Jean-François Champagne
CAE, President and CEO – AIA Canada
Ryan Bruno
CSN Collision
As I look back on my time as Chair in 2024, I am struck by the strength, adaptability, and momentum of AIA Canada and its members. This year was marked by significant milestones—both in advocacy and in fostering connections across our industry. It has been a privilege to witness the impact of our collective efforts firsthand.
One of the defining aspects of 2024 was the continued emphasis on collaboration. Whether at conferences, networking events, or division meetings, the enthusiasm and engagement of our members reaffirmed the importance of coming together. The energy at these gatherings underscored the vital role that in-person connection plays in strengthening our industry.
Another major achievement was our advocacy success. The passage of Bill C-244 and Bill C-294 marked a turning point in the fight for the right to repair, a victory made possible by the dedication of AIA Canada and its supporters. These legislative wins reinforce our ability to drive meaningful change and ensure a fair, competitive marketplace.
In addition, our commitment to providing members with critical industry insights remained strong. Research on shifting consumer preferences, and evolving business challenges has equipped our members with data-driven tools to make informed decisions. As our sector continues to evolve, staying ahead of these trends is essential.
I want to express my deepest appreciation to the volunteers on the Board of Directors, committees, and divisions. Your contributions fuel the progress of this industry, and your dedication does not go unnoticed. I also extend my sincere gratitude to Jean-François and the AIA Canada team for their unwavering support and leadership.
We may face some challenging, uncertain days ahead due to tariffs or other issues, but I am confident that the leadership and collaboration in the auto care sector will ensure a bright future. My sincere thanks to our members, serving as your Chair has been an extraordinary experience—one that I will always look back on with immense pride. Thank you for your trust, collaboration, and commitment to shaping the future of our industry.
AIA Canada continued to advocate for the right to repair. In 2024, AIA Canada saw historic steps forward for the right to repair, including:
AIA Canada staff and members hosted a federal lobby day on Parliament Hill in October. In face-to-face meetings with Members of Parliament, we promoted the auto care sector and defended the rights of Canadian consumers.
In partnership with the Government of Ontario and Plug N’ Drive, the Innovation in Automotive Training program returned for another year, with three colleges returning and one new college participating across Ontario: Conestoga College, Fanshawe College, Mohawk College and St. Lawrence College. This program aimed to address the industry’s labour and skills shortage through career exploration opportunities and up-skilling programs.
Over
88%
graduation rate
participants
AIA Canada’s research and knowledge products provide members with the strategic information they need to make sound business decisions. Our focus areas for 2024 were travel trends, consumer attitudes and preferences about in-car data, maintenance and repair, choosing service providers, and electric vehicles.
This report dove into travel trends among Canadian drivers, from early 2020 to late 2023, focusing on kilometres travelled, trip durations, average trip distances, and trip counts for a single vehicle.
As part of the Consumer Behaviour Series, this report took a comprehensive look at Canadian vehicle owner’s preferences towards maintenance and repair, such as their own knowledge, their priorities, and what they consider helpful.
As part of the Consumer Behaviour Series, this report provided an in-depth look at Canadian vehicle owner’s attitudes and perspectives on how they choose a service provider, including how vehicle owners find a service provider, their perception on chain and indepdent shops, and what drives loyalty.
As part of the Consumer Behaviour Series, this report offered insights into the preferences and awareness that Canadian vehicle owners have towards in-car data, data sharing, how telematics impact vehicle maintenance, and data ownership expectations.
As part of the Consumer Behaviour Series, this report took an in-depth look at the preferences and attitudes of millennial Canadian vehicle owners, and how their attitudes differ from other generations.
In 2024, we held numerous in-person events that focused on networking, learning, and driving the auto care industry forward.
Auto care professionals from across Quebec gathered in Trois-Rivières to attend the Grand Forum du Québec for a jam-packed day of connecting and gaining vital insights about pertinent industry topics, such as labour challenges, opportunities, the right to repair in Quebec, talent attraction, and more.
Date: January 25, 2024
Venue: Centre de congrès Hôtel Delta Trois-Rivières Marriott, Trois-Rivières, Quebec
164
attendees
AIA Canada Day, hosted by the AIA Canada Quebec Division, introduced industry professionals to students in auto mechanics and body repair programs at vocational training centres across Quebec to learn about the industry and what career opportunities are available.
Date: February 20, 2024
Venue: Ten different schools across Quebec
Over 1000
students attended the sessions
AIA Canada welcomed members from across the country to attend the National Conference for two days of connecting and learning from subject-matter experts, including a networking receptions and various insightful sessions about industry trends, opportunities, and challenges.
