Small biz finds big bucks in go-to-you auto servicing

Nobody likes taking their car to the shop, says Josh Johnson. So he’s found a way around the dreaded chore: a car service company that comes to you.

Automenity, which the 24-year-old started three years ago, partners with office buildings and management companies to provide on-site car services for hundreds of Washington area residents while they’re at work.

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In November 2010, the company secured its first office deal at Cassidy Turley’s One, Two and Three Democracy Center in Bethesda. Since then, it has forged relationships with Beco Management, Lerner Enterprises and the JBG Cos., and is in talks to expand into Tysons Corner Center.

For customers who work in one of the office buildings, the drill is simple: They make an appointment over the phone, then drop off their cars at a designated service area in the mornings, leave their keys in a lockbox and go to work. By the time the work day is over, their car has been serviced and new parts have been installed. They can pay by check or over the phone with a credit card.

“People love it,” said Mike Brodsky, an executive vice president at Beco Management. “Everyone who uses it then goes to their co-workers and says ‘Listen, while we were just at lunch, I got my oil changed.’ It’s been nothing but positive.”

Johnson began working as a porter at Tischer BMW in Silver Spring while he was in high school. He washed cars and moved them around the lot. Eventually, after finishing a training program at Lincoln Technical School, he became a full-time technician at the dealership.

But there wasn’t enough work to keep him busy. In early 2009, Johnson posted an ad on Craigslist offering to do oil changes and repairs at people’s homes.

“By the next morning, I had two jobs lined up,” he said. “Business grew so fast that I was making twice as much on my lunch hour and evenings than I was during the whole day at work.”

In September 2011, Johnson’s father, Paul, a former contractor, joined the company full-time. Now there are six employees, including a full-time office manager, who work out of a basement office in Paul’ s Silver Spring home.

Not having a shop has helped keep costs down, Johnson said. An oil change costs $37 and tire rotations are $20.

In January, Automenity’s income totaled $16,000. Eventually, Johnson hopes that each technician will be able to bring in $40,000 a month.

“Back when it was just me doing the work out of my trunk, of course I was making a profit,” Johnson said. “But if we were going to grow to be a substantial business, it was important for us to lay down some groundwork.”

The company has grown to include a branded truck that is outfitted with $40,000 in equipment, including air tanks for filling tires and cleaning filters. Johnson said he hopes to start the first Automenity franchise within the next year and is looking to open a shop in Northern Virginia, where the state requires safety inspections for vehicles.

“We’ve built the business,” Johnson said. “Now we just need to get technicians on the field.”

On Wednesday morning, J.R. Dively, one of three company technicians, was working on a 2002 Buick Century in a parking lot at Washington Business Park in Lanham. He changed the oil and wipers, serviced its fuel system, replaced the serpentine belt tensioner and did a coolant and brake fluid flush. It took about an hour and cost $560.

“It’s so easy and efficient,” said Paula Connor, the Buick’s owner. “I just go outside when they’re done and get my keys.”

Even so, the company’s concept has been a hard sell at times, said John Creyke, who handles Automenity’s business development.

“It’s like nobody can believe that getting your car serviced can be as easy as ordering a pizza,” Creyke said. “But there is a real need for something different.”