After high school graduation, Val started working as a painter’s helper at an Oldsmobile dealership in Cleveland and eventually worked in the body shop. In 1965 Val visited his retired parents in Arizona and the rest is history. He moved to The Grand Canyon State and never looked back.

 His first job in Arizona was in the paint shop at Money Oldsmobile. He then moved to Childress Buick as a body technician and soon became an estimator in the front office. Val worked for a year as an estimator for State Farm Insurance in 1970.

 This path of experience led him to begin his own business. He rented a building on a dirt road, hired a body man and did the painting himself in a masonry booth for his start in the collision repair business. Business boomed and his reputation for quality work laid the foundation for his future.

 In 1972 Val moved into the big time when he opened Campus Body Salon on a main drag in Tempe, Arizona near Arizona State University. He called it a salon rather than a body shop to focus on his elite customer base. His reputation quickly grew and Campus Body Salon always had Rolls Royces, Ferraris, Maseratis and Porsches lined up for repair.

 Val became very involved in the industry. As a young business owner, he was hungry for information. He helped start the Arizona Collision Craftsman’s Association. He traveled all over the country to seminars to gain knowledge and build long-lasting friendships that are still strong today.

 In 1989 Val took over Raintree as a second location, keeping Campus in Tempe. In 2003 he made the decision to sell Campus and focus on his Scottsdale location, Raintree.

The first car bench

 In the early 70’s the newly formed California Auto Body Association held its first major trade show at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Hollywood California. It was there Val was introduced to the Paulee Universal Car Bench. It was what he was looking for to repair the European unibody cars filling his shop.

 Val bought the first bench of any kind in Arizona and built a longtime business relationship with Paulee, a pioneer in bringing unibody repair technology to America. Paulee used Val and Campus as a training center for shop owners and insurance companies from around the country. Val continued to set the bar for quality repairs.

Horses are his passion

Looking to the future

 Val leaves his ranch in Santan daily to oversee operations. The quality work that Val made his trademark prevails in this changing industry and he has passed that legacy on to his sons, Paul and Tom.

Reparability of the 21st century automobile is a new frontier. Raintree Auto Body is looking to the future to maintain the quality of repair work. That is the backbone of Val’s business philosophy and he has built his business and reputation on it.