黑料福利社

A benefit of working in a family business is getting to see the operation from the ground floor up. One local businesswoman literally began just that way, sweeping and dusting at her parents鈥� business, Aubrey鈥檚 RV Center.

Decades later as co-owner, she is still on 鈥渢he floor,鈥� but now she is running the show.

鈥淢y parents started the business in 1968 and when I was in grade school I would walk there after school to work,鈥� said Carolyn Gefre. 鈥淏y junior high I was selling parts in the summertime.鈥�

Gefre and her brother, Mark Reeves, took over the business in 2013. According to her, it has the largest parts department in Central Washington for trailers, fifth wheels, and motor homes. They specialize in parts and service such as routine maintenance, minor repairs and structural overhauls. They also pride themselves on longevity, not only themselves, but employees and customers as well. One employee has been with the company for over 49 years.

鈥淲e have worked hard to keep the feel of a family business,鈥� Gefre said. 鈥淚 love when people walk through the front door and have confidence in me to find their part but also ask me how my family is doing and tell me about theirs.鈥�

Gefre admits that confidence in her was hard earned at first.

鈥淎s a young female, 18 or 19 years old, there were some people that didn鈥檛 want to talk to me and would head to the salesman with their questions,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e would send them right back out to me at the counter and eventually I was able to get people to trust that I knew what I was talking about.

鈥淭hat mentality has changed over 40 years,鈥� she said.

Her advice for young women and all employees is to work toward something that she learned from on-the-job experience.

鈥淟earn to exude confidence, but you also have to know what you are doing and what you are talking about or customers aren鈥檛 going to want to talk to you.鈥� 鈥淏ut also be honest 鈥� sometimes you have to admit that you don鈥檛 know the answer to a question but can find someone who does.鈥�

The best advice Gefre would give anyone is to find work they really enjoy. She said being a small business presents challenges these days.

鈥淎mazon and other online sites make selling parts harder,鈥� she said. 鈥淪ome folks will take our time to diagnosis an issue and then go buy the parts online. So I really appreciate our loyal customers.鈥�

鈥淚t is tough,鈥� she said, 鈥渂ut online cutthroat pricing has made it difficult. Gefre added that they do their best with pricing and are sometimes able to work with a customer to meet them in the middle.

鈥淏ut you can鈥檛 do it always and stay in business.鈥� A recent bright spot for the RV business is that the COVID pandemic drove people outdoors, according to Gefre.

鈥淚t was a boon for outdoor industries overall,鈥� she said. The service and parts side of that industry remains strong. Also favoring their Union Gap business is proximity to the great outdoors, one of Gefre鈥檚 favorite reasons to live in the 黑料福利社.

鈥淚 have lived here my whole life and I love the area, I love the four seasons,鈥� said Gefre. She said she and her husband, their three adult sons, and two daughters-in-law all love to camp together. They enjoy the many offerings across the region from mountains to the beach, but favorites are Rimrock, Clear and Bumping lakes.

鈥淲e are so lucky to have beautiful mountains and lakes so close to us,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his is a great business to be because we make it so everyone can go camping. But,鈥� she pointed out, 鈥渙wning your own business and working six days a week does make it harder for us to camp.鈥�

Despite the challenges that come with owning any business, Gefre said it is something she loves.

鈥淚 get to work with my best friend and we work well together,鈥� she said of co-owning with her older brother. 鈥淢ark runs the shop, me upfront. I鈥檓 parts manager, bookkeeper, general manager and I couldn鈥檛 do it without him.鈥�

And while she may have started at the ground level, Gefre鈥檚 love of the business and her customers has taken her to the heights of satisfaction.

鈥淚f you enjoy what you do, the sky鈥檚 the limit.鈥