Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers

Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers® is an American automotive maintenance brand, with services including its signature 10 minute oil change, in addition to full-service mechanical, tires, brakes, and more general service offerings. The company is headquartered in Birmingham, AL, where it was founded in 1979.[2]

Express Oil Change, LLC
Formerly
Express Oil Change & Service Center (1979-2013)
Private
IndustryAutomotive service
Automotive repair
Tire repair
Founded1979 (1979)
Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.
FounderJim Lunceford
HeadquartersBirmingham, Alabama, U.S.
Number of locations
274 stores in 16 states (2020: 163 corporate, 111 franchise) [1]
Area served
United States
Key people
Ricky Brooks (Board Chairman)

Jim Durkin (President)
Robert Campbell (EVP Operations)

Josh Henderson (EVP Marketing)
OwnerGolden Gate Capital
SubsidiariesBrakes Plus
Websitewww.expressoil.com

As of January 2020, the company consists of 163 company-owned and 111 franchise-owned locations to span 274 locations across 16 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.

History

In 1979, Express Oil Change was founded by Jim Lunceford, opening the first store in Birmingham, AL. By 1984, Lunceford had opened a total of four locations before deciding to franchise the company.

In 1996, Ricky Brooks and Joe Watson, who were the largest franchisees at the time with 14 locations, were approached by Lunceford to see if the two would be interested in buying the business. They agreed, and immediately had ownership of 25 of the 48 stores in the chain.[3]

Continued Growth & Private-Equity

In 1998, Express Oil Change purchased Tune-Up Clinics – a 28-store chain based in Atlanta, GA, with 25 of the locations immediately being rebranded to Express Oil Change.[4]

In 2005, Carousel Capital, a private investment firm based in Charlotte, NC, purchased the majority stake in Express Oil Change, while Brooks and Watson remained as CEO and COO, respectively. By this time, Express Oil Change and its franchisees operated 149 centers across Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Florida and South Carolina.[5]

In 2010, Carousel sold its stake in the company to Thompson Street Capital Partners of St. Louis, MO. By this time, Express Oil Change had become a recognized leader in the automotive service industry and operated 172 company- and franchise-owned locations across 10 states.[6]

In 2013, as Express Oil Change had expanded to nearly 200 locations across 13 states, Carousel Capital reacquired the company from Thompson Street.[7] This marked a major transition period for the company, as it acquired Birmingham-based Tire Engineers – a company with seven locations at the time.[8]

By February 2014, the company had co-branded 20 of its 88 corporate stores to Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers, with plans to rebrand the remaining locations, and offering the 112 franchise locations the opportunity to rebrand as well.[9] The Tire Engineers stores would not be offered as a franchise model, nor would the stand-alone tire stores be co-branded. The combined company continued its growth in the tire segment, acquiring additional tire brands to include: Trax Tires, Savannah Tire, Griffin Brothers, Upton Tire, and many more.

In 2017, Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers, which had become the 10th-largest fast lube chain in the United States,[10] was acquired by San Francisco-based private equity firm Golden Gate Capital.[11] Shortly thereafter, the company acquired Brakes Plus of Denver, CO, as a continued growth platform. The Brakes Plus stores would not be offered as a franchise model, nor be rebranded. As of July 2019, Brakes Plus spans 81 locations across five states: Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Texas and Wyoming.

In 2018, Golden Gate announced a merger of Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers and Brakes Plus with its newly-acquired Mavis Discount Tire of Millwood, NY, thus creating one of the largest automotive maintenance providers in the United States.[12] As of July 2019, the combined company operates over 885 locations across 24 states.

References
  1. "About Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers". Retrieved 2020-01-31.
  2. "History of Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers". Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers® Official Website. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  3. "Express Oil Change CEO to speak at Mayor's Prayer Breakfast". National Oil & Lube News. Mar 29, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  4. "Express Oil Change Franchise Information". The Franchise Mall. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  5. "Carousel Capital takes stake in Express Oil". Charlotte Business Journal. Apr 11, 2005. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  6. "TSCP Acquires Express Oil Change & Service Centers". Thompson Street Capital Partners. Jun 16, 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  7. "Thompson Street Capital Partners Sells Express Oil Change & Service Center to Carousel Capital". Thompson Street Capital Partners. Jan 9, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  8. "Express Oil Change buys Tire Engineers". Birmingham Business Journal. Feb 20, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  9. Schertz, William (Feb 3, 2014). "Express Oil going full tilt with tires". Tire Business. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  10. Top Fast Lube and Lube + Chains Operating in 2017. National Oil & Lube News. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  11. Leach, Kamaron (Jun 15, 2017). "Golden Gate buys U.S. oil and tire service provider". Mergers & Acquisitions. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  12. "Mavis Discount Tire and Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers to Merge". Business Wire. Feb 23, 2018. Retrieved May 24, 2019.

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