Excluservice has the Formula for Growing Your Shop

Stephane Grabina, owner of Excluservice, was practically born with a wrench in his hand. Stephane’s father was the personal mechanic of French Formula 3 driver Jean-Pierre Jaussaud; he was not only a one person pit-crew for the famous french racer, but also the person who drove Jaussaud’s trailer and race car to events.

October 4, 2024

|

Read time: 3 min

The story goes that Stephane’s father left this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in France to chance another once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—love. In the early 60’s Stephane’s father moved to the United States to be with the woman who would end up becoming Stephane’s mother.

Because Stephane’s father didn’t speak any English, he started working basic oil change jobs. By the time Stephane was born, his father had picked up English and became the operator and manager of a large chain of service stations, one of which was where Stephane got his first taste for auto repair.

After working for his father, Stephane worked at several BMW dealerships, acquiring skills that would mold him into the shop owner he is today. Stephane became the manager of Excluservice in Rockville, Maryland. At the tail end of 2012, the original owner of Excluservice retired, putting Stephane in the driver’s seat.

As owner, Stephane has grown Excluservice by adopting new technologies that strengthen and complement the relationships between himself, his team, his staff, and his partners. His focus has been on streamlining operations. Stephane teamed up with Tekmetric as his new shop management system partner to help Excluservice reach new heights.

Less Costs. More Uptime.

We were originally running our shop with two systems; one was for digital inspection and the other was our shop management system. They were both reliant on a server, so I also had an IT team as well. When I added it all up, I was spending $1,000 a month between the software companies and the IT support. And if the internet connection blipped for a split second, my digital inspection went down for about an hour.

Now I’m paying a fraction of what I was before switching to Tekmetric, and I don’t have to worry about downtime or maintenance. We saved a bunch of money, and the estimate writing process is much faster because the labor guide is built into the system.

An Easy Transition

Nobody really likes change. You just have to sell the vision. Once you get buy in from the team, they will be more inclined to embrace change.

I showed my team how this system is going to be easier for them to write estimates. The turnaround time from estimate to selling work has drastically reduced, which allows us to sell more; if I give my guests an answer quickly, they’re more inclined to buy.

So after researching and thinking about it, we decided to give it a shot, and I’m glad we did. It paid off big time! Our total revenue has gone up by about 20% since we switched.

The system is very intuitive, so training wasn't that hard. I think it depends on how tech-savvy the person is. Most technicians are pretty tech-savvy already, so for them it was not difficult at all. I had been letting them play around with it for the month prior, so once we went live, we were pretty much ready to go.

The time it took to write the estimates was drastically reduced. That was the biggest thing. That then allowed us to sell more because time is of the essence. If you take three hours to write an estimate, the customer is thinking, "What have you been doing for the past three hours? I dropped my car off. What's going on?" And then if you call them in the afternoon and they dropped the car off in the morning, there's less likelihood of selling the work that you're recommending that you found. If you get them an answer quickly, the customer is more inclined to buy. Because of that, our average repair order and our total revenue went up.

shop owner and service writer on computer

Transparent. Measurable. Efficient.

One of the new features that Tekmetric added this year is the Gross Profit Dollars per Hour at the bottom of every job. Now service writers know what our target Gross Profit Dollars per Hour is, and they know that they can't go below that. They also know that if it's above that, and if there’s push-back from the guest, they can lower the price as long as it stays above our GP Dollars/Hour target. They now have the autonomy to do that without requesting my permission.

technicians on tablets with Tekmetric interface

More Connected

Our shop layout isn’t conducive for the service advisor to walk all the way back to the shop to talk to the tech. Tekmetric is working with us to create a more connected shop. Whenever a repair gets approved, everyone is made aware of it. When a customer authorizes a repair, the parts guy knows, the technician knows—everybody knows. Even when the parts arrive, everybody becomes aware.

