When Rosie Livings, her late husband Billy Livings, the storied Vero Beach High School football coach, and one of their sons pulled into Vero Beach from Montgomery, Alabama, nearly 4 decades ago, they immediately started to settle in.
“I needed a hair dresser, shoe repair shop and mechanic,” said Mrs. Livings, who recalled the family arrived with 2 Hondas and a van trailing a fishing boat.
She found the hairdresser and shoe shop, and began taking their cars to a local auto shop – Don’s Import Auto Service – in the early 1980s.
Since then, the Livings have had about 8 cars – including several Oldsmobiles and a used 1992 Mercedes coup convertible that needed substantial work – serviced at Don’s. The shop, located at 150 43rd Avenue just south of 4th Street, works on domestic automobiles but specializes in imports, including BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Volkswagen and Lexus vehicles, doing everything from replacing a light bulb to installing a new engine.
“He’s what America is made of,” beamed Mrs. Livings, a loyal customer. “He’s worked hard, built up a really fine business. It’s an attractive shop that does good service. He doesn’t pull any punches. He’s honest and part of the life of this county.”
Don Meeks is indeed, as Livings states it, “the good ‘ole American success story.”
“It’s what our country is all about,” she said.
Meeks, a 4th generation Vero Beach resident, attributes his strong work ethic to his family heritage. The Meeks are a blue-collar family with a service-work background, giving a strong attention to detail and quality products, he said. His grandfather, who came to Vero Beach in the 1940s, was a police officer who became a carpenter. His father followed in those footsteps becoming a carpenter too, and later a construction project manager.
While his family has mostly been in the construction business, Don began carving out his own path in automobile mechanics after a neighbor who worked at the Volkswagen dealership offered him a job when he graduated from Vero Beach High School in 1974. He started in the parts department, then moved to service, then became a technician.
“My neighbor always helped me work on my own cars … that piqued my interest,” Don said. “After working for awhile, I realized I had a natural mechanical aptitude.”
In 1977, Don partnered with a friend to open an auto repair shop and a few years later in 1980, he branched out on his own, opening Don’s Import Auto Service. This September, will mark the company’s 35th year.
“It was just to do things for friends and family,” he said recalling his motivation for opening a business decades ago. “I do things fairly and honestly. There is a great deal of satisfaction from repairing something … something that seems baffling and complicated.”
In 1982, Don’s Import Auto Service moved to its current location, where it operated out of a “pole barn” – a steel building on a wooden frame.
In 2008, it was transformed into a state-of-the-art building. “We designed it to be very functional,” he explained. “People often comment on how nice the building is, that it’s well kept, with Florida native landscaping.” It won the New Small Commercial Building of the Year Award in 2010 through the Indian River Chamber of Commerce.
The business started with 3 people – Don, a technician and office assistant – and has grown to one that employs 17. “It’s been organic, consistent growth,” he said. “We place a high value on integrity and customer service.”
What makes his business continue to thrive approaching its 35th year? He believes the quality work and customer service are the main reasons. For example, someone at Don’s will answer the phone when you call.
“I get annoyed when I call somewhere and it’s automated … asks you to push 1, 2, 3. Can’t somebody just answer the phone?” he said.
“We will answer the phone. If it goes to voicemail, it’s either an emergency or we are closed.”
Don’s Import Auto Service also warrantees everything it does for 2 years or 24,000 miles. “We stand behind what we do,” he said.
It offers shuttle service in the local area and provides loaner cars for regularly scheduled servicing.
The business also does its best to give customers options for repairs. Sometimes there are a couple of different grades of parts – new or rebuilt – and these reflect varying costs.
“We try to give customers information so they can make informed decisions without any pressure from us.”
Don’s is Indian River County’s only Bosch Car Service. (Bosch makes a majority of components for cars – starters, alternators, ignition components, spark plugs and more). Because of that affiliation, it can offer stress-free financing; 6 months with no interest for qualified applicants.
“This helps people with an unexpected major expense repairs,” he said.