Savant’s Collision named Nederland Small Business of the Year
Published 12:20 am Tuesday, January 14, 2020
- Stephen Savant, left, and his wife Amy, center, own Savant’s Collision Center in Nederland. The duo started the business in 1997 along with shop manager Chris Romero, right. Together they pose inside the collision center Monday. (Cassandra Jenkins/The News)
NEDERLAND — Stephen Savant and his wife Amy are owners of Savant’s Collision Center in Nederland.
The company started in 1997 with two employees, one vehicle and $10,000 in the bank. Today, the shop is overflowing with vehicles, employs 19 people from mechanics to paint and body technicians and has been named the Nederland Chamber of Commerce’s 2020 Small Business of the Year.
Stephen, who grew up in the car industry, said he is humbled when he thinks about how his business all started.
“I worked with a man named Glenn Sheffield at Sheffield’s Paint and Body shop in Port Neches,” he said. “I started out sweeping his floors at 14. He taught me everything I needed to know back then.”
Stephen, who grew up in Mid-County, attended college in Florida before marrying his wife and moving to Houston for a while before eventually returning home.
“We were staying in Houston but we missed being here,” he said. “We wanted to come home, so we decided to come back and start our own business. When I first started, Bob Smith, who owned an air conditioning company and was a good mentor to me, told me, ‘Give people a fair price, treat them fair and your business will grow’ — he was right.”
Savant’s Collision Center is located at 2299 N Twin City Hwy., specializing in mechanical and collision repairs, paint and body details and equipped with two tow trucks. Stephen said his company runs on compassion, family and good employees.
Stephen Savant, left, Amy Savant, center, and Chris Romero, right, pose underneath the original Savant’s Collision Center sign. (Cassandra Jenkins/The News)
“Finding people who want to work in this industry is hard,” he said. “We try and keep good employees, and if they leave, we don’t leave on bad terms. We care about our employees. We try to work around their lives and their schedules because it is a family-oriented business.
“We wouldn’t be here without our employees. We’ve heard such great things from our customers about everyone who works here, down to Chris Romero at the front desk and our shop manager, who has been here almost as long as I have.”
Stephen and his wife both said they are thrilled to be named as Small Business of the Year by the Nederland Chamber of Commerce.
“When I heard about it, I was overwhelmed because it put me in the group with people I respect and look up to,” he said. “I can’t believe they awarded me this; it’s a great honor. Nederland is such a great community, and that’s a major part of why we came back home in the first place. We just knew how good the people were.”
President and CEO of the Nederland Chamber of Commerce Diana LaBorde said Savant’s was chosen as Small Business of the Year by the board, which saw the important role they played in the community as a business and a family.
“We love family-owned businesses, because we feel like they are the bedrock of the community,” she said. “We really look at people and how they benefit our community, and the time the Savants put into supporting the community is exceptional.
“We know the Savant family and we appreciate everything they do. They are always out there to help people on the road and they do what they can for whomever they can. All you have do is call them and they are there for you.”
Savant’s Collision Center will be awarded at the Nederland Chamber of Commerce and Tourist Bureau’s 79th Annual Installation Banquet Thursday at 6 p.m. at Benton’s restaurant in Port Neches.
For more information, visit https://nederlandtx.com/ or Savant’s Collision Center on Facebook.
