Imagine yourself in a modern, gallery-like space, sipping espresso and charging up your phone. The game is playing on one of the giant flat screen TVs above the bar but you’re not watching it. (And you’re not in a bar.) You’ve got a seamless 360-degree view of your car as it rides on a German-engineered moving detail belt, accompanied by the cleaning staff. You’re not on an errand, you’re having an experience, one enjoyed by customers at TradeMark Car Wash, the newest Plano, Texas, location of The Car Wash Companies.
“I love ‘wowing’ a customer. I want them to drive away with a totally different view than what they thought and hopefully exceed their expectations on many levels,” said Tom Miller, owner of The Car Wash Companies.
With more than three decades in the car wash industry, Miller has an eye for “what works” in building and operating a successful car wash, from site selection and design to hiring a management team to handle the day-to-day operations. He has spent most of his working life in the industry and he still enjoys it. “It’s multi-faceted and always a challenge,” he says. “It’s also what I know.”
Beyond the fun of washing cars, Miller reveres the social contract he has with the staff. “As their employer I have a great responsibility to establish and maintain a stable work environment that creates a sustainable livelihood for them and their families.” He firmly believes his greatest investment is in his employees, paying all staff a living wage to promote their health and well-being. Environmental impact is also a concern for Miller. The locations use environmentally neutral soaps in the car wash tunnel, are landscaped with native plants and illuminated with energy-efficient LED lights. All locations are heavily involved in their communities and believe that supporting local schools, youth sports, religious organizations and non-profit fundraisers is the most effective form of advertising and marketing.
The Car Wash Companies employ approximately 200 staff across four Dallas locations. Tommy Terrific’s Car Wash, established in 2008, is an express exterior car wash that has washed more than one million cars. TradeMark Car Wash is a full-service car wash that first opened in 2004 in Allen, Texas, providing interior and exterior detailing services along with an express exterior car wash lane, headlight restoration, state inspection services and windshield chip repair. The second location in Plano opened in 2016 and features state-of-the-art dual belt details, a 135-foot car wash conveyor and two 15-foot wide, 80-foot long detail belts featuring German technology where the staff ride along with the car — the first in Texas.
Miller reports that the Plano TradeMark location began with a $5 million overhaul of an existing car wash, keeping just the bones. While it’s a full service car wash, they paired down the menu, intentionally limiting choices to make the selection process easier for customers while operationally optimizing production, consistency and quality. “And it’s our professional service and production that are on full display to the customer through seamless glass windows and a near 360-degree view from the lobby,” he said.
At 3,400 square feet, the lobby has no greeting cards, no auto accessories and very little retail beyond a few snacks from the reach-in cooler. Instead it has a vibe that’s more “art gallery meets lounge,” featuring locally commissioned artwork, specialty coffees, and a central bar with seven flat screen TVs and complimentary beer and wine.
The entire space has a modern feel, inspired in part from the trip to ICA’s Car Wash Show Europe in 2015. The location is inviting. It features clean lines, but it isn’t sterile. It has personality. “We gravitate towards modern European architecture and overall design,” Miller said. “From touring operations like Bob’s Autowas and Loogman, we began incorporating graphics on a larger scale, while taking into consideration when more is better or when less is more through use of intentional negative space in our design.”
Besides design inspiration, Miller and his team brought back more than just ideas from Europe. “Physically, we brought back a Holz entrance arch and stainless steel monument sign. Though both items are widely popular in Europe, I believe we have the only ones in the U.S. currently,” he said. “We also decided to install two 90-foot detail conveyors. I saw them on previous trips to Germany and around Europe, but following the 2015 show we knew this is the direction we wanted to go — incorporating automation and a moving assembly line approach to detailing.”
Miller said that customer reactions have been overwhelmingly positive. “They appreciate the added value of having a nice place to hang out while they get their car cleaned and the same quality of service and friendly, professional staff we are known for at our other locations,” he said. “Plus they really like the free beer and wine. Go figure!”
