Seattle transplants Matt and Debra Boily are settling into life in the Midwest as they open their first Mr. Transmission/Milex Complete Auto Care store in Columbus, Ohio.   In addition to their new location, the pair signed a franchise agreement with Moran Family of Brands to add two additional units in the area in 2022 and 2024.   Matt Boily spent the first 10 years of his career as an auto mechanic before joining Cessna Aircraft Company. During his more than 18-year tenure at Cessna, Boily held numerous roles in executive management. He also served for nearly five years as director of operations at Aerospace AMT, where he ran a $165 million revenue company. The couple, who made the move to the Midwest to be closer to their family, is committed to establishing a successful business in the Columbus, Ohio, area while creating a family-friendly atmosphere at their locations.   “Columbus is a market we have ta ... read more

Learning How to Run a Successful Business from From Father to Son This Father’s Day presents a great opportunity to showcase two of the most successful franchise owners in the Mr. Transmission system and tell the story of how wisdom and understanding is passed down from father to son. Scott Hester has owned the Mr. Transmission store in Decatur, Georgia since 2006.  His father, Lowell, is the franchise owner of the same brand in nearby Sandy Springs. The business connections between the two were formed through caring communication, patient lessons and sage advice. Like his father, Scott selected by his peers as the Mr. Transmission Franchisee of the Year in 2019; Lowell won the same honor twice before. But Lowell didn’t just give his son a franchise. Scott bought one on his own—after absorbing h ... read more

Helping Our Customers Through COVID-19 Like the rest of the world, Moran Family of Brands is currently dealing with an unprecedented time, due to the global pandemic associated with COVID-19.  Being in the auto repair industry, our Mr. Transmission and Milex Complete Auto Care stores have been designated as essential businesses and are currently open and serving our customers. In these uncertain times, Moran Family of Brands is committed to continuing to provide customers with the outstanding service that they have come to expect at our stores. Here are some ways that we’re ensuring that our customers have a safe and complete auto service during their visits. Keeping Customers Aware Stores across the country are altering their hours and policies in order to adapt to the fluidity of customer demand and government recommendations for social d ... read more

Performing an Essential Service In today’s society, there is a lot of discussion as to what constitutes an “essential” vs. “non-essential” business. Barber shops, gyms, and retail stores make up a portion of the latest closures around the country, while grocery stores, pharmacies, and gas stations remain open. As more and more businesses around the country are temporarily shuttered due to COVID-19 concerns, all Mr. Transmission and Milex Complete Auto Care stores remain open for business to serve our customers in need. On March 19, The Department of Homeland Security issued a memorandum to state and local governments to include the vehicle service and repair industry in the definition of essential services for the purposes of emergency ... read more

Sometimes, franchises will be referred to as turn-key businesses.  An established system is already in place and all you need to do is turn the key and open the door, and you can start work. Most franchise owners know that that’s hardly true and kind of an insult to the process. There’s a lot involved in buying a franchise, and often, you’re looking for a location and then going through the process of getting a building constructed. Then you hire and train a quality staff. It isn’t as if somebody just hands you keys to a business. The exception to this is when you buy an existing franchise, particularly when it has been around for some time and been very successful.  Jason Shastri did exactly that late last year, when he bought the Mr. Transmission/Milex franchise in Stafford, Texas, which had been in business for about 30 years. “One of the things I liked about the store is that it had a good reputation with its customers.  It didn&rsquo ... read more

Opportunity is everywhere. You hear that sentiment a lot, but if there is a lesson to be learned in the story of Michael Rucker and LeRoy Holland, that’s it: opportunity is everywhere. You never know what doors might open, simply because of where you go and who you meet. Rucker and Holland are co-owners of the new Mr. Transmission/Milex franchise in Las Vegas, Nevada, which opened in December. We recently spoke with the new owners about the start of their business and this history of their partnership. The two first met six years ago when Rucker brought his car in for repair.  He was impressed by Holland’s approach to car care and he quickly became Rucker’s go-to mechanic whenever his car had problems.  They developed a friendship over the years, and Rucker kept Holland in mind when he explored purchasing a Mr. Transmission/Milex franchise. “One of the main reasons why I wanted to go into business with LeRoy is that I have never seen someone so hone ... read more

Some people think that if you’re a franchise owner, that’s it. You own one franchise, and you’re almost a glorified employee who works for the franchisor. You aren’t really a business owner. You can never grow your business. You just have one stand-alone store in the franchise network, and that’s it. But that simply isn’t the case, as you may already know. Some franchise owners end up running businesses that operate and manage several different franchises. You could own a corporation that has five gas stations in a region, six restaurants and three clothing stores. No, it wouldn’t happen overnight, but the point is that some people do take that approach. Those people are often called master franchisees or area developers, and obviously, it takes a long time to get to that stage in one’s career, if you go that route. But the point is, being a franchise owner never means that you can’t grow and expand your business – and we tak ... read more

If you’ve thought many times about starting a business but quickly dismissed the idea, there are probably some logical reasons holding you back.  Fear of failure, having the proper guidance and being able to market and sell your product or service could all be reasons why you hesitate in starting your own business. One possible solution to overcoming many of these fears is by looking into franchising. That is, running a business that is part of a regional or nationwide company. As you presumably know, McDonald’s is a franchise. So is Subway, Ace Hardware and Circle K. In fact, there are over 3,000 types of franchise brands in a wide range of industries. When you own a franchise, you’re the business owner – but it’s a little similar to being a condominium owner. In that situation, you own the property and have a lot of leewa ... read more