Photo courtesy BAPS

By Karen Hendricks | Published by the York Daily Record, May 14, 2024

Calculating the amount of paint the Berkheimer family has spread, brushed, sprayed and distributed over York County and beyond, over the past 63 years, is difficult to estimate. Gallons, easily in the thousands, have coated the interiors and exteriors of homes and businesses alike, as well as vehicles.

Equally colorful is the family’s entrepreneurial story, now spanning four generations and encompassing the mid-Atlantic region from a home base of York County.

What began as R.F. Berkheimer & Sons in 1961 morphed into today’s BAPS (Berkheimer Auto Paints & Supply) and, heading into the fourth generation, there are five additional businesses branching out from the family tree.

Eight family members gathered recently to share their reflections and insights, their memories and stories weaving together, painting a picture of their journey.

The secret to their success can be summarized in one word, said 89-year old family patriarch Raymond “Ray” Berkheimer: trust.

“The word ‘trust’ is a word that you can’t imagine how powerful it is,” said Ray, referencing two types of trust: Developing trusted relationships with customers, while entrusting the fate of their business into God’s hands. He learned both of those ideals from his father, also Raymond, for whom the company — R.F. Berkheimer & Sons — was named.

“He was very perfect in what he did,” said Ray, “and that came along with us, and we want to instill it as far as this company can go.”

In 2023, BAPS hit the milestone of $50 million in gross sales, with a workforce of 270 employees.  It’s a vision that certainly R.F. Berkheimer nor his son Ray could have imagined during the family business’ humble beginnings.

A Twinkle in their Eye

Back when R. F. Berkheimer & Sons — and its trajectory — were barely a twinkle in R.F. or his son Ray’s eyes, the company launched as a residential painting business.

“[My father] loved painting,” said Ray. “I can still see him carrying an extension ladder on his back, going to work, his brushes on his bucket.”

It was a vision Ray and his older brother Bob admired, so as soon as they were old enough, they were hired, putting “the sons” into R.F. Berkheimer & Sons. They were following in their father’s footsteps — or maybe more appropriately — in their father’s brushstrokes. Back in the day — we’re talking about the 1960s — painting was done the old-fashioned way, with paintbrushes. But that was about to change.

“We were painting a house,” Ray recalled, “and I said to my brother, ‘Isn’t there a faster way to painting than these brushes?’ It was hurting my hand,” Ray said.

The brothers conspired to buy a paint roller.

“Dad won’t be here till later — we could have half this house painted,” Ray recalled them saying.

Sure enough, the brothers’ paint job went much quicker.

“Late in the afternoon, dad came down around the house, and I said, “Uh-oh, here comes dad — hang in there — I don’t know what’s going to happen,’” Ray said.

When R.F. came around that corner, he called Ray by his nickname, as was his habit, saying a long, drawn-out, “Boy….”

“But he started to grin and smile,” Ray recalled, “And he said, ‘Well I guess we just started to use the rollers.”

Today, it may be difficult to fathom how something as simple as paint rollers could be considered innovative, but that was the first step in the company’s growth. Not long after that, the brothers convinced their father to invest in paint sprayers. Then Ray approached his father about taking the business to another level — by investing thousands of dollars in an aerial platform truck.

“He said, ‘Boy, that’s a lot of money — what if it doesn’t go? And I said, ‘Dad, honestly if you don’t want to do it, if you’re afraid to invest, I don’t want you to be hurt. But if you can trust me, I’ll put everything into seeing this over — that we can continue on,’” Ray recalled. “So he breathed with a sigh, ‘I guess we’ll go and continue on.’”

Their work not only continued, but increased exponentially through the 1960s and 70s, to encompass more commercial work including warehouses, ceilings and barns.

All the while, Ray’s wife Dottie served as secretary for R.F. Berkheimer & Sons, directly from their home on Lewisberry Road.

But by the late 70s, the family was ready to take a leap of faith.

“Work was getting hard — we were in our 40s,” said Ray, who had a realization. “I believe it is easier to sell paint than it is to put paint on — let’s pray about it. Let’s see if God [provides] — every door has to open up. That was my dad’s motto, taken out of Revelations.”

BAPS Is Born

In 1979, a new business was born — BAPS Auto Paints & Supply — ushering in a new third-generation of Berkheimers.

“The family business was always our life — we couldn’t wait to work. I started the day after I graduated,” said Sharon Hogue, now 56, daughter of Ray and Dottie.

