Midwest Performance Cars Created a Frictionless Experience Across Multiple Locations
Running a modern shop requires much more than just the technical knowledge behind fixing your customer's cars. Leveraging the right tools can make a significant difference in your day-to-day – and we're not talking just the right impact wrench or alignment rack.
October 4, 2024
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Read time: 3 min
The right shop management tools are key to create an efficient process that keeps cars moving and provides a modern, frictionless customer experience.
Combine the right tools with the right mindset, and you have a real recipe for success. With 30 years in the financial industry under his belt, Andy Bizub knew that running a successful shop required more than just the technical knowledge of fixing cars, but also the operational knowledge of running a business.
That's why Andy took ownership of Midwest Performance Cars. As a new owner, Andy wanted to refresh the shop’s processes to make it as efficient as possible – and in turn, grow the business. He knew that the old pen and paper method had to go to make way for a powerful software solution: Tekmetric Shop Management System.
Efficiency is Key to Success
Before Andy bought the shop, Midwest Performance Cars was in a bit of a rough patch, and still relying on an older server-based software system.
Already familiar with how technology revolutionized the financial industry, Andy knew there was a better solution that could make his team’s daily operations far more productive.
"I’m always looking for efficiency," Andy said. "I’m always telling our people to work smarter, not harder; we can do better without setting our hair on fire."
With Tekmetric in its toolbox, Midwest Performance Cars has been able to create a streamlined, consistent, and most importantly, frictionless experience -- both behind, and in front of the counter. Being a modern cloud-based solution, Tekmetric takes out all the roadblocks and speed bumps from before, serving as a stable, reliable, streamlined shop management system that simplifies processes at every step for an efficient flow.
For example, between the two shops, Andy's team has configured over 2,100 canned jobs for a variety of repairs. Because at least one canned job is used on each repair order, they can build estimates in just seconds.
Year Established
Using Tekmetric Since
1158
Average Repair Order ($)
720
Average Car Count
Number of Employees
Number of Bays
Managing Your Shops with Ease
For Andy and his team, shop management is all about simplifying the process so they can focus on the tasks that really matter: providing amazing service and getting cars back on the road as quickly as possible.
With instant access to all his shop's information, Andy can generate the financial reports and operational data he needs to make "course corrections on the fly. If something is trending the wrong way, we can correct that before the end of the month."
And while both Midwest Performance Cars locations are Euro-focused, the downtown Chicago location is focused more on general repairs, and the Northbrook shop in the Suburbs of Chicago is focused on performance and vintage repairs. With such a clear separation of focus, Midwest Performance Cars has created an efficient process to get customers the right service they need.
"For both of our shops, they work hand in hand and pass information back and forth," Andy said. "We have a technician at Northbrook who is our top performance engineer. If we have someone at a downtown shop that is looking for that kind of work, we can route them straight to Northbrook for specialized service. Because everyone is in full communication, the downtown shop doesn’t have to explain anything to our specialist before he starts looking at the customer's car. I really like that all our people can really see things globally, so we don't have any information silos."
The ability to manage both shops from the same platform makes it easy for Andy to understand the financial side of things. It also makes it even easier to refer customers between shops, so they can get the right care and have continuity-of-care cross over.
Technicians at Midwest Performance Cars mostly run Tekmetric directly from their phones. Technicians can spend way more time working on the cars in their bay using their phone to access everything they need, instead of wasting precious time running between their static workstations and the bay. Plus, technicians can use the upcoming appointment calendar to plan out their workflow for each day.
And for his "people in the front office, it’s really more about saving them time," Andy said. "They don't have to go through multiple screens and clicks to go back and get data – it’s all right at their fingertips. They’ve even customized things in Tekmetric to set them up the way they want to work, like color coding what's most important to them."
Growing Your Business With the Right Mindset
With the right mindset, almost anything is possible. At Midwest Performance Cars, Andy's business-first mindset not only helped rescue a shop that was down on its luck, but even positioned them for growth.
"We are business owners. Don’t think of yourself as a shop owner; think of yourself as a business owner," Andy said. "And what's important for me as an owner, especially an owner who isn't in the day-to-day workflow, is getting into the overall global management of the business."
As a business owner, Andy also knows that success isn't possible without a talented team supported by the right leadership mindset to position them for their own growth. In fact, Andy mentioned that Tekmetric has made running his shop so efficient, that his new 24-year-old General Manager entered the business as a Service Manager with zero automotive industry experience, and has grown to managing their current two locations.
