It’s not every day that a cafeteria worker’s job referral launches a career which grows into a successful business. That was in 1973 when Sam Neira was an auto shop student at East Bakersfield High School.  Today Neira, 4, is owner of the bright new Neira’s Collision Center at 5800 Gasoline Alley Drive in the Bakersfield Auto Mall. The Collision Center, which was opened on a rainy day in February 2002, is only half of this entrepreneurial enterprise. His Neira’s Body Works is located at 111 Kern St. in east Bakersfield.  The two ventures employ 38 people. The new center is in a $1.3 million, 19,000-square-foot state-of-the-art building which is attracting interest from vendors and people in the auto body industry.

    Back in 1973 the cafeteria worker, Mrs. Mooney, told Neira to go to the Hawk Oldsmobile body shop in downtown Bakersfield and ask for her husband, Al Mooney.  “I arrived admitting I didn’t know a lot about the business,” he said. Mooney’s response:  “that’s all right. She told me to hire you.” He was hired and the on-thejob training began.  After Hawk Oldsmobile, Neira moved on to Alderette Auto Body. In 1978 he struck out on his own.  For a year Neira repaired cars in his garage.  He hired two helpers that first hear.  He opened his first shop at California Avenue and Oak Street where he added two technicians.  Finally, he moved into the 12,000-square-fppt facility on Kern Street.

    The operation is somewhat family oriented.  Office manager of Neira’s Collision Center is Regina Neira, His Daughter and oldest Child.  His son-in-law, David Delgadillo, married to his daughter, Stacy, is shop manager.  Sam Neira Jr. works at the Kern Street shop days and attends Bakersfield College evenings.  His sister-in-law, Sally Ruiz, took over the bookkeeping chores “long enough to get me off the ground.” Sam Sr. and his wife, Gloria, are parents of seven.  The youngest four are Tammi, a student at Bakersfield College; Kenny, a sophomore at Stockdale High School; and Cynthia and Andrew, students at Ronald Regan School.

    Sam Sr. was born in Arizona and Gloria in Texas, but both grew up in Bakersfield. “I’ve been blessed.  The Lord’s been good to me, sending me the right people to help me,” he said. Keith Brice, president of Mid State Development Co., steered him through the financial channels in gaining a Small Business Administration loan to be able to complete his dream project. However, he saves his loudest accolades for the late Tom Dooley, general contractor, who built both of the shops. He said the new building took a great deal of research.  Taming with Dooley, “we went up and down the state, looking at shops and layouts.  I never knew how an office should be laid out.” The building architecture matches the newest and sleekest dealerships up and down Gasoline Alley Drive.  The closest neighbor is Sangera Auto.  (Neira’s is the only independent body shop in the Auto Mall.) First-time visitors to the building will be surprised by the high-ceilinged, brightly lit lobby, surrounded by modern offices.  Sam Neira can sit in his office and watch activity in the shop and lobby at the same time. The building also has a tenant: A Hertz car rental office occupies the northwest corner fo the building. 

    The Collision Center has frequent visitors, especially sales representatives who, according to the owner, give rave reviews about the working space which contains all the modern equipment for making modern cars look like new again. The company has to keep up with the trends, Neira says.  He says the development of the unibody (the body welded to the frame) started a trend in the 1970s.  The current craze for SUVs and trucks are heavier with the vehicle bolted to the steel frame. “Today’s owners are very proud of their vehicles,” Neira says with a grin. 

    Today’s tolerances are much tighter than in previous years, he adds.  Another factor is the arrival of computers. “We’ve come from pencil and paper to the computer, everything has changed,” he said.  “The clientele is much better informed, too.” Employee training is an ongoing thing.  Neira said both the insurance companies and the equipment suppliers support training efforts. Two of Neira’s managers recently flew to New Mexico to visit a shop with a top ranking, especially in turnaround time.  Turnaround time – the time a car is tied up in the shop – is a major concern for every body shop operator, Neira said.

    Most of the body work is covered by insurance companies.  Occasionally the shop will get a job from the body shop of one of the Auto Mall dealers when it gets a backlog. Neira belongs to the California Auto Body Association.  His spare time is devoted to family activity, including membership in the Valley Baptist Fellowship.