She shared the first day at BAPS with her brother, Dean Berkheimer, now 62. Transition was in the air.

“We had no desire to paint houses or climb on roofs,” said Dean, “Painting [as a business] was starting to taper off because of aluminum siding. That lasted forever and paint didn’t — that’s why the transition.”

The family began building a strong relationship with PPG brand automotive paints, which still exists today.

“We decided to buy an inventory of auto paint, turn our shed into a store and start to sell paint—and not one of us knew anything about it at first,” said Dean, laughing. He still remembers BAPS’ first sale — a gallon of black automotive paint that cost Manchester’s Quigley Motor Company a total of $19.95. That same gallon of acrylic enamel would go for about $400 today.

Talk about humble beginnings — that first BAPS store was located in a little white shed at 2770 Lewisberry Road, just north of York. Dean and Sharon, with their sister Tammy, began learning the business alongside Ray, Dottie and Bob — each of them taking on specific roles.

Ray, with his contacts throughout the community, got the word out and introduced customers to the new BAPS brand.

“Dad [Ray] worked super hard and prayed that the money came in,” recalled Sharon. 

In addition to working full-time at BAPS, Dean worked at area body shops by night, for a time period of 20 years, to expand his knowledge of the industry.

“I ended up knowing what I was talking about [in order to sell paint to our customers], said Dean, who also took advantage of every class and training that PPG offered.

“I was on the aggressive side like dad [Ray], always looking for the new stuff [in the industry],” Dean said.

Dottie was often the face of the business. Behind the wheel of a tiny Ford Fiesta, she delivered automotive paint to customers far and wide. This was well before the time of GPS, and she developed a keen sense of direction, learning York and Adams Counties’ roadways like the back of her hand.

Sharon worked her way up through the family business, from deliveries to sales, purchasing and management.

“Dean and I and our sister Tammy — we started to understand the numbers side of how businesses work. What we brought to the team was how to get to the next level and acquire more businesses,” said Sharon.

BAPS began to grow within central Pennsylvania — adding locations in Lemoyne and Chambersburg, while establishing the company’s headquarters on Loucks Road, through the 80s and 90s into the 21st century. Ray, Dottie and Bob retired in 2000, leaving Dean and Sharon at the helm, as CEO and President, respectively.

“Sales were flat for a long time, so in 2012, we made our first acquisition in Massachusetts,” said Dean.

Today, BAPS is established throughout the mid-Atlantic region with 11 paint stores, including four in Virginia. Their fleet of colorful vehicles, emblazoned with the BAPS logo, crisscrosses York County’s home base regularly — a far cry from Dottie’s original Ford Fiesta.

“We had a lot of trust in PPG — they are the largest now, in automotive paint,” Dean said.

As BAPS and PPG grew, so did the Berkheimer family. The fourth generation was waiting in the wings.

The Four Boys

Austin Hogue — Sharon’s son — has vivid childhood memories of his grandparents and great-uncle Bob, intertwined with the business. He remembers Dottie’s daily lunches, prepared for the BAPS crew.

Additionally, “Ray and Bob would pray for the business every morning,” said Austin, now 32, adding that those family mealtimes and prayers are the stuff that “makes family business fun.”

Today, Austin is one of “the four boys” as the family refers to the fourth generation of Berkheimer leadership. In addition to Austin and his brother Andrew Hogue, 28, there are Dean’s sons — Brett Berkheimer, 32, and Tim Berkheimer, 36. The two sets of brothers — all cousins — have now evolved into their various roles within the family business.

Brett serves as CEO of BAPS while Austin is President, Andrew is Secretary, and Tim is Treasurer. All four are equal co-owners — part of a 10-year succession plan that Dean and Sharon put into place to ensure a seamless transition into their retirement, planned for January of 2025.

“Our grandchildren — these are the boys — they have always gotten along well and love to be together,” said Dottie. “Scripturally, God is our source — that’s what we live by. They’re the ones doing the selling, but God is the source.”

And that’s where Brett and Tim found their sweet spot — in BAPS’ sales. But “the four boys” have also developed and brought new businesses into the family portfolio.

“We were trying to find and hone in on the skill sets of all the kids,” said Sharon.

About 10 years ago, Sharon and Dean took the first step toward diversifying the company — and it became a perfect fit for Andrew.

