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Tony Schottenbauer does not consider himself a mechanic. Though the <a href="http://www.christianbrothersfranchise.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=tony-schottenbauer-how-a-service-oriented-veteran-found-a-like-minded-partner-in-christian-brothers-automotive-2704121" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Christian Brothers Automotive</a> franchisee&rsquo;s location has repaired thousands of cars in the Phoenix area, Schottenbauer told 1851 that he sees his role in the industry as that of an educator. &nbsp;

&ldquo;It&rsquo;s my job to educate, not just to fix things, and certainly not to sell things,&rdquo; said Schottenbauer. &ldquo;If you give people the right information, the business will come. We tell people what&rsquo;s going on with their cars, let them know what their options and the potential costs are, and let them make their own decisions.&rdquo;

Schottenbauer is well-suited for the role of automotive educator. Before opening his <a href="https://christianbrothers.1851franchise.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=tony-schottenbauer-how-a-service-oriented-veteran-found-a-like-minded-partner-in-christian-brothers-automotive-2704121" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Christian Brothers</a> store in Ocotillo, Arizona, Schottenbauer received a graduate degree in Technology Management from the University of Wisconsin-Stout with a goal of bridging the communication gap between technicians and customers. He also has a BBA and an Associate&#39;s degree in Automotive Technology from Gateway Community College.

&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t even set out to work on cars,&rdquo; said Schottenbauer. &ldquo;I wanted to let people know how their cars worked. I saw this divide where mechanics have all the information, and customers don&rsquo;t even speak the same language. I saw an opportunity to help customers get on that same level so they could make their own decisions about their cars.&rdquo;

That commitment to service is nothing new for Schottenbauer, who grew up in a military family.

&ldquo;I was an army brat,&rdquo; Schottenbauer said. &ldquo;My father was in the military, and so we were always traveling. I&rsquo;ve been all around the world, and I&rsquo;ve met people from every background.&rdquo;

Schottenbauer joined the military himself after high-school but did not seek out a career there.

&ldquo;I was excited to serve, but I knew it wouldn&rsquo;t be my career,&rdquo; Schottenbauer explained. &ldquo;I had a knack for mechanics, so after I left the military, I got into manufacturing.&rdquo;

Schottenbauer worked for some of the biggest names in manufacturing, including Caterpillar and Tennant, starting in HR training and development before moving into operations and eventually becoming a process engineer. By the end of what Schottenbauer considers his &ldquo;first career,&rdquo; he was fluent in Six Sigma and lean manufacturing, two of the most critical high-level process philosophies in modern manufacturing.

Despite his success in manufacturing, Schottenbauer felt weighed down by what he saw as a split between his personal values and those of the industry.

&ldquo;I was forced sometimes to make certain decisions I didn&rsquo;t agree with,&rdquo; Schottenbauer said. &ldquo;There was a lot of gray decision making. I don&rsquo;t believe in gray areas. I believe in black and white. When you play around in gray areas, you start justifying things that aren&rsquo;t right.&rdquo;

Still, Schottenbauer was not ready to end his career, so he set his sights on franchise ownership as a way to escape the uncertainty of working for someone else.

&ldquo;I started searching for Christian franchises, something that had God at the center of it,&rdquo; said Schottenbauer. &ldquo;Christian Brothers quickly popped up, and I was intrigued right away.&rdquo;

In addition to Christian Brothers&rsquo; faith-based foundation, the franchise had been recommended by USAA, the veterans financial-services organization of which Schottenbauer was a member.

&ldquo;That impressed me,&rdquo; Schottenbauer said. &ldquo;It started to seem like a perfect fit. It was mechanics, it was Christian, and it was recommended by USAA.&rdquo;

Schottenbauer filled out an application and began discussing the opportunity with Christian Brothers&rsquo; development team, who he pegged as the real deal.

&ldquo;They walked the walk,&rdquo; Schottenbauer said. &ldquo;They didn&rsquo;t just have Christian in the name. It was clear that their operations were all based on Christian values.&rdquo;

So in 2015, Schottenbauer opened his Christian Brothers Automotive store in Ocotillo, where he quickly found a high demand for good automotive services.

&ldquo;People drive a lot around here,&rdquo; said Schottenbauer. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got Phoenix, Mesa, Tempe, Gilbert, and Chandler all within 25 square miles. People work in one city and live in another. There&rsquo;s not a lot of public transportation, so it&rsquo;s very difficult to get by without a car. And the heat can be rough on cars. You can live in other cities without air conditioning in your car, but it&rsquo;s essential here, and that can take a toll on cars.&rdquo;

That high demand for repair services coupled with Schottenbauer&rsquo;s and Christian Brothers&rsquo; uniquely transparent approach to servicing customers has earned the store a growing base of loyal customers.

&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t do much advertising,&rdquo; Schottenbauer explained. &ldquo;I rely on customers to tell people about us. I&rsquo;m in the relationship business as much as I&rsquo;m in the car business. I want to build strong relationships with all my customers. People are looking for what we have to offer, and I love serving people, so when we get a new customer, I really try to exceed their expectations.&rdquo;

After two years, Schottenbauer still sees Christian Brothers as the perfect partner for his career.

&ldquo;My only goal is to treat customers with respect,&rdquo; Schottenbauer said, &ldquo;and the Christian Brothers mission statement is to love your neighbor as yourself. So it&rsquo;s easy. It&rsquo;s like following the law. I work hard, but it comes naturally. It&rsquo;s just a matter of treating people right.&rdquo;

&nbsp;

Tony Schottenbauer: How a Service-Oriented Veteran Found a Like-Minded Partner in Christian Brothers Automotive

1851 Franchise

Christian Brothers Automotive's first Phoenix franchisee remains dedicated to service years after leaving military

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