Honest-1 on Live 5 News

Honest-1 was featured on Live 5 News.

April is National Car Care Month, and Honest-1 shared various tips for maintaining your car this season. Car care specialist Angie Hanna mentioned the importance of making sure your brakes, tires, and windshield wipers are all ready for rain this spring.

To read the full story, click here.

Honest-1 Auto Care Appoints Braden Poole Operations Director

Promotion Part of Auto Care Company’s Increased Growth Plans

SCOTTSDALE, AZ – Honest-1 Auto Care, the nation’s only full-service auto care company that is 100 percent ESA® Certified Eco-Friendly, is proud to announce the promotion of Braden Poole to Operations Director. The promotion is part of a departmental expansion that will include the hiring of more field managers and support staff to provide training and operational support to existing franchisees, as well as support the growth the brand is undergoing now and plans to continue in the immediate future.

“We are happy about Braden’s new position and excited about the opportunities this promotion creates for both Braden and the entire Honest-1 family,” Rissy Sutherland, COO of Honest-1 Auto Care said. “Braden has been an incredible asset to the company since he joined us one year ago and as we continue to grow and expand our franchise base he will play an important role in our continued success.”

Poole joined the Honest-1 team with over 25 years in the automotive industry, beginning his career at the age of 16 working for Yamaha as an installer. His past professional experiences include AC Delco, CSK Automotive and Pep Boys. Poole brings his incredible knowledge of the automotive industry to his new position and will utilize it to elevate and support the Honest-1 brand.

“I immediately got excited about the opportunity to work for a company like Honest-1,” says Poole. “I can’t say enough about the positive experience I’ve had so far from the owners that I’ve met and the programs we have in place, including the commitment to honesty with our certified technicians, professional and informative service mangers,  the eco-friendly approach and the welcoming environment we create with our centers. I’m excited to aid in Honest-1’s progress and watch the company continue to grow.”

Poole’s duties as Honest-1 Operations Director will be to take new franchisees, current franchisees and their staff through training, work with franchisees during their openings, and serve in a supportive role to staff in both new and current locations. Poole will also work with the corporate team and area developers on numerous future projects.

“There are so many opportunities to create relationships with our customers and to provide honest feedback regarding their vehicle’s service needs all in a straightforward, non-pressure, family-friendly and ecofriendly environment,” Poole said. “We’re really doing a lot to change the old perception of automotive repair centers and really build lasting relationships with our customers and in our communities.”

Aiming to fix the auto care customer experience, H-1 also took the time to re-define how the entire experience should look and feel, from the customer service members at the front desk to the waiting areas and top-quality amenities available while customers wait. Plus, Honest-1 utilizes top of the line technology to review repairs with their customers by showing the customer their vehicle and service issues in a 3D interface to visually see their vehicle needs, and not just hear it from their customer service manager. The brand initiates proactive steps for protecting the environment by employing responsible care standards in pollution prevention, recycling, resource conservation and offering and promotion of Eco-Friday Auto Care® services. These, in addition to their consistent and trusting social media voice, demonstrate why Honest-1 “gets” their customer more than any other auto care company.

Honest-1 Auto Care plans to expand into additional markets around the country including Phoenix, Atlanta, Nashville, Indianapolis, Miami, Orlando, Raleigh, Charlotte, Michigan, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Denver, and many others. For more information about Honest-1 franchising, visit www.h1franchise.com. 

ABOUT HONEST-1 AUTO CARE
Honest-1 Auto Care is the only national full-service auto care company that is 100% ESA® Certified Eco-Friendly. Honest-1 leads the industry in numerous eco-friendly initiatives including strict recycling of automotive materials, pollution prevention, resource conservation and offering Eco-Friendly Auto Care services such as their eco-friendly fluid lines,  ECO TuneUp® and ECO Oil Change® options. In addition to its high environmental standards, Honest-1 has a very unique customer-centric approach to the auto care industry providing centers that are family-friendly, characterized by clean and upscale waiting areas, Internet cafes, children's play areas, comfortable leather chairs and couches, an HD TV and complimentary beverage stations. Honest-1 was ranked 321 in Entrepreneur magazine's 2013 "Franchise 500" and ranked 338 in the magazine's 2011 "Franchise 500" list. Additionally, Honest-1 ranked as one of the top companies in the 2011 and 2012 Lube and Oil News "Top Oil Change-Plus Chains" and in the 2013 “HOT 100 FRANCHISE LIST” by RedHotFranchises.com. For more information, visit http://www.honest-1.com. For franchise information please visit, http://www.h1franchise.com.

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Area Developer Spotlight: Greg Gonville, Philadelphia

Greg Gonville, 45, is the regional developer for Honest-1 Auto Care in Philadelphia. Greg received his B.A. in business management and entrepreneurship from Northeastern University.  He also has his MBA in technology and e-commerce from West Chester University. As an undergraduate, Greg put his entrepreneurial curriculum into practice and successfully started two businesses: a t-shirt production and design company and a seal coating company for homes and commercial buildings.