Date: April 23 to 24, 2024
Venue: Delta Hotels by Marriott Toronto Airport & Conference Centre, Toronto, Ontario
207
attendees
Voting members of AIA Canada attended the Annual General Meeting over Zoom to vote on the direction of the association for the year to come.
Date: April 10, 2024
AIA Canada held its most anticipated networking event held in Las Vegas, Nevada, during the AAPEX and SEMA trade shows—this year, though, it had a new look and was held outside on the Palazzo Pool Deck of The Venetian Resort®. This evening provided Canadian businesses with unparalleled opportunities to cultivate meaningful relationships from across the industry.
Date: November 5, 2024
Venue: Palazzo Pool Deck at The Venetian® Resort Las Vegas, Las Vegas NV
603
attendees
Organized by the Young Professionals in the Auto care sector (YPA) Committee, Student Aftermarket Day provided students from the Automotive Business School of Canada at Georgian College with the chance to learn about auto care sector careers with informative sessions and to make connections from several different companies across Canada’s auto care sector.
Date: November 20, 2024
Location: Georgian College, Automotive Business School of Canada, Barrie, Ontario
172
attendees
At the Student Aftermarket Networking Event, students had the opportunity to network with industry professionals, learn about the auto care industry, such as trends, opportunities, and the different types of careers available in the industry.
Date: October 10, 2025
Location: Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Calgary, Alberta
25
attendees
Throughout the day, students were able to network with industry professionals and present their ideas based on the theme Electric vehicles in the aftermarket, covering pertinent industry issues from training, marketing, infrastructure, to safety.
Date: November 27, 2024
Location: Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, Calgary, Alberta
25
attendees
AIA Canada Quebec Division golf tournament
Date: May 30, 2024
Venue: Club de Golf de Joliette, Saint-Charles-Borromée, QC
163
attendees
AIA Canada British Columbia Division golf tournament
Date: August 11, 2024
Venue: Swaneset Bay Resort and Country Club, Pitt Meadows, British Columbia
50
attendees
AIA Canada Manitoba Division golf tournament
Date: September 5, 2024
Venue: Larters Golf and Country Club, Saint Andrews, Manitoba
53
attendees
AIA Canada Alberta Division golf tournament
Date: September 10, 2024
Venue: Alberta Springs Golf Resort, Red Deer, Alberta
75
attendees
Hosted by the YPA, young professionals from across the industry had the chance to attend a professional development workshop, Empowered leadership: Crafting resilience, inspiring teams, and leading through change, where Chris Theodoratos, director of operations at Mr. Lube + Tires, brought his experience and expertise to offer attendees with insights on leadership, team building, and navigating change.
Date: November 19, 2024
Venue: Liberty North, Barrie, Ontario
31
attendees
YPA Community members and other auto care industry professionals joined together at the Holiday Networking Reception to see what they had been up to the past year and to celebrate the achievements of the industry.
Date: December 4, 2024
Venue: Bellwoods Brewery, Toronto, Ontario
37
attendees
The AIA Canada Manitoba Division invited auto care industry peers to connect and learn about the division and to honour AIA Canada’s 2024 accomplishments over a festive lunch.
Date: December 13, 2024
Venue: Viscount Gort Hotel Banquet and Conference Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
41
attendees
The Curbside Chat vodcast series returned for another year of insightful conversations with industry experts for season five.
Navigating collision repair during the age of emerging technologies
Date: March 28, 2024
Host: Lorraine Sommerfeld
Guests: Nick Dominato, director of product management, I-CAR, and Stuart Klein, vice president of collision programs, and executive director, I-CAR Canada, AIA Canada.
The road ahead: Top trends in the auto care sector
Date: April 24, 2024
Host: Lorraine Sommerfeld
Guests: Paul McCarthy, president and CEO, MEMA, Sabrina Thring, brand president of collision group, Driven Brands, and Chris Kinghorn, vice president of strategy and growth at UAP Inc.
The modernization of vehicles and enhancing the customer experience
Date: July 5, 2024
Host: Lorraine Sommerfeld
Guests: Costa Haitas, president, The Mufflerman, and Chris Theodoratos, director of operations, Mr. Lube + Tires
The future of employee expectations in the auto care sector
Date: July 30, 2024
Host: Lorraine Sommerfeld
Guests: Chris Muir, professor, Centennial College, and Marie Artim, vice president of global talent acquisition, Enterprise Mobility
Trump, tariffs, and a new presidency: Impacts on Canada’s auto care industry
Date: December 3, 2024
Host: Emily Holtby
Guests: Kate Harrison, vice chair, Summa Strategies, and Jean-François Champagne, CAE, president and CEO of AIA Canada
Over
254,700
website visits
Over
17,000
social media followers
Over
619,000
impressions on social media
Over
229,000
e-communications sent out with a click-through rate of 38% (surpassing the 2% industry average).
