Many believe that a carwash is something you go to where you get out of your car, they vacuum, you pay and they put your car into a tunnel, lots of mechanism, they dry it, you tip and then leave. Yes that would be a carwash wouldn’t it? But that is not the only kind of car wash is it. There are coin-operated do-it-yourself carwashes, gas station roll-overs, touchless car washes. Then there are truck washes, mobile car wash of all types and even fundraiser non-profit carwashes to round out the industry. Would you like to read more about truck washes?
We have a new emergence of hybrids in the mobile car wash sector, which is growing without all the new innovations. For instance consider the newest steam portable units on pushcarts too in parking structures and parking lots as part of amenities programs for parking companies.
These are popular in Brazil, UAE, Europe, Africa, Asia and even Australia due to the water conservation issues of the region. In the United States we are now seeing some of these too although there were some issues with these recently; kicked out of Houston Galleria parking lot for run-off issues, but it was local politics as no water ever made it to any storm drain, you will see this system grow in areas where labor is available for $5.00 per hour after the down turn in this business cycle, which is starting now.
Some coin-op locations do have rollover machines in them now, which makes them somewhat of a hybrid anomaly although it is becoming a popular addition to self-serve carwashes and it is a common industry push. This is happening throughout the country, due to dealers and licensees of manufacturers hitting the pavement for sales. That trend will continue, it seems to work well since those who own coin-ops have the property, convert a bay and set these up, good ROI with clientele already knowing of the location.
Also we are seeing some new systems with Wal-Mart going in now. They almost have it figured out, some more trial and error there, they are making a few mistakes, but seem to get it. Problematic in their regional variation, but they can have the ability to change buying behavior even if for the most part some locations under perform at first, which will happen, but again they already have a killer customer base, no doubt there. They are basically the distribution system for the United States you know? Lots of new changes in the carwash industry aren’t there. Think about it.