Towing industry advocate Jack Poladian is the operations manager at Eagle Towing, Ontario’s only distributor for NRC Industries towing and recovery equipment. Poladian fills us in on how a family-owned company, kickstarted in the ’70s, is still booming today–and about what he wishes people knew about the industry.
Collision Repair: Over the years, Eagle Towing has expanded from a one-truck company to a fully functioning business in a 15,000 square foot facility, how?
Jack Poladian: At the end of the day, it all comes back to true dedication. My family has put their heart, soul, and every waking minute into this company. Eagle Towing isn’t treated as a business, it’s treated as a lifeline and every moment Simon and Victor [co-owners] are thinking about their next move and how to support their customers.
CR: What do you think the future of Eagle Towing looks like?
JP: Personally, I believe the future of this business is a bright one. Ever since I’ve been on board, we’ve increased sales by 300 percent, our service amounts have almost doubled, and we’re still pushing forward.
CR: Nearly every industry faces some negative misconceptions–but it is a particular issue towing professionals face. How is Eagle Towing working to redefine the public’s conception of the towing business?
JP: Many people have misconceptions about the towing industry due to a few bad apples. They are ruining things for the good ones! But at Eagle Towing we hold ourselves to a higher standard, and we deal with a lot of tow companies where the owners have a passion for what they’re doing, care for their customers and employees. There’s so much good in the industry. We all want to change that persona that the towing industry has by doing good quality work, and making sure everyone’s equipment works right and feels safe.
CR: What is one thing you wish people knew about working in this industry?
JP: It would be nice if people acknowledge towers as a form of emergency response because there’s a lot of people who risk their lives waiting on the side of the road for help. If civilians could pull over and respect tow truck operators that would be great because, at the end of the day, everyone has a family and people risk their lives to help others in a jam. There’s nowhere in the rule books that says “you have to operate a tow truck,” these guys choose to come out and help no matter rain, sleet, hail, snow, or cars on fire. We are on-site doing whatever they can to help.
CR: For any collision repair business looking to expand into towing, what is one piece of advice you would give?
JP: It’s tricky, because depending on what area you tow out of, collision repair companies and towing companies need to be segregated due to towing regulations. However, to collision repairers who really want to expand in this industry and can. I want to say to all of them, be fair with everyone–It’s our job to do incident management and help others while staying humble. Do your best to do the best quality of work that you’re capable of.