“Tim had the idea to get into the equipment business — he noticed a lot of body shops needed equipment, and there was nobody targeting the equipment needs of body shops,” Andrew said.

As a result, the family purchased a longtime Harrisburg-based company, renaming it DownForce Air Solutions. It’s focused on selling and maintaining air compressors and other equipment.

Meantime, in his daily commutes from his home in the Dover area to BAPS’ headquarters on Loucks Road, Austin noticed a popular mom-and-pop grocery store that was always busy.

“I fell in love with it — there was a certain charm to it,” said Austin. He began developing a vision of how he would transform the property.

In 2019, when the family realized the busy corner property was for sale, they backed Austin’s plan.

They purchased and transformed Hake’s Grocery Store into Dottie’s Family Market — you guessed it — renamed in honor of Austin’s grandmother, known for her cooking and hospitality. Within the property, at the intersection of Canal and Bull Roads, the family also continued operations of a gas station, greenhouse and small strip center where Austin opened The Hive Coffee House and Café. Since then, the family business has also enveloped a popular nearby crab shack, renaming it Dottie’s Crab Shack, at 2899 Carlisle Road.

Overseeing the suite of food-related businesses, and managing Dottie’s Family Market, Austin prides himself on building relationships with a wide variety of locally-produced foods and products to set the hometown store’s offerings apart from big box stores.

“It’s a good fit for Austin — he’s more of a builder — those are his gifts,” said mom Sharon.

But the family is quick to give credit to the strength of their team of employees.

“I think one of the key things was we had two BAPS people in management that had years of experience in the grocery industry. The banks probably would not have supported us without those key people,” said Sharon.

Another employee connection resulted in the family’s next business.

“It all stems from Dottie’s and meeting great people in the local community,” said Austin.

Tabby McCabe, manager of The Hive, mentioned that her husband was savvy in IT issues—and could help Dottie’s deli scales communicate properly to with the store’s computer system. Tyler McCabe not only resolved those issues, but others as well.

“We had a conversation — where all great conversations happen — at Round the Clock Diner,” said Austin, “and we asked if he’d be willing to work for us and provide services to other customers.”

And that launched EnTrust IT Solutions, in late 2023.

“We believed in the person — that’s what all businesses come down to,” said Brett. “And we wanted to use that word, trust, in the name.”

He gestures toward a wall, in the of the conference room where the family is gathered, at BAPS’ headquarters. There are five framed words hanging on the wall — integrity, teamwork, innovation, profitability, and service to others.

“A lot of companies come up with those, but BAPS is 100% behind all of those,” said Brett.

Dean calls them the company’s guiding principles.

“We’ve made a lot of corporate decisions here … and it’s easy to go off the path, but those signs keep you in line,” Dean said. “We made it 45 years, from 1979 to today by not going away from that.”

Family is their foundation – in both work and play. The family often vacations together, goes hunting and fishing, and even races go-karts together.

Not all of their decisions have been easy, and the path hasn’t always been clear. The Berkheimers have thought of each new business as a door opening — said Andrew — and some potential doors have actually closed.

“Instead of fighting it, we took a step back, and God kept us protected [from making bad business decisions],” Andrew said.

“There have been a lot of tears in every single business at some point,” Austin said.

And he should know — the fate of Dottie’s Family Market is currently in the hands of PennDOT. That’s because the intersection has become so busy — thanks in part to nearby growing warehousing — that part of Dottie’s property may be seized under eminent domain to make way for a traffic signal or roundabout.

“We will work through it — whether it means them taking and tearing down the store or rebuilding,” said Austin. “But until then, we’re going to keep going on and continuing to serve the community at Dottie’s.”

The family’s improbable entrepreneurial path, including his grandfather R.F. “starting from nothing,” is something Dean has been reflecting on, as he counts down to retirement.

“When we took over,” said Dean, referring to his and Sharon’s time at BAPS, “there was a 15% chance of success rate for third-generation businesses. For fourth-generation businesses, there is none. It’s point zero zero something.”

Even though the original R.F. Berkheimer & Sons painting business has given way to BAPS and new businesses, all of the businesses are technically under the umbrella name — still — of R.F. Berkheimer & Sons. And that makes Ray proud.

“There are no words that you can find, that brings forth what you see,” said Ray. “Due to the fact that they kept the corporate name from my father, and then seeing — adding — my children and their children, making the Berkheimer name stand out, my heart is just overwhelmed.”