Butch grew up in Belmont
North Carolina, a small town outside Charlotte.
After high school, Butch went to college at NC State on an Air Force
ROTC scholarship. However, he returned
home after one of his parents passed away and graduated from UNC
Charlotte. Upon graduation, Butch went
into the Air Force and spent 4 years as an intelligence officer stationed in
Denver and then Shreveport, Louisiana.
As part of his Strategic Air Command duties, he would keep a 3-star
general and his staff informed of the current events taking place in the world. He was also involved in Operation Just Cause in 1989 where U.S. forces invaded
Panama.
After leaving the
Air Force and earning his MBA with a finance concentration from Louisiana Tech
University, Butch entered the pharmaceutical industry with Pfizer as a
pharmaceutical sales rep. He then worked
for the Japanese company, Otsuka, then Quintiles until landing at Axcan where
he worked for 12 years as a regional manager and then a zone director of sales
with responsibility for half of the US and Canada. He was the top sales manager at Axcan three
years in a row and won multiple sales awards during his tenure, but when Axcan
went through an acquisition and changed their name to Aptalis, Butch declined
to interview for a new position that would require a move to the northeast, and
about a year later he was gone from the company.
During the past
year Butch worked with a business coach, trying to decide what he wanted to do
with the next step in his career. He looked
at several business opportunities before coming across Honest-1 and making the
decision to open his own business in Marietta, Georgia.
Butch has always liked
cars and appreciates the Honest-1 model and its commitment to customers and the
environment. The location of Butch’s
Honest-1 was previously a Napa Auto Car Care Center that had been vacant for over
a year. They are currently remodeling
the store to bring it up to Honest-1 standards, adding a children’s play area
and an internet café, and painting the inside and outside. Since it was built to be an auto shop, it
already has 8 bays and is 5,000 square feet.
Dennis Eidson is
the Honest-1 area developer and owns a location in nearby Roswell.
How did you learn
about the brand?
I had a business coach and was looking for what I wanted
to do with my life after leaving Aptalis. We went through a process where we evaluated
my strengths and looked at what I like to do.
We talked about franchise ownership and other types of business
ownership. I looked into several
business models and always came back to Honest-1. They provide good service at good prices, and
I thought I could be successful working within their business model that puts
the customer first and cares about the environment.
Why did you choose
an opportunity with Honest-1 Auto Care?
I like the eco-friendly part of the package, with is very
important these days. This isn’t an
industry where you would think of eco-friendly, so we’ve carved a good niche there. More and more you are seeing aging cars on
the street, and I knew that people are keeping their cars longer. On top of
that, cars are being built better now, so there’s an opportunity there since
people can keep a car longer by keeping it properly maintained.
I think in general, people distrust auto mechanics
because they don’t know enough about auto care.
Honest-1 does a great job of making customers feel like they aren’t
being lied to and that their best interests are being taken to heart. If you take care of customers and treat them
right, then you can be successful in this business. I’ve always worked for companies that prided
themselves in treating the customer right and having a lot of integrity. That lines up with my own personal philosophy
in business that if you treat your customers’ right, you’re going to be
successful.
Tell me about your
love of cars.
I’ve always been a car guy. Right now I have a Corvette and I have always
tried to have a sports car. I had a
family member growing up who owned the gas station at the cross roads by the
train tracks in our small town and he was the mechanic that everyone took their
car to. Everybody loved him and I liked
just hanging out there and what he did.
While I was in the Air Force they rented bays and had all
the tools available so that we could do our own car repair and
maintenance. So I’d go over and do my
own oil changes and brake jobs on my own.
I’ve always enjoyed working on cars.
What is the area
like that you’ll be located in and serving?
Do you have ties to the area, or family in the area?
We call the area East Cobb. The address is Marietta but it’s really in East
Cobb, and it’s close to Roswell. Where
we’re located is a really great area with a lot of great businesses around. There’s a Chucky Cheese nearby, a dollar
movie theater, a regular movie theater, a big shopping center, and a bunch of
other things right there.
My great grandfather lived in Atlanta for a long time and
is buried there. I’ve had family in the
area for as long as I can remember so I’d visit a lot growing up. My son lives in Atlanta too.
Are you involved
with any charities or do any community outreach with your business?
We are definitely going to get involved with the
community. We just haven’t gotten that far yet.
We’ll start working on a marketing plan as part of the process too.
There is an Air Force Base in Marietta called Dobbins AFB
and I’m planning to work on a discount for them and see what might be possible
with them. I’ve done some work with the
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and have been looking to get more involved.
What challenges
have you overcome to get where you are now?
I felt like I’ve overcome challenges my entire life. I was raised by my grandparents and adopted
by them. They sacrificed a lot to make
sure I got a good education and got into school.
What are your
expansion or development plans? What is your end goal with Honest-1 Auto Care?
I want to do the first one right and ensure that we’re
successful in East Cobb. Ultimately I’d
like to open 2 or 3 more in the Atlanta area.
I’d like to open 3 within 5 years, but that will depend on how things
play out.
Do you have any
other interesting hobbies or passions?
I’m a member of a local country club in the area and love
to play golf. I have to split that time
with my girlfriend of course. I still
stay in touch with a ton of friends from the North Carolina area where I grew
up, so we get together fairly often.
I’ve also done work with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and am looking
to do more with them.
