We had the good fortune of connecting with Erich Schmidt and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Erich, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Well. I worked for a local dealer for about 15 years, I was underpaid for my skill set for a long time. I also found no thanks for going above and beyond, and zero accountability for anyone working in the dealer. the toxicity was quite intense as well which made me toxic without even realizing it. Overall I found the dealer environment to be a poor place to work due to these things. early in my career I worked for a small mom and pop shop, he was a master wiz with electrical and was lucky enough for him to teach me, this was the biggest piece to my career puzzle and my future path to a diagnostician and owner. I was too young and missguided to understand this shop was amazing but I left for more money….. After all this and a military career mixed in and prior to the shops I worked in, I knew I wanted to own a shop because I hated the things I had experienced and wanted to make that change in the industry and for future techs for better training, guidance, pay and treatment. I wanted a shop that educated the consumer in what to expect when having your car repaired and the cost associated. education and charging properly is a huge key to future shops successes.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Well from a very young age I was taking things apart, I loved mechanical and electrical things. My parents are white collar workers and hated it, but allowed it to a point. I naturally moved to lawn mower engines, once in highschool we had cars, a friends dad rented a little shop for about 4 of us and we “restored” a cj5 jeep and a camaro. Once I graduated, I joined the Army, my main MOS or job was heavy construction equipment and heavy wheeled vehicles, This got me in the door for auto repair and diesel, I started a job at a tire store. They were mean and non supportive of staff, so I left and started at a small independent shop this is where I learned the value of electrical repair and is what kicked off the path to diagnostician and master ASE. I went through a bunch of shops finding the same thing. poor leadership and zero support, zero training. I tend to be a sponge for technical information and rarely forget it so this has helped in my path as well, but found I would have to self educate to learn because of the lack of training. then I started working for chrysler I became level 4 chrysler master and hung out on and off for about 15 years (few independants in between) but always found my way back to this shop due to pay and only pay. it was horribly toxic and negative, which made me that way. I found it a bigger struggle to rid myself of the toxic negativity after leaving and starting my company in 2009. I did not realize how bad I was until I hired my first real employees. As you can imagine they did not stay for long, it was a long road for me to change and my wife was a huge help with this even if the truths were hard to hear I knew we would fail if I did not change my ways. fast forward to today we have a great culture loads of benefits and perks, a clean shop air conditioned shop with loads of great equipment and tech! The shop brand has built a reputation as a great place to work, with good pay and tons of training for every facet of the shop from sales to tech training and leadership/ownership training. on the consumer side we are known for Integrity, excellence and superior service. we are known for our amazing support and client service beyond the repairs. and the involvement in the community.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
We don’t really live in or close to the city and I am kind of lame at this point of my life haha, However my wife and I are from cincinnati and cinci has a great nightlife and food! We live in the country and back up to the Caesar Creek lake and nature preserve in our area, we love to hike so I would recommend a hike for the day and hang out by the lake or in the woods. As for food we love tacos! I would recommend a local to my shop Latin Arepas, the food is beyond amazing and authentic! As for me and my friends we are avid motorcyclist and racers you will find me at the road race track or in the woods beating my body up and having fun!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have to shout out my wife Lauralee!! She came aboard my company from a very cushy executive role in a fortune 500 company, she was instrumental in the growth of the company and the organization of its processes. she holds me up in tough times, and supports my outlandish ideas!! She is as much a key to Schmidt Auto Care as I am!

Website: https://www.schmidtautocare.com/

Instagram: schmidt.auto.care

Facebook: Schmidt Auto Care

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/schmidt-auto-care-springboro

Youtube: Schmidt Auto Care

Other: TikTok: schmidtautocare Link Tree: linktr.ee/schmidtautocare

Image Credits
Schmidt Auto Care marketing media, Lauralee Schmidt.

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