Duane, founder and President of Highland Park Automotive, has always been drawn to taking things a part and fixing them. He started off by repairing lawn mowers at the age of 8. From there, his interest grew even more and developed into a more professional hobby - drag racing. In 1982, Duane was working three jobs to support his race car. In September of the same year, he was fired from one of the three, "I was fired with a twist, my boss told me my last day would be Christmas Eve. He told me that I had always talked about owning my own shop so now it was time to make that a reality." Duane went on to sell his race car and everything that went with it and on October 25, 1982 he opened Highland Park Automotive.
Racing still remained a big part of his life and it has always translated into the way he does business, "as a race car driver safety is the upmost importance and this is the same for my customers safety is always my #1 concern." Additionally, he says that when it comes to racing you always want to do things the same all the time, so you are consistent. This consistency continues to render into the business, "we believe in being consistent and fixing our customers cars right the first time."
Other than putting much of his time into his business, Duane has also had a big involvement in advancing the borough of Highland Park. He was the President of the HP Chamber of Commerce for 10 years. He was also one of the founding members of Main Street HP, serving as the Promotions Committee Chairman. In this role, he took the lead on executing all events in the borough such as the Street Fair and Arts in the Park.
Currently, Duane has two daughters and he lives in Monroe, NJ with his wife Susan. In his off time, he enjoys a round of golf and surfing in the summertime.