Tobar prides itself on a reputation built on quality. Over 99.7 percent of the millions of seals it ships each month are accepted by its customers.  “To our knowledge, we were one of the first import seal companies to concentrate on statistical process control,” Tom said. “There was a market for a quality-oriented import seal supplier.”

Tobar methodically tests its seals before sending them to customers. “We have continued to grow technically,” Tom said. “By adding a mechanical engineer and a very sophisticated lab we have been able to automate our processes and have been able to grow without adding people commensurate with our growth.”

“Our greatest challenge is maintaining the growth we have seen in the past,” Barbara said. “We have been strategically adding customer, and trying to plan what we will need for the future. The engineering assistance we can provide to our customer is one of Tom’s greatest strengths.”

Keeping their promises
The Schoellkopfs said that delivering on promises has been a core aspect of the success they have seen. They try to run their business in such a way as to under-promise and over-perform regarding their customers.

“Everyone at Tobar knows the value of doing what you say you will do,” Barbara said.

Tobar also has prided itself on being ahead of the curve with respect to market demands. The company is adding on to its warehouse facilities, not to cope with the amount of business it conducts now, but to be able to manage the amount of orders it expects to have in the future.

Although the automotive industry to which Tobar supplies parts has under gone dramatic changes since the company was founded, its business has changed very little. Tom and Barbara attribute the static nature to their planning and forecasting.

“Customers have placed more demands on us over the years,” Tom said, “but we have always been prepared. Our product has not really changed.”
“We buy from quality suppliers, and we have a good engineering staff,” said Barbara.

Tobar has 15 employees and considers itself a very technically competent small company. The Schoellkopfs feel that their small size helps them remain true to their core business values, a fact which they believe works to their advantage.
“When you have a tremendous personnel boom, you can lose what you brought to the party,” Tom said.

The husband and wife team is careful to leave its business at work and try not to bring it home.

“I don’t think we could have done this without each other,” Barbara said. “We have been able to remain best friends. We try not to talk shop at home, but when we break that rule our meeting can last until 3 in the morning.”