Franchisor Stories
SPONSORED
The auto-detailing franchise has perfected its onboarding process and stocked up its franchisees’ toolkits to ensure each owner has the greatest potential for ROI.
Detail Garage, the retail franchise for car care enthusiasts, passionate car owners and detailing professionals, has grown to include 75-plus locations across the country by combining an automotive lifestyle brand, globally recognized retail products and industry-leading innovations. Now, as the automotive industry proves uniquely resilient against the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic fallout, the Detail Garage team has optimized its business model and support infrastructure to position its franchisees for unprecedented success.
“We’ve created a franchise opportunity that is like nothing else in the automotive or franchising world,” said Chad Zani, director of business development for Detail Garage. “From day one, franchisees just need to follow the system, greet their customers with a smile, shake people’s hands and share their passion for cars — if you love cars it really doesn’t feel like work.”
When franchisees first sign on with Detail Garage, they receive a suite of tools that are designed to streamline the onboarding process.
To start, the Detail Garage team provides prospective franchisees with exclusive access to detailed market research and reports so that they can plan their business for the fastest possible growth. “Incoming Detail Garage franchisees have access to a proprietary site selection tool to evaluate new location opportunities via in-depth consumer analytics, such as population density, income, traffic patterns and number of residences versus businesses,” said Zani.
Additionally, the brand offers a simplified and innovative store opening system that makes it easy for prospects to bring Detail Garage to their community.
“The system invites franchisees to submit their floor plan with all appropriate measurements that their design partners use in order to build a full 3D model of their store layout to avoid any frustrations during the process,” said Zani. “Once the design is finalized, full design and build plans are sent so a local contractor, or the franchisee themself, can complete the build-out. We then send all the required internal store fixtures, saving franchisees valuable time spent sourcing these items locally.”
All of these benefits are included in the initial investment, which comes in at only $150,975 to $260,450, a range that Zani says is much lower than many of the brand’s competitors.
Once stores are open, the Detail Garage franchise is designed to give auto enthusiasts and entrepreneurs an attractive and flexible lifestyle thanks to the brand’s streamlined operational model, ongoing support and community-oriented approach.
“I am a car enthusiast myself, and I knew that the environment was perfect for me,” said California-based, multi-unit owner Gil Gonzalez. “I love the whole business model — it’s not just a retail store selling products, it is designed to personally connect with customers. We get to see their passion, recommend the right products and educate them on how to use it. That is really hard to find in the retail industry.”
In addition, the corporate support doesn’t stop once stores are open — Detail Garage franchisees have access to a robust support infrastructure and continuous training, Zani says, which covers everything from operations and staffing to technology and marketing, allowing them to focus on building long-lasting customer relationships.
When it comes to marketing specifically, franchisees are provided with promotional materials to help with local community outreach, event planning and more. Detail Garage franchisees also have the opportunity to tap into an impressive, nationally recognized social media presence — the most successful automobile channel on YouTube, Chemical Guys, and verified Instagram account, @detailgarage — and use it to grow their local businesses.
“There didn’t used to be a place on the internet or social media where consumers could get great, high-quality education on products and services for maintaining their cars. Now there is,” said Zani. “By tapping into that market and leveraging our expertise, we found a huge leg up. Each Chemical Guys product has a QR code that customers can scan, and it will bring them to a YouTube tutorial for the product. That’s just one of the ways we give customers an experience that keeps them coming back.”
Now, as the Detail Garage brand grows across the country, Zani says the support, training and brand recognition ensures franchisees can feel confident that they are investing in a proven and scalable business. And the results speak for themselves — Detail Garage franchisees saw a 28% increase in sales in 2020.
Virginia-based franchisees Jeremy and Brandi Shelton, for example, opened their Fredericksburg Detail Garage store in December of 2020, and over the past six months they’ve seen remarkable success in the area. “With $352,729 in sales since January 1, we are on track to break the sales record for new stores,” said Jeremy. “We are looking over our lease for a second location in the Richmond area, and our ultimate goal is to have six stores open in the next five years.”
The Detail Garage team is looking to spread this winning model to new communities, with a goal of reaching 100 open units this year, followed by 50 locations added to the system each subsequent year.
“The time has never been better to invest in the Detail Garage franchise,” said Zani. “Qualified prospects have a prime opportunity to leverage our proven business model and achieve their dream of entrepreneurship.”
Franchise opportunities range from $150,975 – $260,450. For more information, visit: https://www.detailgarage.com/franchising.html
Sign up for the 1851 Franchise newsletter to get our biggest stories before everyone else
By signing up, you agree to our user agreement (including class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and acknowledge our privacy policy.
