CollisionRight, based in Ohio, recently reached the 125-store milestone with the acquisition of three new stores: Sonny’s Body Shop and Traverse Body and Paint in Traverse City, MI; Dexter’s in Bradford, PA; and Minton in Bloomington, IN.
Founded in late 2019, the private equity-backed MSO has maintained a steady rate of growth over the past six years, now with locations in 11 Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. It has added 21 shops so far in 2025, with plans to acquire five more before year’s end.
The shops CollisionRight buys maintain their own branding while integrating the operating systems and workflows that have driven the MSO’s success.
CEO Rich Harrison spoke to Autobody News about what the sixth-largest MSO in the U.S. looks for in an independent shop.
“There's a lot of value in the local brands as far as being a presence in the community,” Harrison said.
Shops that sponsor high school sports teams or set up a booth at the county fair tend to build a reputation that leads to word-of-mouth referrals and repeat customers, especially in the Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets CollisionRight concentrates on.
In many cases, the shops have been around for decades. For example, Nichols Body Company in Columbus, IN, will celebrate its 100th year in business in 2026.
“Why would you take that sign down?” Harrison said.
When looking at potential acquisitions, Harrison said the first thing he looks at is the shop’s culture — namely, if it aligns with CollisionRight’s belief in taking care of its customers and employees.
The shop’s Google reviews tell part of the story. How many reviews does it have, and how high is the average rating?
“That shows me that these guys are switched on,” Harrison said.
CollisionRight’s Net Promoter Score (NPS) — a customer loyalty metric based on how likely customers are to recommend the business — is 90 out of 100. “We've gotta find shops first of all that have that same DNA and passion around the customer,” he said.
Other factors are important too. The MSO looks for shops in its target geographical areas that have strong relationships with insurance carriers, are well-equipped and clean, and are turning a profit.
“Those are all things that we do in our due diligence process,” Harrison said.
Integrating a New Acquisition
After acquiring a shop, CollisionRight migrates it to the same operating platform used by every other shop in the network, handling management, technology, back-office support and partnerships with insurance carriers and vendors.
CollisionRight's current footprint includes 11 states.
“It looks and behaves and acts like many of the other MSOs that you're familiar with, with the exception that we keep the local brand,” he said.
The fact the shop keeps its name can be confusing, Harrison said.
“It's not a franchise; we own everybody 100%,” he said. There is some signage added inside the shop to tie it to CollisionRight, but otherwise, “we think there's a lot of value in retaining these brands.”
CollisionRight has connected its financial reporting system to CCC, the estimating system used in all of its shops, allowing it to track each shop’s profit and loss (P&L) statements. Those are reviewed with shop management on a monthly basis.
“We coach them on how to improve their performance, and we share best practices across all the shops,” Harrison said.
Similarly, CollisionRight tracks it shops’ processes with insurance partners, and shares those best practices with the entire network as well.
As claims counts have decreased, making capture rates more important than ever, CollisionRight is handling insurance relations in a contact center.
“We're getting a hold of a policyholder within an hour and getting them scheduled into the nearest shop,” Harrison said. “That’s something that we've deployed as an industry best practice to improve our capture rate. It's really important, especially in the down market, that you are converting at a very high level.”
Looking Ahead to 2026
CollisionRight aims to be a super-regional MSO in the central U.S., Harrison said. In 2026, it will be looking to add density in markets where it already has a presence.
“We also look at other markets and states, but it has to be strategic,” he said. “We don't have plans to jump all the way across the country to California anytime soon.”
The goal is to acquire another 25 shops, “but to me, it's not necessarily just about the growth and the number of shops — although that's exciting and fun — but it's really about operational excellence, performing at all levels, delivering a return for our shareholders. It's really tough in this environment.
“The industry is changing, it’s very dynamic, and sticking true to your core values and a tight operating plan is absolutely essential in my opinion,” he said.
Abby Andrews