Tekmetric is constantly improving because they're always listening to customers' feedback. And that's one of the biggest things—they listen to us. They have a user group, and when somebody has an issue, we help each other and come up with ideas, and then Tekmetric will surprise us by implementing one of those ideas in a clean, easy-to-understand manner. If we have an issue or a question, they're always there to answer it—and pretty quickly, too! They've always got my back.

Life is about relationships. It doesn't matter if it's business or it's personal. If you make a million dollars, but you have no friends, what's the point? What value can we provide to others? That's what's important to me. Not necessarily what they can provide for me. I feel that if you connect with people who have that similar philosophy, things just work themselves out.

For more information about Excluservice, visit bmwexcluservice.com

Year Established

Using Tekmetric Since

$986

Average Repair Order ($)

150

Average Car Count

9

Number of Employees

Number of Bays

Recommended stories

For nearly a decade, Tony Perez, owner of Euro Car Doctors in Orange County, California, has been committed to delivering premium auto care. But as business grew, outdated software made it harder to keep up, and customers started to feel the impact. 

Challenge

"We'd have 10 appointments for the day, and by 11 a.m., only two quotes were out. We still had eight to go.”

Tony’s team was bogged down by:

  • Estimates that took 4-5 hours to complete
  • Inefficient workflows between techs and service writers
  • A backlog of appointments that led to delays and customer frustrations 

Solution

“We needed something that could keep up with our intake and let us grow without being bottlenecked.”

Tony knew his customers deserved better - faster service, clearer communication, and less time waiting. After exploring his options, he chose Tekmetric for its ability to streamline operations and deliver a more efficient, transparent experience from check-in to estimate.

Learn about Euro Car Doctors' customer experience

Results

Car at a bay in a repair shop and technician working on the trunk

Increased Efficiency and Productivity:

Creating estimates now takes less than 90 minutes, down from 4–5 hours. That means more vehicles in the shop and more satisfied customers driving away.

Increase in Average Repair Order (ARO):

Faster quoting and comprehensive digital vehicle inspections means customers see everything their car needs right away. The result? An increase in average repair order to $900 and more confident decisions from customers. 

"Our numbers were through the roof because I was able to quote more items on those tickets that the car needed."  

Improved Customer Satisfaction:

Each customer receives a detailed quote informing them about the services needed and associated costs, empowering them to make confident decisions. Transparent, timely communication has built trust with customers and it shows in the reviews with a 4.8 star rating on Google.

"We tell the customer what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. Everything we see gets quoted to be fully honest and transparent with our customers."  

Expansion to a Second Location:

Improved operations allowed Tony to open a second shop, without sacrificing quality.

“As we grow, we won’t open the next store until the last one runs on autopilot.”

What’s Next

Auto repair shop owner with a happy customer

Euro Car Doctors isn’t slowing down. As each shop reaches capacity, Tony plans to expand, driven by his commitment to delivering an exceptional customer experience, with Tekmetric helping power the growth behind the scenes.

In late 2020, Jim Kellas bought TL Auto Repair, in Union City, California. The location was strong, but the shop’s systems were holding it back—outdated software, lack of key integrations, and inefficient processes all contributed to a poor customer experience. 

Determined to find a solution, Jim explored various shop management systems before switching to Tekmetric. After making the switch, the impact was transformative for TL Auto Repair.

“Stop looking at the other ones. You're done searching.”  

Challenge

Before switching systems, TL Auto Repair faced:

  • Frequent software downtime disrupting operations
  • Lack of integrations with key tools, creating manual work
  • Limited visibility into performance metrics

Solution

After exploring several options, Jim chose Tekmetric for its seamless integrations, reliable performance, and features that made it easier to connect with customers. With Tekmetric, TL Auto Repair streamlined operations, improved communication, and set the foundation for future growth.

Results

Service Advisors at their desks

Streamlined Operations That Drive Revenue

Integrations with tools like Affirm through Tekmetric’s Payments and adding Marketing solutions helped TL Auto Repair simplify workflows and boost sales. Offering financing made higher-ticket repairs more accessible for customers, leading to over $2 million in revenue.

