Manatee Auto Trim Owner Specializes in 'Old-School' Craft

Setting foot inside feels a little like taking a stroll backward through time. Originally constructed in 1920 as a car dealership, the building has certainly seen its share of years.

Just follow the sound of blues music, and once you’ve navigated your way through the maze of cars, tools, and old sleeping dogs in the garage, chances are you’ll find Steve Honn hard at work on his sewing machine — when he isn’t fiddling with his iPhone and choosing which podcast to tune in to next, that is.

OK, perhaps some things have changed slightly since 1920. However, don't let the iPhone fool you. When it comes to his craft, Honn is 100 percent “old school.”

Honn, who owns and operates Manatee Auto Trim with his wife, Linda, is part of an elite and ever-dwindling class of skilled craftsmen: He is an automotive upholsterer.

“Unfortunately it’s a dying trade,” said Honn. “In this day and age, people just don’t want — or need — to invest the time or effort that goes into learning a trade like this. It takes about five years of apprenticeship to become even halfway decent — this just isn’t the kind of thing you can learn on a computer.”

Although the trade as a whole may be slowly becoming obsolete, Honn’s skillful hand-stitchery has been drawing customers into his shop since the day that he and Linda opened the business in 1983.

“I’m just an everyday upholsterer,” Honn said. “I like dealing with the public; I like dealing with cars. I like talking to customers while I work. They bring me their cars; I fix them up and make them look pretty.”

Honn became immersed in the auto upholstery business in 1970 while working at a car wash in his native Chicago. In 1974, he and his wife relocated to Florida to escape the Chicago weather and have remained in Bradenton ever since.

“I’ve been around for a long time. I got to know the old-timers, and it was a really good way to get a foothold in the community when I was ready to start my business,” Honn said.

Although he specializes in automotive upholstery — most commonly, seat repairs — Honn says that he will stitch just about anything. He has done upholstery work on motorcycles and R.V.s , and has even catered to unique non-vehicular requests such as musical instrument cases and covers for prosthetic limbs.

“I’ve worked on just about everything there is to work on,” Honn said with a shrug. “If it’s not moving, I can cover it. That’s my motto.”

Although Honn’s business was affected by the recent recession, he and Linda aren’t too concerned. He attributes a great deal of his business’ success throughout the difficult years to his wife’s skill with managing money.

“We’re turning a profit again this year,” he said. “The thing is, anyone can put duct tape on their seat or pins in their upholstery and get by — so with the recession, it took some time to get on our feet again. ... But this point, it’s hard for me to even get worried about any of that anymore.”

Honn does most of his work on a heavy duty industrial sewing machine, which he refers to as his “baby.” He explained that he has been sewing since he was a kid.

“My mom got a new sewing machine that she couldn’t figure out. I was always taking things apart and putting them back together, so she asked me to help her with it. I’ve been sewing ever since,” he said. “It’s like a college education in some ways — once you have it, no one can take it away from you.”

Honn said that the high point of his career was doing the upholstery work for the antique cars that Bradenton resident Dean Arnold would bring in from his classic car collection.

“I got to work on this old Woody, this old Ford, a beautiful 1963 Corvette — it was a lot of fun,” he said.

Most of the day-to-day upholstery work that Honn is commissioned to do is on newer cars, however. He explained that when he works on older cars, he approaches his craft with “an entirely different philosophy.”

“If someone brings in an antique car, I tell them that it’s going to be awhile. I can’t just do that in a few hours or a day like I can with a newer model,” Honn said. “I really have to concentrate on the old ones, so I take my time.”

Although Honn is certainly skilled at his trade, you will not catch him at home on the weekends re-upholstering antique cars or chairs for fun.

“This is my vocation, not my allocation,” he said. “Linda and I don’t take our work home. We spend our free time on other activities.”

Honn is a self-professed animal advocate who gets up at 4 a.m. every day and rides his bicycle around town, feeding stray cats. He is also involved with the Gulf Shore Animal League, a non-profit organization whose goal is to make Manatee County a “no-kill” community by trapping, spaying and neutering, and releasing wild cats or assisting in the adoption process.

Honn’s other hobbies include cooking Cajun/Creole and comfort food, gardening and golfing. Although he says that he would love to retire, he doesn’t have any intention of doing so any time soon.

“I’m still healthy — so sure, I’ll put in a couple more years. I haven’t been doing this for 43 years just for my good looks,” he said. “Right now, I’m happy here. This is what I like — talking to customers, listening to the blues, and feeding my dog Slim Jims while I work. What more do I need?”