Region Developer: Mark Porcelli, Middlesex, New Jersey

Mark Porcelli has been working with cars since he was 10 years old. Mark grew up in Colonia, N.J. and worked a lot of his life in the family-owned truck dealership, so he’s always had experience with vehicles and repairs. The experience caused him to want to own his own business one day. On the road to that, he wound up at a Midas franchise in 1998, successfully running it for six years. When he joined them, he inherited $540,000 in store sales, and when he left, it was $870,000, so during his time there, he saw a 70 percent increase in sales and revenue. Deciding to sell, he then worked for Snap On Tools’ corporate location in 2004 and was responsible for managing franchisees, selling tools to shops and recruiting, as well as mentoring. After three years, Mark moved on and has been with Honest-1 since 2007.  

At Mark’s Middlesex location, he is also offering free brakes for much of May, most prominently during the week of April 29. Mark is offering this no-strings-attached service technically through Saturday, May 18, while supplies last. They are literally giving away front and rear brakes, and all customers have to pay for is the labor. On average, this can be $100 to $120 per front or rear pair. (Of course, if it’s an extremely rare vehicle, or there are more repairs needed following an inspection, additional fees may apply.)

How did you learn about the brand?

I heard about them through a letter when I was working at Snap On. They were looking for shops with an interest in selling and converting.

Why did you choose an opportunity with Honest-1?

Their core values are what I’m all about. I believe in integrity, which is what the brand is predominantly about. In 2006, I bought the master territory and opened a shop a year later while I still worked a day job.

Are you involved with any charities or do any community outreach with your business?

I have been a member of the local Elks Chapter for the past three to four years and have done a fundraiser for them in the past. I also continue to support local school organizations. Through the First Aid Squad members organization, on June 15, they are having a family fun emergency services day and will be selling good neighbor cards, which include two free oil changes, and two other coupons: $20 off front or rear brake service and 10 percent off anything your vehicle needs up to $25.

What challenges have you overcome to get where you are now?

The community here knows everyone, so to get through that, it took a bit of time to prove we can fix cars effectively and not take advantage of people. We continue to grow year after year, which touches back on the integrity.

How many employees do you have right now?

I have a shop manager that runs the front counter. I also have three full-time mechanics and myself.

What are your expansion or development plans? What is your end goal with Honest-1?

From a regional developer standpoint, I’m always looking for qualified franchisees that want to provide awesome customer service, in a very difficult industry.

My goal is to get one store open in every county of my territory area. You just do it one store at a time. I’m not looking to buy another for me, but I do want to find other franchisees that fit for other counties.

What are some of the publications you read? Local? National? What is your goal publication with your business?

Our challenge is our media market is technically New York City; my tiny town is a small fish in the big pond. But, there are local outlets such as About Our Town, which already covered us, but we would like to be in the Courier News or News 12 New Jersey.

The Home News Tribune did an article on us in February 2010, and there’s of course the Star-Ledger too.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies or passions?

I like to snowmobile in the winter, motorcycle in the summer and go to the beach with my family. 

Franchisee Spotlight: Tom Watson, Prior Lake, MN

Tom Watson grew up In Brooklyn Center, Minn. and has lived in the Metro area his entire life. He has been working for Jim Henkel, the Honest-1 Auto Care Area Developer, since 2010 — when Henkel only had one store in Minnesota. Watson began his Honest-1 career focusing primarily on outside sales and providing back-up support in stores as needed. Over time, through extensive training and education, he assumed the role of Operations Manager of the Minnesota market.

Watson first met Fred Haynes, remote franchisee of Honest-1 Prior Lake, when he accepted the position of general manager at Haynes’s Burnsville, Minn. store. Haynes is based in Chicago and is a remote owner, leaving most responsibilities to Watson, who will continue to manage the day-to-day operations for the Burnsville store while overseeing the new Prior Lake location.

Watson made his debut in the automotive industry as a general service technician changing oil, tires and performing light duty repairs. Eventually, Watson realized that he would be better suited in sales and took up the opportunity when a position became available in the company that he was working for at the time.

