Stafford body shop sold to colleague

The owner of an auto body shop in Spotsylvania County recently purchased a similar operation in Stafford County.

Olaf Herrick purchased Barnes Auto Body, which is on Commerce Parkway off U.S. 17 in Stafford. The sale, which included both the real estate and the operating business, took effect Jan. 1.

Herrick bought the collision repair business from James and Anne Barnes, who ran it for the past 22 years before deciding to retire.

Herrick has owned and operated Southern Auto Body on Houser Drive in Spotsylvania for the past 25 years and will continue to do so. Herrick said he knows James Barnes well and worked with him for many years.

The Barnes Auto Body name will remain, as will all the company's employees. Herrick said he has installed new equipment at the facility, which specializes in European cars. He said the operation will continue to run as it had before the sale.

--Bill Freehling