Shop Talk

by Rental Management

Season 1

Shop Talk: Thieves using your equipment to steal more equipment

In this episode, Elliott Vigil and John Jeanguenat talk to Kristen Bonewell from AMAROK about brazen thieves in the equipment rental industry.

S1 · E21

May 1, 2025

15:33

Shop Talk: Doug's first rental theft - what it's like for an independent operator

John Jeanguenat and Elliott Vigil sit down with Doug Haas at the Equipment Rental Guard event to talk about Doug's experience with theft. He says it's more than a $100 million problem and that independent operators need to do more to prevent it.

S1 · E20

Apr 25, 2025

21:41

Shop Talk: How do we find people to work in the equipment rental industry?

Melissa Hanna joins John Jeanguenat and Elliott Vigil to talk about one of the hardest challenges facing our industry - finding the right talent. 3:00 - How young is too young to start talking about rental with people? 6:00 - How important is mentoring and on the job training? 8:02 - Can personality tests help you in the hiring process? 14:19 - How do we grow our workforce 18:23 - Are we training enough in our industry? 19:35 - What is an experience map? 21:10 - How does culture fit in to retention? 23:29 - How do you maintain the culture through acquisitions? 25:52 - How do the big companies and independents work together to sell what rental has to offer?

S1 · E19

Mar 19, 2025

27:12

Shop Talk: That's right, he's a naval aviator. Fourth generation rental, CA fires, and more.

Shop Talk takes on The ARA Show - powered by ANA. Robert Pedersen of A Tool Shed joins John Jeanguenat and Elliott Vigil to talk about everything from his dad becoming the ARA president, his time in the military, changing their inventory to meet the needs of commercial customers, and more. 5:53 - Adaptable leadership and how being a helicopter pilot changed his mindset 9:00 - Being a rental store in California during COVID 12:58 - Rob talks about the California wildfires 18:45 - Residential market and competition 20:31 - Moving from residential to commercial customers 25:00 - Work/life balance

S1 · E18

Feb 27, 2025

27:21

Shop Talk: The contractor tells all.

Shop Talk takes on The ARA Show - powered by ANA. Jon Kaye of Miller Construction joins John Jeanguenat and Elliott Vigil to talk about what he looks for in a rental partner. He talks about his costs as a contractor, his decisions to rent vs. buy, and why it's important for a rental company to want to be his second call. 3:30 - Does the size of rental company matter? 13:00 - Jon talks about renting vs. buying 18:08 - The group talks about battery-powered equipment and its place on the jobsite 24:00 - Jon talks about brand preference of equipment 32:17 - John J. asks about theft on the job

S1 · E17

Feb 13, 2025

34:28

Shop Talk: Innovation and making money, jobsite generators, and kWs. You have to come along.

Shop Talk takes on The ARA Show - powered by ANA. John Jeanguenat and Elliott Vigil sit down with ANA president and chief operating officer, Kevin Day, and talk about the future of power generation, diesel power, questions about California's power grid after the wildfires, and the relationship between manufacturer and rental operator. 4:00 - Kevin talks about how to make a rental operator successful as a manufacturer given his experience at a rental store 6:57 - Elliott talks about jobsite trailers and generators and why they're always breaking down 12:22 - The guys talk about ANA's experience with the California wildfires and the future of power lines in the affected area 17:44 - Kevin explains the evolution of power generation that's happening now and what will happen in the next five years 20:15 - Elliott brings up hydrogen energy and asks Kevin his thoughts 22:34 - How our children and grandchildren are affecting ANA's business decisions

S1 · E16

Feb 13, 2025

32:11

Shop Talk: What are risks for independent rental stores? How to grow a third generation business.

Shop Talk comes to you from The ARA Show, powered by ANA. Kurt Barney is a third generation business owner and has taken Vandalia Rental to another level. He talks about making monumental decisions and his strategy to business, being a third generation business owner with multiple locations that continues to grow. The conversation gets better and better and more strategically focused! 3:15 - Kurt talks about how they got more than 1,000 to apply for their open position 4:45 - Vandalia Rental was awarded the best place to work 6:01 - He talks about why they gave people $10,000 to quit and start a fresh culture 10:55 - Kurt explains why his company is financially transparent 19:35 - F.A.I.L, how you should fail 24:30 - The guys talk about the importance of creating new leaders

S1 · E15

Feb 5, 2025

27:07

Shop Talk: Will new immigration policies affect workforce development? Hear our 2024 superlatives.

Josh, Elliott, and John talk about any potential changes to immigration policy, the quest for good talent, and their top headlines of 2024. 1:04 - John believes workforce development is the single biggest headwind to the industry 5:20 - Josh looks for the silver lining if contractors have labor shortages 7:11 - John shares that 25% of mechanics are 55 and older and other retirement statistics 12:12 - John talks about success stories from the ARA job board 17:15 - Elliott talks about his optimism for the future and Gen Z and Gen Alpha's propensity for the circular economy 19:00 - Josh weighs in the future as well 20:45 - John asks Josh and Elliott what stands out to them about 2024 25:22 - Elliott begins the discussion about what he's most excited about in 2025

S1 · E14

Jan 6, 2025

29:05

The future of equipment rental and The ARA Show 2025

Josh, Elliott, and John talk about this year's Future of Equipment Rental event taking place on Tuesday, January 28 at The ARA Show 2025. This day of speakers and panels kicks off this year's show and the guys explain why it's so important to attend. 1:01 - Elliott talks about his experience as a first-time attendee last year 2:16 - John talks about what his strategy was at RentalMax in terms of attending The ARA Show 4:10 - Josh talks about his 20th ARA Show and what it will be like to attend as a member again 6:50 - The guys talk about their buying habits at the show 10:20 - The Future of Equipment Rental lineup is discussed 15:00 - Josh talks about what he's most excited about at The ARA Show including the AI workshop 18:15 - Elliott gives advice about attending The ARA Show 18:45 - Is rental a gamble?

S1 · E13

Dec 16, 2024

29:05

The election is over, what's it mean for equipment rental? We're talking politics.

Josh Nickell, Elliott Vigil, and John Jeanguenat talk about the implications of the election on the future of the equipment rental industry in 2025 and beyond. They tackle tariffs, purchasing, and much more. 2:35 - Will the JCTA be renewed? Is 2025 the super bowl of taxes? 8:00 - Elliott discusses interest rates going down and optimism for the future. 9:30 - John shares a contractor's perspective on building in 2025. 11:41 - What happens if tariffs are put in place? 15:07 - Josh wants to know if American manufacturers can compete with overseas prices. 17:30 - If demand doesn't increase, what does our fleet utilization look like in the next few years? 20:00 - Is residential construction finally rebounding? 25:06 - Elliott talks about utilization, interest rates, and short-term pain for long-term gain. 28:10 - What is the key to doing smart fleet management? 30:07 - Elliott poses the question, How do the small guys compete with the large 5 equipment rental companies? 37:00 - Non-traditional labor can help with your staffing needs. 41:19 - Elliott talks about unreasonable hospitality.

S1 · E12

Dec 16, 2024

43:53

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