 40 cars moving through the shop every work day.

Company Philosophy

Clarence Martin operated his own service station for 28 years before joining Dixie Sales 14 years ago.  Stocky, red-haired and naturally genial, he’s been both secretary and treasurer of IGO on the state level, a former member of the Board of Directors, and has been treasurer of the Guilford County IGO unit for eight years.  “The toughest part of my job,” he says, “is being sure we maintain the standards that have existed in this shop for so many years.  Our business philosophy is simple: ‘If it isn’t right, we’ll fix it.  If we don’t fix it, tell us.  If we do, tell a friend.’  There’s a spirit in those words that is really part of Dixie Sales, and I think we all get caught up in that spirit.”

If longevity relates to spirit and company loyalty, Clarence Martin knows of what he speaks.  His predecessor was on the job for 43 years before retiring. (This was Uke Anthony, Service manager of Dixie Sales for over 43 years, and known and respected by thousands of Greensboro citizens.)  His crew of top-notch specialists bring a collective total of well over 100 years of experience to every job that rolls into the shop.

At the helm of this impressive operation is a man of disarming charm, Ernest Starmer, president and general manager of a company nurtured by his grandfather, Frank Snyder, and his father, L.H. “Jack” Starmer, who migrated from Akron, Ohio and bought the four-year-old company in 1914, along with an uncle, Ellis Snyder.  They moved it (sic) up over the local Ford dealership and became a “rubber tire hospital,” doing vulcanizing work for businesses throughout North Carolina.  The company’s first ledger book, yellowing with age, reveals the firm’s beginnings: the first entry is March 2, 1914, a $.40 charge for repairing a bicycle tube puncture.  By month’s end the firm had charges of $235.70, and the owners each withdrew $76.00 in wages.  Fifty years later, long-time customers stopped by to help Dixie Sales celebrate its anniversary.  Those who found their family names in the old ledger book were treated to a number of promotional specials.

Like so many American businesses, Dixie Sales survived and prospered because it offered quality work at a fair price, and it was (and is) opportunistic.  We got into the auto parts business early on,” said Ernest Starmer, “because originally batteries and headlights were accessories for cars – not provided by the manufacturer.  And so they represented an excellent business opportunity and we took advantage of it.”  In tune with the changing times, Dixie Sales opened a “drive-through” repair shop in 1915. 

Ernest came into the business as a youngster, first as a counter man in the auto parts shop (still an important part of the business), and then, for many years as the firm’s principal outside salesman.  He became general manager in 1963.

Somewhere in those days around World War II, Dixie Sales was a dealer for Briggs & Stratton lock and key.  “We kept all the parts in a little cabinet,” recalls Ernest Starmer.  “And then Briggs & Stratton got into the small engine business, and a local hardware store was selling mowers.  They (Odell Hardware) asked us if we would stock parts for the mowers, something they didn’t want to do.”  That was the beginning.  The end is not in sight.  Six years ago the company opened a huge warehouse across the street from the auto repair shop that now stocks over 35,000 different parts and serves over 2,500 customers in the southeast.  It is one of the largest and most successful businesses of its kind in the country.  Son James Starmer, corporation vice-president, oversees this operation.  Younger son Richard is the parts and service manager.

Customer Relations

A genuine sense of caring is one of the company’s principal commodities.  Clarence Martin and the assistant Service Manager, Jimmy Lynch, are masters of customer relations.  One of the two men greets everyone who arrives at the service garage, and does a preliminary diagnostic screening.  Then the work to be done is assigned to one of the staff specialists.  Martin and Lynch are also responsible for customer contact to provide full information about repairs completed, other problems identified, and the like. 

Serving in this well-tuned operation are three men who received their training in this very shop under the GI Bill: 

Neil Covington, the speedometer technician.  With 28 years on the job, he’s a master of testing, correcting, and repairing cruise controls and taxi meters as well as speedometers.  He’s often booked weeks in advance.

Dave Lewis, 30 years on the job, a specialist in ignition and carburetor work.

Jack Dunn, a master electrician with 39 years in the Dixie Sales shop.

Others on the staff:

Earl Daniel, 28 years, specialist in ignition and carburetion.

Larry Wray, 17 years, specializing in brakes, exhaust systems, and cooling systems.  He was in training with the company for 10 years before a mechanic’s job opened up.

Wayne Bowden, two years with the company, seven years prior experience, brakes and front-end work.

Carl Downs, five years with Dixie, 19 years previous experience, master in electrical work plus heating and air-conditioning – described by Clarence Martin as a “Thermotechnician.”

David Hunt, a trainee for six months who is beginning the long journey leading to a high level of professionalism and specialization.

They are a creative group of men, says their boss, Clarence Martin.  “The good ones are a little emotional, even though they are common-sense men.  They care so much about the work they do.  These are the good ones.  We keep looking until we find them.”  Unlike many repair shops, staff at Dixie works without salary guarantee, but commission levels are higher than the norm.  The amazingly low turnover rate suggests it’s a system that work well – for mechanics and customers alike.

A program of continuing training, offered through AC-Delco in Charlotte, is a critical part of the company’s operations.  “This will sound like a strange analogy,” said Ernest Starmer, “but doctors have been working on the same body for all these years.  No new models, no change of styles.  The mechanics out in that shop have to be experts in perhaps 20 different “bodies” and many, many different models if we are going to serve our customers well.  That’s why we service only domestic cars.  We can’t be good in everything.  And in whatever we do, we want to be as good or better than anyone else.  That’s the fun of being in this business.”

Early 1970’s New Sign at Dixie Sales Company 327-29 Battleground Avenue

On the left of the picture is the red brick O’Henry Hotel at the corner of Bellmeade Street and Elm Street, and the white four story building is what we called the O’Henry Hotel annex.