by Tammy Taylor
Staff Writer
Bud Sikes is keeping it in the family. As the third generation of Sikes & Stowe, Inc., a collision repair shop in LaVilla, Sikes still gets his hands dirty.
Sikes & Stowe has been a part of downtown since 1926. The oldest independent body shop in Jacksonville, it has been located in LaVilla since it opened. The auto body repair company moved to new facilities on Monroe Street in 1997.
“We’ve always been downtown,” said Sikes. “It’s been the hub of the city and we’ve never wanted to leave. We’re in a good location, downtown is a good place to be and I’m glad people are moving downtown.”
Being located downtown, Sikes caters business men and women, lawyers, City workers and the occasional Jacksonville Jaguar. Sikes also gets good business from people who live on the Northside.
Sikes said his business and livelihood has been increasing over the past few years.
“We’ve been busy this year because of the growth of Jacksonville and the streets being so backed up,” he said.
Sikes added that the new facility is a reason his business continues to flourish.
“People don’t want to take their cars to smaller, older shops anymore. They want to take them to nicer facilities,” he said.
The collision center sees every type of car from Proteges to Mercedes Benz, but what was the car that left a lasting impression on Sikes? Two Ferrari’s.
“A man brought two in a few years ago for paint jobs,” said Sikes. “He dropped one off, got it painted, came back in another one and had that one painted, too.”
Sikes said he briefly toyed with the notion of going into something besides the family business. He spent two years at Florida Community College at Jacksonville.
“I tried college, but it didn’t work out. I liked having money in my pocket and I wanted to follow in the family footsteps,” he said.
And with a slogan like “Our business comes from satisfied customers,” it’s no wonder the shop has been in the family for over 75 years.