Aaron and Christine Alexander Bring Family-First Ownership Approach to SpeeDee Oil Change & Auto Service Franchise

SpeeDee Oil Change & Auto Service®, the comprehensive automotive service franchise, has displayed a long-standing culture of exemplary service thanks to a team of committed franchisees. For Aaron and Christine Alexander, franchise owners in Auburn, California, their long-standing relationship with the SpeeDee brand has been established through an upstanding family-first attitude.

“My mother was the franchisee of our location back in 1991,” Aaron said. His mother was battling a serious illness when Aaron was 24 years old, prompting him to take on store duties. “I had no previous experience at that time and was not technically the franchisee, but I did run the store for just short of two years before the unit was sold,” he said.

It wasn’t long until Aaron and Christine found themselves affiliated with the SpeeDee brand again. Aaron left to receive a business degree and gained experience as a smog technician, taking on “pretty much every position in an automotive shop that you can name,” but returned to manage the SpeeDee shop just outside Sacramento and take on eventual ownership. “After a couple years of discussion, Christine and I became franchisees again and we haven’t looked back.”

Jon Brown, SpeeDee’s West Region Franchise Support Director, highlights how the Alexanders embody the ideal spirit that the brand looks for in franchisees. “We are constantly looking for franchise owners that are vested in their communities and willing to go above and beyond to take care of the people they work with,” Brown said. “Our mission is to add prospective franchise owners that seek to make a similar impact in cities and towns not only in the west but across the country.”

Christine addressed how their SpeeDee has employees with parents that worked for Aaron’s grandfather, a former automotive business owner in the local area. Employees have felt taken care of for such extended time, showcasing how the Alexanders’ ownership, paired with the SpeeDee business model, has effectively retained employees. A family atmosphere in the Auburn, California automotive scene has stood longer than the town’s SpeeDee shop has even been open, and the Alexanders have elevated that atmosphere to new heights.

The Alexanders believe a key for their franchise success is to retain long-term employees. They have implemented benefits, paid time off, a simple IRA or retirement plan, as well as wages that will retain them for years to come. “I think that’s a huge part of our industry and maybe even an underrated part of our business,” Christine said. “We want them to be able to elevate their standard of living with us in the automotive industry.”

“SpeeDee has gone through many changes in the past 30 years that I've been involved,” Aaron said. “I've seen the brand become one of the leaders in the industry as far as keeping up with trends and doing what it takes in an evolving industry.” Both he and Christine spoke highly on corporate guidance through an ever-changing landscape, and how the SpeeDee brand has become far more than just an oil change service in the brand’s long-standing history.

Christine says the Auburn, California area has been perfect for their franchise to maintain a community-first attitude where relationships are continually developed. They believe the brand has been able to grow under a similar attitude among franchisees, and when paired with a corporate advertising strategy, they believe the SpeeDee system has been able to establish itself at the forefront of the industry. “We wouldn’t be able to do that as independent operators,” Christine said.

With a client base of repeat customers and an established base of loyal employees, the Alexanders have embodied the values of SpeeDee franchise ownership while bringing the best out of the clients they service. “We’re always willing to give back,” they said.

As the Alexanders continue to establish their brand in the greater Sacramento area, they have considered further expansion. With the help and support of the SpeeDee franchise, they believe they can stay ahead of the curve and continue to establish a business presence on a new level.