In the current climate of industry consolidation, many past mid-sized ABPA members have disappeared over the past twenty years leaving opportunities for smaller, niche distributors to fill in a certain market need. One of those smaller, specialty ABPA members is B&D Autobody Parts of Florida which is run by owner and industry veteran, Brian Bisbee.
Starting in the industry as a sales route driver for Astro Automotive back in 1990, Bisbee started off at the bottom and worked his way up. After his stint at Astro and a brief time at Keystone, he decided it was time for him to think bigger and start his own business in Upstate New York. The original B&D Auto Body Parts was founded by Bisbee and his wife, Donna, in 1993 in Clifton Park, NY and serviced the greater Albany area. As time went on, he expanded his delivery area to other parts of New York, Vermont and Massachusetts. With this expansion, the need for a warehouse was apparent and loading his drivers out of his personal garage was no longer an option. In 1998, B&D expanded into a large, 25k square foot building in Clifton Park. Expansion such as this needs more parts and inventory and it became apparent to Bisbee that he needed a partner. Working with Fit-Rite in Totowa, NJ, Bisbee entered into a partnership and became part of a larger buying group that leveraged their size to get increased discounts from Taiwan.
B&D continued their growth and success until they were acquired by Keystone in 2006. As with many northerners who are looking for a change in climate, Bisbee and his family decided to move to the Florida Keys. After a brief career as an owner of a local restaurant in the Keys, Bisbee missed the action of selling parts to body shops and developing a successful distribution and sales business. The collision parts industry is ingrained in his DNA and he needed to get back. In 2012, Bisbee opened B&D Autobody Parts of Florida and has been growing it ever since. Exclusively serving the Florida Keys, they have two drivers including Bisbee himself who drives over 300 miles each day to service his customers. With continued growth each year, Bisbee plans to continue his legacy as a successful parts distributor and ABPA member.
More photos from B&D Autobody Parts of Florida are included in the gallery below:
