About Jim Bentley

Full Name Jim Bentley
Business Name Mr. "B" Automobile Upholstery Shop
Position Owner
City Bloomington
State IL
Tell us about yourself My Story.................Auto upholsterer for 22 years, give or take. Mainly seat repair, semi retired now. I pass on the big jobs these days because I don't need the pressure, stress, and headaches. In 1977 I bought an upholstery shop, because I needed a job. The price was rite and I learned by teaching myself. The first job I did looked so bad, I thought that I should just give it away. Then I wondered, how long could I operate that way? The customer ended up paying me and the more I did the better the work looked. At that time I did every thing in the upholstery industry. Seats, tops, vinyl tops. boats, antique cars, full interiors, custom or hand made, small furniture, everything. Back then there were no computers or internet. The only way to stay on top of the industry was to subscribe to Auto Trim News, and Hemmings. It was hard to keep up with current trends. Back then the side insert in the drivers cushion went for 22.50. I got really good at what I did, and made a name for myself in my area. I worked on every kind of car and did every shitty job that came through the door. I continued doing upholstery until about 1995, when I realized it sure would be easier to collect a pay check for forty hours a week, as opposed to what I was doing. So, in 1995 I got a job painting, in commercial and industrial union construction, and put all my upholstery equipment in storage, for a rainy day. I made a very good living, but never really enjoyed the work. not because it was extremely labor intense, but the work ethic was not what I was used too. To much get it done as fast as you can, cut every corner along the way, no attention to detail, and zero appreciation. This was all new to me, I had never experienced this before. I painted for eighteen long years. I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, then seven years before retirement, I lost that job and knew it would never return. I looked for a job for almost two years, and the only thing I could land was a part time, minimum wage, second shift, work you like a set of twins, grocery store job. I was to old, no skills to speak of and no education. I was talking to my brother one day, who happens to be in the used car business, and he suggested I get back into the upholstery business. It was the last thing in the world I wanted to do.......to be continued
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