(Editor’s Note: The following article is being re-run as part of Police Recognition Week. The article previously ran in our 2022 Clearwater Commuity Guide.)
Charles Teigen and Luke Sarnicki are the co-owners of Guardian Fleet Safety, and their thriving business is proof that Midwestern values are the cornerstone of their success.
“Our small town values are what sets us apart from other companies,” says Teigen, a Becker HS grad who grew up in the area. “We are building a great product and we are going to do it right the first time.”
Sarnicki, who grew up just outside of Clear Lake, espouses those values and also enjoys being able to share his company’s success with his hometown.
“We want to be the best at what we do,” Sarnicki says. “It’s been great to be able to bring another thriving business to Clear Lake.”
Both men are SCSU alumni and their business works with over 200 law enforcement agencies.
“Our business supports law enforcement and contributes to safer communities,” Sarnicki says.
The Business
Many area residents might wonder what happens at the company, which is known locally for the huge American flag that adorns their property along Highway 24 heading southwest out of Clear Lake. In short, the core of the business it to outfit squad cars with state of the art technology to create what many would call the finest law enforcement vehicles in the country. After their expansion last fall to a new building with over 17,000 square feet, Guardian Fleet Safety boasts the largest facility in Minnesota for emergency vehicle up-fitting.
They also do lighting work for Fire Departments and other business clients such as MN Limited and TJ Potter who need amber lighted vehicles, but their mainstay is using their proprietary process to create incredibly safe and officer-focused squad cars. They have also done specialized work on jet skis, snowmobiles, transport vans and ambulances.
“Both of us were in law enforcement and we had complaints about the squads we drove because they were very low quality,” says Teigen, who moved his family from Arizona back to MN to start the business. “We are able to use our experience to know how the squads should be done . . . we knew the importance of ergonomics in the cars.”
Officer Safety and comfort is a main focus of their work, as exemplified in their tagline, “Safety Simplified”.
Using their law enforcement contacts, the duo started on a journey to use their experience to produce high quality cars that enhance safety at every turn.
Humble Beginnings
The men started by working on weekends doing one squad at a time. It was a learning experience, but one that lit the spark for both men. Eventually, they would reunite to take a chance on their own company, working out of shop space that they rented from Teigen’s dad, Erling, who operated Teigen Truck Parts at the original Highway 24 location.
“In 2016, our first year, we built three cars and they were all from departments where we knew someone who would give us a chance,” Teigen says. “The last six years we have ate, slept and breathed this place.”
Rapid Expansion
As the business grew, they took over Erling’s shop and soon doubled it’s size. Last year, they built their current building next to the original location and the sales continue to explode.
In 2021, the company produced 236 squad cars and in 2022 they will far surpass that number.
Now, Guardian boasts 9 full-time technicians and 2 full-times sales representatives who continue to grow and expand the brand that has become synonymous with top of the line squad cars. Their employee base includes a part-time scheduler to coordinate pick-up and drop-off of the squads, as well as 15 part-time drivers who blanket their service area driving cars to and from production.
Guardian has many clients in Minnesota, as well as the Dakotas and Wisconsin. They even do all the work for a police department in Washington State and have inquiries from across the United States.
Social Media
Sensation
One of the areas Sarnicki focuses on is social media, where the company hosts a Youtube channel with close to 5,000 subscribers. When the videos of fully equipped squad cars hit the airwaves, they garner thousands of views in just one week’s time.
“Social media is an area that we put a focus on because that is where the younger generation of officers is connected,” says Sarnicki. “It has paid dividends and continues to bring us new business. People will see a build on our channel and they will call up and want to order one for their agency.”
He even recalls a time when he was in Colorado and a clerk at his hotel recognized the Guardian Fleet Safety logo on his shirt.
“He was a younger kid who was planning to go into law enforcement and he knew who we were from watching our videos,” Sarnicki says. “Because of the innovative things we do with computerized lighting, it is much better to watch the demonstration in a video than a simple photo.”
The Tech
Guardian’s build processes are certainly high-tech, as one can easily discern when watching their technicians working on the cars. A laptop is hooked up to the car’s systems the entire time, as fine-tuning the lights and sirens is much more complicated than one might suspect.
All the fuses are digital and each light is individually controlled, meaning that even the colors of the lights can be individually changed as needed.
All of this extra work is worth it for officer and highway safety, as Sarnicki notes that it can help create a much safer work environment.
“One of the things we can do is to synchronize the lighting patterns within the same departments or across different agencies,” Sarnicki notes. “If there’s multiple squads in a pursuit or at a crash scene, each squad’s lighting pattern can link together to create a much safer scene,”
As an example, Sarnicki pointed out the familiar “purple blob” that many people might have witnessed before at a busy highway crash scene where it’s hard to tell what is going on or where the individual emergency vehicles are at.
“That’s what we are eliminating,” he says. “Now, a squad from Sherburne County can synch with a Wright County squad, making it safer for everyone.”
Hometown Heroes
While the amount of success of their company is truly astounding, both men are quick to praise their dedicated employees, most of whom also live in the immediate area.
“Our employees are very proud of what they do . . . this is their company, too,” Teigen says. “They really take pride in their work to do it right the first time.”
Sarnicki agrees, pointing out the amount of teamwork that is required to keep the business humming along.
“We’re a team here and everyone pulls their weight,” Sarnicki says. “It’s about treating your people right and these guys are the backbone of the company.”
And that hometown company is right here in Clear Lake, Minnesota.