"We hire first for attitude, second for aptitude, and third for skills, because we can train skills," Andy said. "Having a really user-friendly interface like Tekmetric makes bringing someone from outside to inside the industry that much easier."
This unique mindset of running not just a shop, but an overall business, has enabled Midwest Performance Cars to adapt to a modern approach, offer an amazing frictionless customer experience, and eventually open up an entirely new location.
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
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
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
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
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.
Business picked up over the years, and Karl was able to assemble a small team and build his own on-premise shop management system. In 2010, he decided to move Ultimate Auto Repair to a larger space two miles from his house. He was able to employ more people but eventually hit a growth cap.
After switching to Tekmetric, Karl was able to accelerate over the hump and more than double his business. Today, they’re still growing every month.
Ripping the Band-Aid Off
With my old system, I was stuck. Each technician would have five or six clipboards, and they'd have to shuffle and figure out what was authorized and what wasn't. To find out anything, I had to do it manually. It's no fun at the end of the month trying to count how many cars and work orders we did.
There was no way that we were going to make it any further without a lot of changes.
I was afraid to make the change. I thought, "Tekmetric has a lot of good stuff going, but I'm not sure". And then everything came to a head. My laptop crashed. I couldn't get into the old program. We had been talking about making the change, so I grabbed my service writer and said, "We're making the change right now". It was like ripping off the band-aid.
By day three, I said to my team "Hey guys. I'm sorry about the stress". And they said, "Stress? Are you kidding me? This is way better! We don't have to look for a work order on the wall!" They took to it right away.
The immediate result was that everybody could instantly see with a click what everyone else was talking about. The technician could put his notes in there: what he saw and what he didn't see. It's so nice for the service writer to be able to see the customer's notes and the technician’s notes. The customer came in with this complaint. We addressed it. This is the problem. The technician also found this. And everybody can see that live, instantly.
Ticket to Freedom
I was welded to the place without Tekmetric. If I wasn't there, nobody knew what to do. Now, they know.
You can't run a million dollar shop off of one guy having to be there. At the end of the day, the world runs on math. If you don't know what the math is, you don't know what you're doing; you have no clue whether you made money or you lost money. You're just throwing quotes out there and hoping things are there.
But with Tekmetric, I can see in realtime what my markup is, what it's going to be, and what it should be. I can give my service writers a bottom dollar: what they need to sell it for. I can tell them how much they need to discount for, and they can quickly see all that right in Tekmetric. I can set up matrices, even labor matrixes now, which is crazy to me!
I call it their 'guard rail'. They know how high they can go and how low they can go to make a sale. At some point, if you don't have a technician working, and that's their job for the day, and if you don't sell that job, they’re not going to be working. That service writer needs to know how low they can go to make that sale.
Tekmetric gives me the freedom to leave for days at a time and everything keeps running. It has basically allowed me to duplicate myself, to show the guys: this is the system, and these are the steps you need to take. I can show the guys what to do, and they can replicate it.
Before, vacations were almost impossible. Now, I can leave, and I know the shop will keep running. With Tekmetric, it's all right there. My team has everything they need.
Realizing the Potential
As a business owner, Tekmetric helps me make quick decisions, which is what it's all about. I have to be able to know where I’m at and where I’m going to project it. And then we need to be able to operate with consistency, too. Because when the customer comes back the second time, we need to be able to quote it the same. There's so much background information in there that I don't know how I'd run anything over $500,000 without Tekmetric.
We're moving into commercial diesel. In Jackson, there are a lot of general contractors, plumbers, and electricians. I'm cleaning out the spare building on my property and putting in four bays, so we can concentrate on commercial diesel customers over there and get their trucks in and out quickly. It's awesome because I can set that up in Tekmetric as its own repair shop. I can track the efficiency of service writers and technicians in each building.
Growing my business allows me to get people good jobs - jobs that weren't necessarily available to me. The possibilities are limitless.
Making the Dean's List
My daughters have been helping around the shop, too. My 21-year-old comes in after hours and spends three to five hours a week cleaning the shop and does interior details. She started her own cleaning business, and she cleans houses.
My youngest is our Quality Control. She QCs all the cars when we're done. And she wants to be a service writer, so we're training her to be a service writer. She works with me every day. It's pretty awesome. She likes accounting, and she actually does our end-of-day reporting, so she loves Tekmetric. She can jump in there and go through and close out all the cars and make sure they're all paid for. She gives me the final count.
I'm happy that I can teach her a trade where she can make some money, whether she’s working at Ultimate Auto Repair or another shop.
And both kids made the dean’s list this semester! So I’m proud of that, too.
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