Christian Brothers Automotive is opening a new location of its auto repair shops, located in Dripping Springs in March.
Mark and Sweta David have lived in Dripping Springs for approximately five years and since 2018, they have owned and operated the Christian Brothers location off Brodie Lane in Austin. Now, they are expanding their business.
Christian Brothers Automotive was founded in Mission Bend, Texas, by Mark Carr and his business partner, an automotive technician from Carr’s church in Houston. The first shop opened in August 1982 and in 1996, it became a registered franchisor. As of 2005, there were 20 shops in Texas and currently there are 302 shops across Texas, including the Dripping Springs location, and the United States.
For the Davids, their journey began in 2016, when they started to become interested in the franchise. They went through several applications and interviews before being invited to a “Discovery Day” in Houston, which is a day for potential franchisees to learn more about the franchise. In 2018, the Davids were awarded their franchise and they took over ownership of the Brodie Lane location in Austin. This past year, the Davids were offered ownership of the Dripping Springs location, which is set to have its grand opening on Saturday, March 15.
One of the reasons the Davids were interested in this particular franchise is because of their experience as customers.
“... You're probably aware that auto repair is a male-dominated industry and not just females, but males feel intimidated. They feel under-educated. They feel there's a lack of transparency,” said Mark. “With a trust based transaction like auto repair, the consumer is fully trusting whatever the repair shop tells them, most don't have the expertise or the insight or experience to be able to determine whether they're being truthful or not. And that's how we felt.”
But it was different at Christian Brothers, said Mark. There was full transparency and lack of intimidation.
Christian Brothers Automotive offers an array of services, everything from oil changes to full engine replacements. Everyone on staff is Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified, which ensures that the technicians on staff give the best service possible, said Mark, and adds to their reputation of reliability. It’s difficult to receive the ASE certification and at Christian Brothers, all employees must receive that certification by the third month of employment.
The ASE certification also allows the company to interact with third party service contracts.
“AAA will tow cars to us and there are certain regular insurance companies like Geico and Progressive that, if there's mechanical damage, a lot of times they prefer a blue seal certified shop to do the work because they know it's going to be done right the first time,” said Mark.
All Christian Brothers Automotive shops are locally owned and operated. The owners are involved in the day-to-day business and because of that, the Dripping Springs location was perfect for the Davids.
“We live in High Point, which is just south of Belterra … We knew that [Dripping Springs] had national attention for many reasons,” said Mark “So we felt like it was an opportunity we couldn't refuse, when the home office offered us this location.”
The grand opening of the Dripping Springs Christian Brothers Automotive shop will be held on Saturday, March 15, at 100 North Canyonwood Drive in Dripping Springs. The first day of operation will be Monday, March 17.
For more information about Christian Brothers Automotive, visit www.cbac.com.