A social media engagement rate over
7%
Over
63,000
impressions on social media
Over
1,800
social media followers
Over
80,000
e-communications sent out with a click-through rate of 36% (surpassing the 2% industry average).
A social media engagement rate over
10%
In 2024, AIA Canada continued to support the collision sector with the CCIF Steering Committee, the Collision Repairer Council, and holding two Canadian Collision Industry Forum conferences.
Name | Company | Title |
|---|---|---|
Jeff Labanovich | Fix Network Canada | Chair |
Sylvain Séguin | Fix Network Canada | Vice Chair |
Mike Beier | Consolidated Collision Services/Dealers Co-op Inc. | OEM dealer representative |
Brandi Brydges | AutoCanada | OEM dealer representative |
Brian Chiu | Nissan Canada Inc. | OEM dealer representative |
Christina Christopher | Aviva | Insurance representative |
Jennifer Everett | Enterprise Mobility | Supplier representative |
Steve Gallace | 3M Canada | Supplier representative |
Emily Lowe | OpenRoad Richmond Auto Body | Collision repairer shop owner/manager representative |
Matthew Mauro | CARSTAR Canada | Young leader |
Brandon Roy | CARSTAR Canada | Collision repairer shop owner/manager representative |
Ryan Sox | Southern Alberta Institute of Technology | Educator |
Shannon Tardiff | CSN Collision | Collision repairer representative |
Rich Zamperin | Insightful Consulting and Support Services | Special advisor |
Stuart Klein | Automotive Industries Association of Canada | AIA Canada collision programs management representative |
Ornella Mukele | Automotive Industries Association of Canada | AIA Canada collision programs management representative |
Maruk Ahmed | Automotive Industries Association of Canada | AIA Canada Collision programs management representative |
Name | Company |
|---|---|
Stephen Boyd | The Boyd Group Inc. |
Ryan Bruno | CSN Collision |
Rick Hatswell | Craftsman Collision |
Paul Prochilo | Simplicity Car Care |
Sabrina Thring | Driven Brands |
Sylvain Séguin | Fix Network Canada |
The Canadian Collision Industry Forum (CCIF) gathered in Toronto, bringing together over 500 industry professionals for two days of networking, learning, and viewing the innovative CCIF Vendor Showcase.
Date: February 8 to 9, 2024
Venue: The International Centre, Toronto, Ontario
575
attendees
The Canadian Collision Industry Forum (CCIF) got together in Montréal to connect with industry peers and to attend insightful sessions about the latest industry trends, challenges, and opportunities.
Date: September 19 to 20, 2024
Venue: Montréal Airport Marriott In-Terminal Hotel, Montréal, Quebec
391
attendees
I-CAR Canada continued to be the leader in automotive skills development in Canada in both English and French. Representing over 150 hours of course credit, students can study topics ranging from electric vehicles, welding, estimating, to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).
29,161
Independent Learning Courses completed
2,289
in-person classes completed
2,286
webinars
Over
4,500
people enrolled in an I-CAR Canada course
1,789
new students joined I-CAR Canada
Through the AIA High Fives for Kids Foundation, AIA Canada and its members continued to support Canadian children’s charities and provide scholarship funding across the country.
given in 2024
Amount | Name |
|---|---|
$5,000 | The Children’s Breakfast Clubs |
$5,000 | Junior Achievement of Northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories Society |
$7,000 | YWCA Calgary |
In 2024, the Young Professionals in the Auto care sector (YPA) continued to hold events, such as Student Aftermarket Day at Georgian Colleges’ Automotive Business School of Canada, a professional development seminar, and the YPA Holiday Networking Reception in Toronto.
The YPA Community continued to expand and became a robust group of AIA Canada members under the age of 45 looking to climb the ladder in the auto care sector through mentoring, thought leadership opportunities, and network building opportunities.
The YPA Committee is made up and mandated to speak for young professionals in the auto care sector. We thank the members of the Committee who volunteered their time, expertise, and insight.
Name | Company |
|---|---|
Kari Hann | Specialty Sales & Marketing Inc. |
Patrick Verriet | MANN+HUMMEL Filtration Technology Canada |
Stephanie Cooney-Mann | UAP Inc. |
Jennifer Fox | Auto Electric Ltd. |
Andrew Harvey | Recochem Inc. |
Candice James | CARFAX Canada |
Zakari Krieger | Fix Network |
Georgia Ludwig | Wakefield Canada Inc. |
Adam Malik | Turnkey Media Solutions |
Hitesh Patel | Transtar Industries (King-O-Matic) |
Mark Potts | DRiV/Tenneco |
Derek Suen | Alliance Automotive Group |
Noah Smolders | AutologiQ |
Shannon Tardiff | CSN Collision |
Devin TerMarsch | DRiV/Tenneco |
Pragati Upadhyay | Wakefield Canada Inc. |
Nathaniel Willsie | Grote Industries |
The Young Leader of the Year Award is presented annually on behalf of the Young Professionals in the Auto care sector (YPA) Committee to an outstanding young professional in the auto care sector.
