On behalf of all of us at Newell’s Auto Body, we’d like to announce the retirement of our President and Owner, Todd Newell, effective January 2023.
Todd (along with wife, Debbie, and daughter, Amanda) moved to Decatur in 1996 to begin working at the family business. Todd was born and raised in Decatur, and was thrilled to be able to return home. When his father and the founder of Newell’s Auto Body, Mike Newell, passed away in 1998, the reins passed to Todd as the second generation owner. Before his passing, Mike and Todd planned the addition of a new production building.
Todd continued growing the business by completing this expansion as well as many other improvements both to the property and to the business itself. With the support of Newell's staff, including Amanda and her husband, Art, Todd:
In 25 years, Todd has achieved incredible things and has stayed true to the vision Mike Newell created to provide quality repairs to the town he so loved. Newell’s honors that to this day, and goes a step further by giving a refurbished vehicle to a person in need every holiday season through the Newell’s Christmas Wish Benevolence program.
Todd’s daughter, Amanda (Newell) Anderson, will be taking over as President and will continue to run our highly successful collision repair business along with her husband, Art. She has been a part of Newell’s Auto Body for many years, from starting as a detailer/shop assistant at 16 years old to currently performing the controller/bookkeeper role. She graduated from Millikin’s Tabor School of Business and Illinois State’s MBA program. She has always enjoyed customer service and being part of the collision repair industry.
Amanda and Art have worked to complete the parts department addition and will continue to strive for excellence and growth for Newell’s Auto Body. With a solid foundation and new leaders well versed in the collision repair industry, Newell’s Auto Body, along with its amazing staff, is committed to upholding its strong reputation. Being the third generation of Newell’s Auto Body is truly an honor for the Andersons.
Everyone at Newell’s wishes Todd a happy and fun filled retirement. Thank you for 25 years of hard work, dedication, innovation, and generosity!
Todd enjoys golfing, hunting, and spending time with his wife, Debbie and his grandchildren. He plans to spend time traveling, working in his yard, and enjoying his grandsons’ sporting events. Spending time with family & friends and living life to its fullest are his most important retirement goals!
When I came back to the family business we had such big plans to grow. Unfortunately Dad‘s health did not cooperate. Still, in the short time we worked together, we planned the path that would take the company to the next level. It was such a privilege to continue the legacy of such a pioneer in the industry, Mike Newell.
I want to thank all the skilled and passionate employees that I was fortunate to work with over the years. We were able to accomplish great things. Ever since the 60’s, Newell’s has been the place to take your vehicle for body repairs and refinishing. We were able to continue that trend as we more than tripled sales in the 25 year period.
Passing the business to the third generation was another challenge that we’ve been committed to. It was the direction I’d hoped the business would go from the beginning I took it over. Prepping my daughter in an industry dominated by males took time. She had the business knowledge from her success at Millikin and graduate school at ISU. We just needed to grow her experience and knowledge about how the auto repair industry worked. I am confident that Amanda, along with her husband, Art, will be able to take Newell’s to new levels and continue the remarkable service and reputation that I was given back in the summer of 96.
— Todd Newell