In 2000, Gonville went to work for Sara Lee Household and Body care where he was in charge of $135 million division of the corporation which included brands such as Kiwi, Kiwi Select, Ty-D-Bol, and Liquifresh. After five years at Sara Lea, Govnille went to work for SCA Personal Care in Philadelphia, P.A.

But, after years of corporate management, Greg was ready for a change. After doing his research on various franchises, Greg discovered that Honest-1 Auto Care would be his next step.

How did you learn about the brand?

When I left the corporate world, the personal care company I was working for was being restructured. I got a severance package and during that time I was thinking through my career and what I’ve done and what I wanted to do. I wanted to run my own business and I had always had a knack for automotive repair. I got together with a broker and they showed me a bunch of different companies, but I didn’t see anything that interested me. When a local auto shop came up for sale, I went to visit it. While visiting, I just thought about all the things I would change. It was dingy and old and dirty and I wanted to change that. I went to a discovery day for another franchise. While I was there, I was talking to other prospective franchisees and they told me about Honest-1, and it was exactly what I was looking for. I saw that they were looking for a regional developer and that fit my personality, so I shifted from being an owner to being a regional developer.

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

One challenge I’ve faced is discipline. When you are an employee, you get up and go to work. But when you own a business, you have to have both drive and discipline. Learning to be flexible was also a challenge; when things change, you have to be able roll with that. Patience is also key in any business ownership. You have to be patient.

What is your end goal with Honest-1?

My end goal is to have 15–20 shops in my territory. I have some great employees helping me and the owners realize their goals. Currently, I have no shops open, but we will have one open in the second week of September in Malvern.

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

The Inquirer

Do you have any interesting hobbies or passions?

I stay active by playing ice hockey and baseball. I am also married with two children—my son is 12 and my daughter is 15.

Honest-1 Featured in IFA FranBlog

Honest-1 was recently featured in IFA FranBlog in an article titled, "This July 4th, IFA recognizes veterans who have started careers in the franchise industry".

Featured in the article is information about Portland, Oregon owner Steve Grimes. The paragraph details his military background and experience, as well as info about his Honest-1 businesses in Oregon and the upcoming opening of the Aloha location on July 5.

Click HERE for the full article or view the feature below:

This July 4th, IFA recognizes veterans who have started careers in the franchise industry

Steve Grimes
In 2007, after returning from a year-long tour of duty in Afghanistan with the 41st Brigade Combat Team of the Oregon Army National Guard, Steve Grimes was trying to decide what to do with the next chapter of his life.  Grimes found Honest-1, a young brand he felt he could grow with and opened his first location in Portland that September.  Six years later and he has been able to open four Honest-1 shops in Oregon and he will be opening his fifth Honest-1 location in Aloha, Ore., on July 5.  As a part of the grand opening, the first 50 customers will get biodegradable plant feed packets, five of which will win the customer free oil changes for a year.  He also has plans to open a sixth location in the next six months to a year.

Franchisee Spotlight: Erik Rhyne

Erik Rhyne, age 30, was born and raised in Greensboro and had high hopes of becoming a NASCAR Race official. After graduating high school, Rhyne went to NASCAR Technical Institute and graduated in 2006 at the top of his class. BMW corporate saw Rhyne’s potential and recruited him to train as a master technician on scholarship in Roanoke, VA.  After graduating, Rhyne worked at various auto bodies as a master technician, and then received a call from his mother who sat next to Rissy Sutherland, president of Honest-1, on a flight. Rhyne moved back to his hometown of Greensboro and opened his own Honest-1 AutoCare at the age of 29.

How did you learn about the brand?

My mom was on a flight and happened to have a seat next to Rissy Sutherland, the president of Honest-1. They began talking and my mom told her I was a mechanic and Rissy provided more information about the franchise. She said the Greensboro location was open and it’s the first and only Honest-1 in the state of North Carolina.

Why did you choose an opportunity with Honest-1 Auto Care?

I love auto repair and my wife and I are very eco-friendly, which Honest-1 spotlights. I don’t want to do anything just to generate profit; I want to be proud of my work on a daily basis. Their environment was comforting to me. They have everything I require.  

What makes your business unique in the community?

There are plenty of automotive repair shops in the area but we are clean, attractive, and nice. The eco-friendly services we offer are very unique and the fact that we can give people a pleasant experience in a stereotypically unpleasant business speaks volumes about the brand.

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

We partner with Wheels for Hope where we repair donated cars and sell them to needy families at an extremely low cost. We donate our labor and parts at no cost. We are also well connected with the University of North Carolina – Greensboro. We work closely with students with autism or Asperger’s who work in the auto shop and learn how automotive repair works. I give my employees PTO to volunteer in the community, which isn't a norm for most businesses.

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

Being in management as a young person is something I've had to learn how to do. During the recession, it was also difficult to get a bank on board, and in addition to having two young kids and working full- time, my experiences have definitely been challenging.

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

We would like to open more locations in Greensboro and the surrounding area within the next 2-3 years.