Mincer Ford goes the extra mile

Based out of Louisa County, Mincer Ford Inc. is the designated Ford dealership and service shop for the Columbus Junction and Washington areas.

The shop, once known as Shellmyer Motors, employed 15-year-old Larry Mincer, to wash the vehicles, before he worked his way up the ladder to become a mechanic, then salesperson, before he and his wife purchased the business themselves in 1984.

Since then, Mincer Ford has followed a straightforward business model, with the help of their sons Alex (sales manager) and Patrick (service manager.)

“We don’t do any BS, there’s no games,” Alex Mincer said. “We pride ourselves on not throwing a bunch of different hidden fees and everything like that at you. We’re not going to tell you your car needs something if it doesn’t. We’re pretty honest.”

Customers always come first: Mincer Ford offers vehicle pickups for service work in a roughly one-hour radius, and leaves loaners in their place for customers’ convenience.

On top of that, the business keeps all the charm of its small town clientele.

“We’re personal with every customer, we try to make sure everyone know exactly what’s going on,” Mincer said. “Most of the time with one person, not like at big stores where you deal with multiple people, there’s a huge difference.”

Each of the store’s employees — of which there are just over a dozen — has plenty of experience to brag about: an officer manager who’s worked there since six months after opening, or a few mechanics with at least 15 years under their belts.