Ryan Young
Rhyno Car Wash
Paragould, Ark.; Searcy, Ark.; coming soon Cabot, Ark.
Q: Tell us about your business.
A: We are a multi-site company that started in May of 2011. Our goal is to give the customer the cleanest car possible for a decent price, while offering the most convenient way to wash a person’s car. We are currently operating in two locations and hope to have a third by February 2013.
Q: What’s the next big thing for the industry?
A: The express tunnel concept has taken off in the last few years. Many of these tunnels are located in large cities. I believe with construction cost and land costs increasing, many people will begin looking at a smaller tunnel concept. This will allow people to look at smaller markets, keep land costs down and still be able to produce a good product.
Q: What has been your experience using social media for your car wash?
A: It provides an opportunity to interact with our customers in real time to offer limited-time promotions, announce events and receive feedback on our services. Social media also helps create brand recognition and allows us to reach our target market directly.
Q: What new technologies or innovations are you most interested in bringing to your car wash?
A: Going green is a big topic in all businesses. I hope to reduce energy costs and consumption of energy and water. Although great strides have been made in this area, I would like to see more innovation in the use of LED lights, VFDs used on a wider variety of car wash equipment, efficient tunnel heating systems, and better water reclamation systems.
Q: What’s the best advice you’ve received about running a business in the car wash industry?
A: Show respect to your employees, do preventive maintenance, and understand that every customer expects a good wash — we should try to give them a great wash.
Tony DeBarros
Balise Hyannis Car Wash
Hyannis, Mass.
Q: Tell us about your business.
A: Balise Hyannis Car Wash is a flex service car wash, with three gate pay stations, six vehicle detail bays, and eight self-serve vacuums, located in beautiful Hyannis, Mass., on Cape Cod. The wash is still in the construction phase, with an estimated grand opening in July 2012.
Q: Why did you decide to enter the car wash industry?
A: The Balise family of auto dealers purchased an old car wash and decided to open up a new Nissan dealership and brand new state-of-the-art car wash next door.
Q: How did you get into the business?
A: My entire working career has been in the automotive industry. I started as a shuttle driver for a Ford dealer in Salt Lake City, Utah, moved up to service manager and then to car wash manager.
Q: What do you love most about the business?
A: My passion is the car wash industry. My love is people. It’s that simple.
Q: What’s the next big thing for the industry?
A: The car wash industry is moving at a rapid speed, in all different aspects, from green initiatives to software technologies. I’m not sure if I know what the next big thing is, but what I’m certain is important is keeping up with the changes, outside of the box thinking and utilizing the changes that make sense for my site.
Q: As a new car wash operator, what resources did you turn to when starting your company?
A: I learned from a collaboration of several companies, individuals, local governments, etc. The Car Wash Show in Vegas is a pot of gold for resources and networking. That was a huge help.
Michael Pegalis
Some Guy’s Car Wash
North Babylon, N.Y.
Q: Tell us about your business.
A: We took over about 10 months ago, and we’ve completely redone the car wash aesthetically to clean it up, make it more of an inviting place and make it more fun than some of the other car washes around. We do barbecues on the weekend with giveaways and music playing.
Q: And have you seen results from this new business environment yet?
A: Without question — the numbers have been staggering. People have to get a car wash, but that doesn’t mean that it has to feel like a chore. It can feel like you are doing something fun, too. And that’s what we’re trying to do — make it a little more
enticing and a little more fun.
Q: What do you love most about the business?
A: I love all the creative marketing ideas you can try to make yourself different than the car wash down the road. I love the atmosphere we’ve created. We have laser lights in the tunnel, which is something we did just to entertain people. We have a bubble machine for the kids — they press a button and bubbles shoot out into the tunnel.
Q: What has been your experience using social media for your car wash?
A: Social media is pretty much the only way we market. We collect e-mail addresses and encourage our customers to follow us on Facebook. I’m able to give better coupons to the customer. Now that people have seen how it works, it’s been very successful.
Q: What new technologies or innovations are you most interested in bringing to your car wash?
A: We’d like to bring in some more automation between the customers and ourselves, such as a system where we can track license plates and other information from our customers. I think technology is definitely going to change the business because the most expensive cost for us is labor, and technology can help with that.
