Features

The detail industry has undergone a major transformation in the past few years. No longer is the service viewed as a side project at a car wash — or worse yet an unsafe process run by an unprofessional detailer — it has stepped... »

Creating and Maintaining a Program

I have been very fortunate to have worked in many successful organizations during my career in this industry. Due to those experiences, I have often been asked for the secret to success in the... »

Making an Assessment

Building a car wash or purchasing an existing one can be a very expensive venture. There are many factors that need to be considered when purchasing a wash such as location, car count, labor pool… you get... »

Operating a successful detail shop is a rewarding venture with many benefits. There is a feeling of satisfaction that comes with being your own boss and seeing first hand the results of your hard work. However, running a detail... »

Soap is made by mixing fat with a water solution of sodium or potassium hydroxide. Detergent properties are due to dissociation hydrolysis — water added to a substance causes both the substance and the water molecule to split... »

Trends Favor Detail Business Growth

The ugly duckling of the car care business is turning into a swan. That scrawny little business usually found on the wrong side of the tracks has been showing up in the better parts of town... »

Study Guide: Detailing Terminology

Detailing, like most professions, has a language all its own that includes vocabulary that describes equipment, chemicals, and techniques that are unique to our profession. The vocabulary... »

Getting in Control of Your Cost per Car »

There’s an unsettling notion in the car wash industry that the equipment in the tunnel is the most important aspect in the business. Although how clean a car leaves your facility is important, how can you clean the car if... »

While we have imprecise information about industry size in terms of car wash outlets, volumes, and revenues, experience shows the cost of goods and services is a rising issue. »

Executives of four car wash equipment manufacturing companies agreed to participate in this year’s look ahead to what the following 12 months might hold for the industry. The panelists are:

Kevin Collette president of Istobal... »

Business is business. Whether you are running a big box chain or managing a local convenience store, the principles of a successful business remain the same. The Daniele family of Rochester, NY recently entered the car wash... »

As car, SUV, and truck owners increasingly customize their vehicles with wheels that are larger and more intricate than ever before, there is less tolerance for dirty rims and tires that do not match the quality of the overall... »

Rising gas prices, adverse weather, a sluggish economy — they all mean the same thing for car wash owners: lower volumes, less profit, and hard times. Compound these wash problems by factoring in high unemployment rates, an...

Every year brings new and varied security challenges to express and full-service car washes. In the past, most facilities rarely changed product offerings or processes, but in today’s market environment change seems to be a...