Regarded as a legend for founding the House of Kolor line of automotive finishes, Jon Kosmoski has become an industry-famous name for high-quality craftsmanship and long-standing business.
Even into his 80s, Kosmoski continues to follow his passion, and on April 28, Union County High School was pleased to welcome him as a guest speaker in the Collision Repair classroom.
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With House of Kolor celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, its biggest distributor, National Oak, decided to choose somewhere in the country for Kosmoski to hold a clinic all about House of Kolor, which is now owned by Sherwin-Williams.
UCHS Collision Repair Teacher Randy Zimmerman was thrilled to have Kosmoski, sharing that the paint booth for the class was recently completed, and National Oak could find no more accommodating place in the region than the UCHS shop.
Zimmerman surprised everyone by revealing that Union County was the one and only stop for Kosmoski, providing a truly unique opportunity for students and local professionals alike.
In fact, at least 12 body shops attended alongside students that day, made special not just by Kosmoski’s presence, but by the inaugural use of the paint booth. Zimmerman noted that the facility hadn’t yet been utilized, so there was no event more fitting than a live demonstration by Kosmoski.
Starting from the beginning, Kosmoski told the story of how House of Kolor got its humble start in his mother’s basement in 1956. From there, a friend of a friend allowed Kosmoski to rent space in a body shop, and slowly but surely, Kosmoski worked his way up.
And work, Kosmoski did in spades. He began his career painting motorcycles, and he believes it was their varying shapes and technical natures that allowed him to better understand painting and learn more advanced techniques.
Along with the history of House of Kolor, Kosmoski explained the chemical aspects of painting and properly finishing vehicles, laying out why certain methods and products work better than others. In his own words, “we learned a lot back then,” whether that meant making his own mistakes or observing those of others.
By 1963, Kosmoski began packaging his own paint, and House of Kolor enjoyed growing popularity over the next decade. As he had for years, Kosmoski continued to build upon his knowledge by keeping his mind open and learning at every opportunity, such as the time he learned more about working with urethane by observing a strikingly blue tricycle at a paint show and inquiring about the method.
Kosmoski’s tenacity led House of Kolor to become the first custom-paint company to offer encapsulated base coats. In 1981, Kosmoski closed his body shop and focused on the paint business, freeing up more time for him to “go on the road” and teach others how to employ vibrant, enduring colors in their own projects.
While on campus, Kosmoski offered demonstrations on how he mixes his paints, and he even allowed students to volunteer to try out House of Kolor products with the painting methods he described.
“There are many things that you have to understand about painting,” Kosmoski said before imparting some practical wisdom. “And by the way, if you have a question about anything I’m talking about – you know, the only stupid question is the one you don’t ask, so ask it.”
With that, Union County Schools’ paint booth saw its first use, courtesy of no less than a legend in the automotive world.
According to Zimmerman, the students loved Kosmoski, who gifted them with House of Kolor pens, calendars, product catalogs, and technical booklets along with his wealth of knowledge.
