These four industry stand-outs were awarded an All Access Pass and three-night accommodations at the host hotel as a way to recognize and celebrate the industry’s emerging leaders.
John Sproul didn’t plan to be part of the carwash industry. “In early 2016, a friend of mine was bugging me to come work for him at the Clearwater Car Wash as it was opening,” he said. “I kept saying no, but eventually caved.” Sproul expected the job to be short-term. “I really knew nothing about car washing and had never even been through a tunnel carwash in my life,” he said.
But shortly after starting his “short-term” job, Sproul found himself hooked on the business. Sproul started as a wash attendant and within a month, became a supervisor. Around the same time as he was finishing his bachelors in management from Grace College, he was promoted to assistant manager. “At that point, I threw myself fully into learning everything I possibly could about car washing,” he said. And it’s paid off.
Travis Jones, director of operations at Clearwater Car Wash, which is located in Winona Lake, Ind., has been so impressed with Sproul’s success. “John joined Clearwater Car Wash in an entry-level position,” he said.
Looking to the future, Sproul says he’s excited about where he thinks the carwash industry will be in five years. “I think it’ll be recognized as a powerhouse industry and an integral part of our society,” he said.
As for his own future, he’s hoping he and the carwash industry are doing big things together. “I think about all that has happened in the past two years since joining Clearwater Car Wash and I would have never imagined myself where I am now,” he said. “I love being part of the carwash industry and I would love to be able to contribute something significant to it.”
Part of Sproul’s love for the industry comes from the people with whom he interacts. “My favorite memories will always be when I see one of our employees who finally understands the impacts you can have on someone’s life, whether it’s a coworker or a customer,” he said. “I want to continue to use car washing as a way to push young people to be better and do amazing things to impact the lives of those around them.”
Jones has witnessed this firsthand. “John has a love for employee development in and outside of work,” Jones said. “John handles much of the training process at Clearwater for new employees. He also loves to help employees develop and improve their personal lives.” One of Sproul’s many talents? “One of his favorite things to do is help employees set proper budgets,” Jones said. “He meets with whoever is interested and will help in any way he can.”
When he’s not busy getting promotions and helping his team plan their finances, Sproul enjoys road biking, making his wife laugh and traveling the world.
If you know Scott, you’d know that he accomplishes anything he sets his mind to. Zips Car wash Public Relations Manager Sarah Falanga can attest to this.
“Orlando is a driven, natural leader who works to make our company more successful each day,” Falanga said. “He is a person who found his passion at an early age and joined an express car wash company in central Texas with the desire to own and run his own car wash.”
“He has focused on learning every aspect of running the flex-serve wash. Once he maxed out his part-time opportunity, he made arrangements with his high school during his senior year to work full-time,” Falanga said. This would allow him to become the assistant manager at a flex-site that ran over 140,000 cars per year. Although he helped develop talent, excelled at managing car wash operations and helped grow memberships and revenue, he wanted to pursue the opportunity to apply his skills on a larger scale.”
And that desire is what brought him to Zips.
Scott left central Texas for a site manager role in Knoxville, Tenn., with Zips Car Wash. He set his sights on getting to know the teams within the market and the market as a whole. This determination helped him to earn the title of multi-site manager in a short time period. Shortly thereafter, he became the district manager of that market, overseeing seven locations.“During his time in Knoxville, it became the fastest growing district in our company as it recently topped 18 locations,” said Falanga.
But Scott wanted more.
“Orlando focused on identifying teammates who wanted to grow,” Falanga said. “He’s given the district manager opportunity to two individuals who will split the Knoxville market. And now, at age 21, he has relocated back to Texas as district manager of the Zips Dallas/Fort Worth market that we are excited to be a part of today.”
Scott attributes his success to his relentless desire to be successful, great mentors, and his spouse and child that have accompanied him every step of the way.
Scott has loved being part of this industry, which has allowed him to travel across the country. “It’s been great to be able to travel and still do car washing,” he said. “I’ve visited 11 states already.”
He sees nothing but opportunity for the industry in the years ahead, envisioning it becoming one of the biggest revenue-generating industries in the world.
Steve Herard came to the car wash industry 17 years ago because he enjoyed being outside and liked being around cars.All that has changed is his job title.
“I started with ScrubaDub when I was 21 years old as a customer service adviser,” Herard said. “I was promoted to assistant manager of a location after a year, then promoted to site manager of that location four years later.”
The promotions continued.