“I was able to integrate with so many other programs. I'm able to know revenue-wise it's been a boom because I'm able to tie everything together.”

More Efficiency, Less Overhead

Running on a reliable, browser-based system saved time and cut hardware costs. Staff work faster, from anywhere, using devices like Chromebooks. 

"The time savings have been substantial, allowing for increased efficiency"

A Better Experience for Every Customer

Text message updates, digital vehicle inspections, and contactless invoicing and payments create a more transparent and convenient experience for their customers. This has earned them trust, repeat business, and a 4.7-star rating on Google. 

"Customers love getting text message updates, online inspection reports, and the option for contactless service - it keeps them coming back." 

What’s Next

Cars on lifts getting worked on

With a proven model and the right technology support in place, Jim plans to expand and is in the process of acquiring new shops. He is applying the same focus on operational efficiency and customer experience that turned TL Auto Repair into a thriving business.

In 2020, Jeremy and Holly Hansen purchased Mission Auto KC, an old-school shop with no desire to grow or adapt to new customers. From day one, they faced operational challenges—outdated systems, manual processes and a lack of visibility into key business metrics. Most importantly, they struggled to deliver the level of customer service they envisioned. 

Determined to find a solution, Holly researched various shop management systems and after careful evaluation, made the switch to Tekmetric in July 2021. The impact was immediate and transformative.

Challenge

Before Tekmetric, Mission Auto KC relied on outdated methods—pen-and-paper invoicing, limited reporting, and inefficient customer communication. This led to:

  • Slow invoicing and difficulty tracking finances
  • Inconsistent customer updates, causing frustration and lost business
  • Limited reporting capabilities, making it hard to identify areas for growth
  • Revenue stagnation, with monthly sales hovering around $40,000 to $50,000

Solution 

After evaluating multiple options, Holly chose Tekmetric because it provided real-time shop insights, streamlined operations, and better customer engagement. With Tekmetric, Mission Auto KC automated processes, improved financial tracking, and provided customers with a transparent repair experience—all essential to driving growth.

Results

Technician working on a car

Revenue Growth: Doubling Monthly Sales

With Tekmetric optimizing operations, Mission Auto KC experienced a dramatic financial transformation, doubling its monthly revenue from $40,000–$50,000 to $90,000. By streamlining workflows, improving job tracking, and enabling faster repair approvals, the shop significantly increased productivity, allowing them to complete more jobs per day. These improvements not only boosted revenue but also led to a 20% increase in gross profit, as better pricing accuracy and operational efficiency maximized profitability.

“Our typical [revenue before Tekmetric] was $40,000 to $50,000. Then $90,000 became our norm right away. So the top number did double.”

Data-Driven Financial Management

With automated reporting and real-time financial tracking, Holly gained complete visibility into the shop’s performance, allowing for daily revenue tracking, expense management, and more accurate accounting.

“QuickBooks is what I use for our accounting, and it’s up to date every day because I come in the following morning, enter my end-of-day report, enter all my expenses, and I know where I'm at.”

Faster Turnaround and Improved Customer Experience

Tekmetric’s text and photo-sharing features allowed for faster, clearer communication with customers, improving trust and increasing repeat business. Customers could see photos of repairs in progress, eliminating doubts and streamlining approvals.

“Customers love it. They love transparency. I'm not just saying your filter is dirty—you see a picture of your filter.”

What’s Next

Technician working at a computer bay

Fueled by their commitment to exceptional service and operational excellence, Mission Auto KC is setting ambitious goals for the future. As demand continues to grow, they plan to expand their team, increase efficiency, and strengthen customer relationships to reach $2 million in annual revenue. By prioritizing transparency, quality work, and trust, they are building a loyal customer base that keeps coming back. What started as a struggling shop has now become a thriving, data-driven business, poised for long-term success and continued expansion.