How did you learn about Honest-1?

I found Honest-1 through an ad posted online, and after one interview, I knew it was where I wanted to spend my career. The very philosophy of how business is conducted, combined with the unique service offerings, makes Honest-1 stand out far ahead of its competitors.

What do you hope to achieve as the general manager of this store?

As manager I hope to provide 15-20 new jobs to the Prior Lake area, set a new standard in customer service and earn a fair profit to generate humble growth for the company.

Do you have any plans to broaden your managerial responsibilities?

My goal is help to educate and inspire teams of automotive professionals all over the Twin Cities and eventually own my own Honest-1 Auto Care stores.

Are you involved in any charities or community groups?

I am active in the Girl Scout Troop that my seven-year-old daughter belongs to. 

Region Developer: Miguel Cruz, Northern Virginia

Miguel Cruz, 58, was born and raised in Puerto Rico, but moved to the U.S. at the age of 18 to join the U.S. Army as an electronic technician. He served in the Army for almost 16 years before leaving to join the Civil Service in 1994, where he performed various duties including equipment management and managing contracts for automotive maintenance.  After Cruz retires from the Civil Service in January 2014 to focus on Honest-1 as the Region Developer for Northern Virginia, he will have worked for the government for close to 33 years.  

How did you learn about the brand?

In preparing for my retirement from the government, I started looking into businesses. I was going to go on my own but began looking at franchises and came across Honest-1. What appealed to me about them was their business model, which is one that I had envisioned doing had I opened my own business. It was family-friendly and honest.

Why did you decide to take up an opportunity with Honest-1?

After nearly 33 years working for the government, I thought it was time to retire and chase my dream of being a business owner. I grew up in the restaurant business and I always liked business. The automotive field appealed to me because I like working on cars. I haven’t been through formal training in automotive maintenance but I grew up repairing and working on my own cars.

Why did you decide to take on the role of Area Developer?

It was a no brainer for me to become area developer – I hope to have multiple stores and go beyond just being a franchisee.  Also, it’s basically a sales position and I’ve been in sales before. I don’t have experience as an area developer but I didn’t feel like I needed it with the training that Honest-1 provided.

 

What challenges have you overcome to get where you are now?

The main challenge we have faced in Northern Virginia is the availability of properties in the right area. Zoning for automotive businesses is a real hurdle to overcome because it takes time, which is why it’s important that I open my own store and have something to show future franchisee prospects. One thing that I take into consideration is the convenience of a customer driving to the facility: how far do they have to drive, is there much traffic to get to the location. I try to look for convenience so I’m limiting myself to the areas that I can set the stores in. We’ve worked hard to overcome that challenge and now we have landlords calling us to offer us sites in the right locations.

What are your expansion or development plans? What is your end goal with Honest-1?

There is a location in Alexandria that opened in 2012 before I became area developer and we are currently working on the lease for a franchisee in our Ashburn location, which we plan to open in June 2014. We have at least six sites that are available to us should we decide to move forward. Now it’s a matter of finding candidates to put on these sites. If I don’t find applicants I’m going to open them myself and turn them over to future franchisees. I plan to open around 30 stores in the Northern Virginia area within the next eight to 10 years.

Why did you decide to join the military?

When I was growing up, I always liked watching TV, in particular a program called Combat!, and for some reason, that type of life had always caught my attention. I thought it was a good opportunity to get out of the island and see other parts of the world and serve my country. So when I was almost 19, during the Vietnam era, I joined the military. I didn’t think twice about it. I learned a lot and it opened my eyes to a different world and different people.

Before I joined the military, I was a shy guy. Once I joined the military, I started moving up the ranks and inherited more responsibilities and it put me in a position where I had to stand in front of people training and teaching them. The military gave me confidence and I lost all my inhibitions when it came to standing in front of people.

Why did you decide to join the Civil Service?

After I decided to leave the U.S. Army, the job market was tough in the civilian sector. I had just finished 16 years working for the government so it didn’t make sense to throw that away, so I decided to pursue a career with Civil Service and combine my military time to total 33 years with the government.