Patrick Verriet, Business Development Manager, Canada – MANN+HUMMEL
The AIA Canada Distinguished Service Award recognizes a lifetime of outstanding service and leadership. It is the highest award presented by AIA Canada to an individual member.
Bill Hay, President – The E.R.I Group
Name | Position |
|---|---|
Maruk Ahmed | Project coordinator, collision programs |
Adanna Anyalechi | Data and marketing coordinator |
Rosa Azizi | Senior operations and membership coordinator |
Alana Baker | Vice president, government relations and research |
Elise Bulhoes | Collision sector coordinator |
Jean-François Champagne, CAE | President and CEO |
Chloé Devine Drouin | Director, marketing and communications |
Kalli Foster | Manager, events and programs |
Pamela Fraser | Senior coordinator, collision programs |
Maude Giroux | Manager, regional division |
Sebastien Guindon | Graphic designer |
Emily Holtby | Vice president, government relations |
Safaa Kerchaoui | Customer experience coordinator, collision sector |
Stewart Kerr | Collision sector coordinator |
Stuart Klein | Vice president, collision programs, and Executive director, I-CAR Canada |
Micaela Korb | Senior project coordinator, Innovation in Automotive Training |
Bronwyn Lee | Program coordinator, Innovation in Automotive Training |
Gabriel LeBlanc | Digital marketing coordinator |
Larry McDonnell | Program coordinator, Innovation in Automotive Training |
Sophie Meunier | Collision sector coordinator |
Brendan Mullen | Vice president, digital and user experience |
Alyssa Munro | Events coordinator |
Ornella Mukele | Senior coordinator, collision programs and events |
Grace Moreland | Manager, member relations |
Mia Pacheco | Events and programs coordinator |
Shamsia Quraishi | Manager, research and governance |
Emily Reed | Content and media coordinator |
Susan Ramroop | Senior project coordinator, Innovation in Automotive Training |
Ibti Ridha | Vice president, finance and operations |
Tanya Scheidl | Director, I-CAR Canada |
Enaya Serhane | Finance officer |
Emma Shi | Senior finance officer |
Beth Steel | Project manager, Innovation in Automotive Training |
Ayah Stretch | Executive assistant and governance officer |
Lucy (Yanchen) Xie | Finance officer |
Katelyn Young | Team leader, I-CAR Canada |
Zoe Zhou | Finance manager |
Chenqu Zong | Senior finance officer |
Ryan Bruno
Chair
CSN Collision
Tony Kuczynski
Vice-Chair
Mister Transmission
Chris Kinghorn
Second Vice Chair
UAP Inc.
Shannon Spano
Past Chair
Wakefield Canada Inc.
Costa Haitas
The Mufflerman
Craig Jalbert
3M Canada Company (Automotive Aftermarket Division)
James Channer
In Motion Brands
Jasna Smiljcic
Jason G. Herle
Fountain Tire
Joey Miceli
Groupe Del Vasto
Michael O’Callaghan
Craftsman Collision
Micheline Davies
Canadian Tire
Pamela Lee
Mr. Lube + Tires
All of AIA Canada’s research is verified and validated by Communities of Practice, made up of industry professionals to ensure the data and analysis brings value to our members. We would like to thank our Community of Practice members for volunteering their time and sharing their expertise.
Name | Company |
|---|---|
Scott Cleroux | Agility Auto Parts Inc. |
Michael Chung | Auto Care Association |
Naresh Ramadhar | Mevotech |
AIA Canada established a Labour Taskforce in early 2022 comprising current board members to guide labour-focused research. The task force was responsible for identifying current labour challenges, selecting research vendors through an RFP process and guiding the research project for successful completion of outcomes. The industry stakeholders who contributed to shaping the 2024 research to its final forms are:
Name | Company |
|---|---|
Ryan Bruno | CSN Collision |
Tony Kuczynski | Mister Transmission |
Michael O’Callaghan | Craftsman Collision |
Derek Suen | Alliance Automotive Group |
Jason Yurchak | WORLDPAC |
PO Box 11356 STN H
Nepean, ON K2H 7V1
Canada
Toll Free: 800.808.2920
Telephone: 613.728-5821
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info@aiacanada.com
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