“As the company grew, so did the opportunity for advancement,” Herard said. “I was a site manager for five years before being promoted to district manager in charge of two locations. I worked in that role for another six years until recently when
I was promoted to regional manager in October 2017.”
Alex Paisner, director of culture and human capital at ScrubaDub, is impressed. “Stephen has risen through the ranks to become our youngest regional manager ever,” he said. “He’s helped his Worcester, Mass., locations grow by 150 percent in revenue and car count. With exposure to the drivers of our industry at the ICA, he’ll be inspired and bring back ideas and enthusiasm to further grow his region.”
While Herard sees the future of the industry in technology and customer experience, he said it’s the people who have made his experience so great. “My best memories all involve the people I’ve worked with and worked for, and all the people who’ve worked for me,” he said. “I have worked directly for some of the best teachers and all-around greatest people I have ever known and have had the pleasure of working with some of my best friends.”
As the industry grows, Herard expects to grow with it. “I see myself as a regional manager with more sites, or possibly even a vice president of the company,” he said.
According to Paisner, Herard’s continued growth is inevitable. “As leaders in our company begin to retire, it’s Stephen’s turn to meet the up-and-coming leaders in our industry and understand his place and the next round of innovation that will move us into the future,” Paisner said.
Herard has a lot of respect for the leaders at ScrubaDub, and takes their messages to heart. “The best career advice I ever received came from my boss, Paul Bertonassi, who is one of the vice presidents for the company,” Herard said.
“He has been my biggest mentor in this industry and in general. Thirteen years ago he said something to me that has stuck ever since: ‘At first in your job, you will get paid for what you yourself do. Then eventually you will get paid for what you can lead the people under you to do. Ultimately, in the end, you will get paid for all those things plus what you know. So surround yourself with good people, learn everything you can about anything you can, and do things that in that moment of your life you might not get paid to do...because it will not go unnoticed and eventually the time will come where you will get paid to do those things because you have already proven you can.’”
Wil Hilton, regional manager at 3 Minute Express Car Wash in Goodyear, Ariz., joined the car wash industry like many do: a part-time job that helped pay the bills. However, like many others who never intended to stay, Hilton believes he’ll never go away.
“I got the job as a side job to feed my family and pay bills while going to school, fully intending to apply to medical school,” Hilton said. After nearly a decade in the U.S. Army as a combat medic, med school seemed like a natural next step. “But I fell in love with the car wash industry quickly, left school and have stuck with the car wash full-time ever since. I can’t say I chose the industry, but there’s no doubt that I’m in now.”
Hilton joined 3 Minute Express Car Wash as a customer service attendant in March 2015, shortly before the company opened its first wash. “We believe in only hiring management from within, so I started out like everyone else,” Hilton said. “Fast-forward to today, three years later, and I’ve worked my way through team lead, assistant manager, site manager and now my current position as a regional manager.”
Karl Gashler, 3 Minute Express Car Wash’s owner, calls Hilton a fast mover. “He started at the bottom, but today is regional manager,” said Gashler. “This is somebody who loves our industry, loves customers and loves clean cars!”
The secret to Hilton’s success is his love of the people, including colleagues and customers. “I’m not in the car wash business, I’m in the people business,” Hilton said. “I have a ton of memories with the people around me, which is why I love what I do.” Some of his favorite memories include late nights eating pizza in the initial weeks of the first wash opening and high-fiving his assistant manager, Sara, “with a little too much gusto,” resulting in Sara’s hand bouncing off of Hilton’s, hitting her in the forehead.
Leading people has been a true passion for Hilton. “Early in his career here, Wil took it upon himself to read and study all the operations and maintenance manuals for the equipment we use,” said Gashler. “Now, he reads about new ways to improve his leadership skills. I’ve never seen a young man with such a hunger for knowledge.”
For Hilton, it comes down to one simple thing: love.
You can't coach someone you don’t know, Hilton said. This is the culture our company lives by.”
The company culture and its people will probably keep Hilton around for a while. “Wil has been offered jobs in other fields, but he loves this industry and company so much that he has decided to make this his lifelong career,” said Gashler.
Hilton agrees. “Over the next five years, I hope to see myself still with 3 Minute Express Car Wash and opening new washes all over the southwest United States,” he said. Growing up, Hilton’s dad told him that if he found something he loved to do for a career, he’d never work a day in his life. “I’m living that advice with my career in the car wash industry,” Hilton said.
