Meet Renato Rodriguez of Ride Clean Auto Spa in Lilburn

Today we’d like to introduce you to Renato Rodriguez.

Renato, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
My journey began in high school with my 05 Altima. I would stay at the local carwash because I loved seeing my car all shined up. I cared so much about keeping my car as clean as possible, that I ended up buying expensive professional cleaning machines for my own personal car. I was on IG one day and scrolled past by a Paint Correction 50/50 picture of a buddy of mine and it immediately caught my attention. I always thought I had my cars paint as good as it can be from over the counter supplies until that picture showed me otherwise. My car was covered in swirls and other defects that I had never put any attention to or had the knowledge of what they were. Since that day, I began researching day and night and was eventually gifted my first rotary polishing machine for Christmas 2013.

Ever since that day, I started practicing on my friend’s and families vehicles and eventually started getting the hang of it. Of course, there were damages done along the way but with trial and error, you see what works and what doesn’t. At that point in my life, polishing was just my side hobby and never looked at it deeper than that. From 2012-2017, I was a subcontractor alongside with my father who refinished countertops/tubs and was earning approximately $80-100k toward the end of 2016 and 2017. By that time, my side hobby of detailing was already winning me over but I was afraid of dropping my current job to leave. By early February 2017, I risked it all and spent the little savings I had to buy my trailer, equipment, tools and RIDE CLEAN AUTO SPA was officially born and began mobile detailing. My BIGGEST mistake was that I left my job completely and started detailing, which we were still in winter and I had NO customers at that point. I ended up going from $80-100k down to roughly $18-20k in 2017 which was a HUGE financial hit. 2017 was a year I will never forget because that year I hit rock bottom and was the lowest I had ever been in my life.

Eventually, with god’s help and support from my wife, family, and friends, we were able to get out of the mess we were in. Within this period, I was given the opportunity to work out of Andi’s shop (Antech Motorsports) in Lilburn and focused on bigger jobs and decided to sell my mobile unit and boxtruck. 1.5 years later, my sister and I got together and decided to open a carwash in Duluth (Ride & Shine) and had it running for about seven months when we had yet another better opportunity to work at a bigger location joint. So as of today, we are both working together alongside with other of our close vendors in a 6,xxx sq ft facility that offers multiple services for your convenience all in the same location. Our journey has barely begun and very excited for what the future holds 😀

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
My biggest challenge I have had within my journey is finding a BALANCE. Being an entrepreneur and starting a business from scratch is already a stressful thing, but I am also a married man. I struggled to leave work at work. I would bring WORK home with me and instead of spending time with my wife, I was always busy trying to find ways to better my business, posting online, working on my website or other business-related things. To this day, I sometimes still do, but I have been getting better at it especially that I recently had my first baby boy and I deserve to have time for my family that always comes first before work.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Ride Clean Auto Spa – what should we know?
We offer Paint Corrections, Ceramic Coatings, Interior Deep Cleaning, Engine bay details, Headlight restoration, and Glassparency!

What sets us apart from others is that we create a relationship with every one of our clients. It’s not just about us detailing a vehicle for you, we want to gain your trust and loyalty and same back. We want every job to be a great detailing experience.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My wife played a big role in my business because she always supported my decisions and never doubted me even on my lowest times.

”Skydive Elite” also deserves credit! It was a weekly meeting I had with my close buddies who were also entrepreneurs. We discussed our goals, supported each other, and most importantly, PUSHED each other to make us the best versions of our own selves.

I have one client that I really appreciate. Edder Meza. I would wash his truck even before I started my detailing business and was also my first job when I was officially open and mobile.

Pricing:

• Maintenance wash STARTING at $45
• Wash & Seal STARTING at $120
• 1 step paint correction STARTING at $300
• 2 step paint correction STARTING at $450

Contact Info:

• Address: 733 Pleasant Hill Rd
  Lilburn, GA 30047
• Website: www.ridecleanautospa.com
• Phone: 404-343-5140
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/ridecleanautospa
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/ridecleanautospa

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