Christian Brothers Automotive is more than just vehicle repair. Since its founding in 1982, their goal has been to change the way guests view automotive service. Now more than ever, consumers across the country are relying on their mechanics to help them preserve the life of their vehicle. According to IHS Automotive, there are more than 250 million cars on the road in America and these owners are keeping their vehicles longer and driving them further than any generation of drivers in the past. With the oldest fleet of cars on the road the United States has ever had—it’s a good time to own an auto repair franchise.
Rooted in a mission to “love your neighbor as yourself,” Christian Brothers Automotive coined the Nice Difference, striving to improve the consumer experience, including a three-year / 36,000 Mile Warranty, complimentary guest pick-up and drop-off and a free courtesy check with every repair, including oil changes.
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Only the brands that exceed FBR’s franchisee satisfaction benchmark are displayed on our website. Here’s how Christian Brothers franchise owners rated their franchise.
Highlights include:
Not all franchise systems share their results publicly. Christian Brothers Automotive does. Download the franchisee satisfaction report on Christian Brothers Automotive for free.
Christian Brothers Automotive is uniquely positioned as a franchisor, due to these ‘key differentiators.’ These include:
Marketing is extremely important, especially when opening a brand new shop. Marketing gets the word out and lets customers know you’re in their neighborhood and are ready to service their vehicles.
Christian Brothers Automotive understands that not every franchisee has experience in marketing. That is why each franchisee is assigned a marketing coach to help them best target and market to their local audiences. Marketing coaches provide ongoing marketing support to help shop owners with budgeting, advertising, and building community and vendor relationships.
Christian Brothers Automotive sees the potential in franchise prospects, regardless of their experience (or lack thereof) in the automotive industry. When founder, Mark Carr, began Christian Brothers Automotive in 1982, he wasn’t a mechanic. He was a graphic arts salesman. Yet, his “outsider” perspective allowed him to view the industry as a consumer, and to lay the groundwork for an extraordinary experience for his guests.
The Christian Brothers Automotive selection committee sees similar potential in prospective franchisees who share its same core values and are ready to do what it takes to carry forth the Christian Brothers Automotive brand. From the most basic questions to high-level business and finance concerns, the franchise support team and training program are there to transform franchisees into auto repair champions.
Initial Training–Operations
Christian Brothers Automotive franchisees are not required to have any automotive experience. However, the Company does require leadership or business experience that can be applied to this industry through training. At Christian Brothers Automotive, their model is collaborative and team focused. The company equips all its franchisees with a variety of skills, and provides training throughout the life of their investment.
In the beginning, training consists of a brand introduction and teaching franchisees how to uphold the company’s core values while running a shop. Christian Brothers Automotive believes that firsthand experience is the best teacher, so new franchisees get to job shadow some of the top-performing franchisees before going out on their own. They’ll learn how to be an effective Service Writer, how to hire and lead a team, how to manage finances, and more. In-house accounting and performance consultants are available at all times to assist franchisees with any questions or concerns. By the time a shop is ready to open, each new franchisee is more than prepared to get the job done right.
Ongoing Training
At Christian Brothers Automotive, franchisees are never left without the resources they need to stay on top of this dynamic industry and continue to offer excellent results for their guests. The company provides a robust ongoing training program for the franchisees and their employees. In fact, Christian Brothers Automotive has a staff of more than 100 people at the Houston Home Office to help stay engaged with its franchise locations and ensure that they are never without the support they need.
Performance Consultants
Once someone is awarded a Christian Brothers Automotive Franchise, they are assigned two experienced performance Home Office coaches–one for store operations and one for marketing. These coaches are experienced in opening and consulting with 200+ stores, meaning if you run into a problem, they’ve likely been there, done that. This helps them provide franchisees the assistance they need, no matter what they may be facing.
Hiring & Recruitment
Of course, every Christian Brothers Automotive isn’t complete without a team of skilled, knowledgeable service team members and technicians ready to provide honest, reliable automotive work that gets customers back on the road as safely and swiftly as possible. Christian Brothers Automotive doesn’t expect every franchisee to know what to look for during this hiring process, which is why their recruiting team is ready to help.
When it comes time to hire service and technician staff, Christian Brothers Automotive sends an automotive expert to each location to help franchisees assess candidates. They’ve been doing this long enough to know that having a team of top-notch automotive professionals and technicians is key to every franchisee’s success. Christian Brothers Automotive is always ready to help franchisees navigate this recruitment process as they hire their team members.
Automotive Technology (AutoTech)
The AutoTech department at Christian Brothers Automotive Home Office is built to assist franchise technicians when they run into automotive problems that they need help solving. AutoTech offers remote programming from their Houston headquarters, assistance with emergent safety repairs, TAP (technician assistance program), foreign repair help and so much more. With AutoTech, franchisees can rest assured that even if a technician runs into a problem, they’ll never be left alone to figure it out.
Technical Training
Once franchisees have been awarded a Christian Brothers Automotive franchise, they are provided a wealth of materials to kick-start training. Some of this training is technical training, from automotive system basics and common car issues, to what goes into remedying them.
It’s important to remember, franchisees are not training to become a mechanic or technician. These roles are filled by experienced professionals. Instead, this technical training serves two important purposes: to help franchisees communicate with customers about their automotive issues and to help franchisees know what to expect of their managers and team members.
Hear what makes Christian Brothers Automotive a supportive & rewarding franchise opportunity
Hear how Christian Brothers Automotive supports & develops its franchisees
When Cal Pascanu realized he needed a career change, he thought business ownership could provide the independence and work-life balance he craved. One brand in particular checked all of the boxes for him. We asked Cal to tell us a little bit about his journey to Christian Brothers franchise ownership.
In conjunction with his local church and Christian Brothers Automotive franchise, Andrew Slemp initiated a nonprofit organization called Mechanics on a Mission which fixes badly needed repairs for car owners who are desperate to keep their vehicles on the road.
Each franchise brings a unique set of products, services, culture, and values to its brand, its community, and its franchise family. But what makes certain business owners excel to Franchise Rock Star status? FBR's Franchise Rock Star Awards honor franchise owners who set exceptional examples of success within the franchise business model.
Researching automotive franchise opportunities? Franchisee Igor Kuzmenko provides valuable insight into starting a Christian Brothers Automotive franchise.
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Thinking of going into business with your significant other? Many have discovered that the reward of going into business with their partner has far outweighed any risks that may have originally deterred them.
We asked the leaders of five of our Culture100 award-winners why creating a winning company culture is so important and how they invested in the success of their franchisees during a very challenging year.
Client Services Director, Nicole Dudley sits down with Christian Brothers Automotive President Donnie Carr and discuss why franchisee satisfaction and culture are so valuable.
Cal and Lenka Pascanu were drawn to Christian Brothers Automotive for their faith based approach. Their advice for prospective franchise buyers? "Be open-minded, coachable, and follow their system."
Jonita & Adam White are franchisees of Christian Brothers Automotive serving West Frisco & Little Elm, Texas. They have been franchisees since 2011 and are Franchise Business Review featured franchisees!
Brian Klaubert is the owner of Christian Brothers Automotive franchises in Alpharetta, Suwanee, and Dacula, GA. He is one of Franchise Business Review's 2018 Rockstar Franchisees!
Actual owner reviews from our third party, independent surveys.
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