Steve Leal bought his first body shop in Ontario, Canada, in 2004. He was doing about $2 million per year in business, he says, and was looking to grow, so he joined Fix Auto, a Quebec-based franchise.
"If they can get me insurance work," he says, "That's the same price as a salesman."
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Unfortunately, the head office was a train wreck, Leal says. He joined forces with other frustrated franchisees and, by 2008, had bought the Ontario arm of the company himself, adding Atlantic Canada and Alberta in short order. In 2011, he became COO and by 2013, he bought the whole thing. The next year, he also acquired Mondofix, a company started by Fix Auto's founder.
"All this activity went on as we grew as a company," Leal says. I knew I couldn't compete with public companies and private equity. I wanted to make sure we have the clout to play but not lose control of the company."
Leal solved his problem by partnering with a government agency that helps Quebec-based companies grow. And grow, Fix Auto did, eventually going global.
"We created some new concepts. We've had some great success stories and some bigger challenges," Leal says. "Every country I go to, I hear, 'It's different here.' Fixing cars is fixing cars. The difference is all the business trends around."
