Gushing with success
Charlotte entrepreneur out to clean up car wash
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by Artellia Burch for THE CHARLOTTE POST
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PHOTO/PHILIP RICE |
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George Rhyne, owner of Halvoline Fast Lube Diamond Car Wash in Charlotte
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George Rhyne is no longer a corporate man. He is an oil man now.
Rhyne, owner of Havoline Fast Lube Diamond Finish Car Wash in Charlotte, worked for large corporations like Phillip Morris, Rexham Custom, Celanese Corp. and General Motors. When he was a corporate man he saved
companies millions of dollars. Now, Rhyne is going to apply his financial expertise into his own business. When he decided to go into business for himself he ran into some unexpected skepticism.
"My friends told me not to go into business for myself," he said. "They all told me how good their companies are to them. Every one of my friends since then has been offered packages
due to downsizing in different corporations." Rhyne says that anyone thinking of owning their own business should remain proactive.
"I decided to make a transition from a customer to a producer at the end of 1997," said Rhyne.
In order to get his business off the ground Rhyne invested more than $350,000 of his own money. Throughout the construction of his business he had spend more than $200,000 in unexpected costs.
Rhyne, who excelled in corporate America by making things happen, is doing the same for his own business by supervising its growth from the ground up. "I supervised the whole project,"
he said. "I was here everyday watching over everything."
The hard work he and his staff have put into the business paid off in the first year when most start-ups fold. "I am blessed to go through the first year and establish a frequent customer
repetitive base, Rhyne said. "Since our customers continue to come back, it's safe to say that we are doing something right."
Havoline Fast Lube has state of the art equipment to wash vehicles as well as offer full-service lube jobs. The average wait for customers is 25 minutes, a testament to Rhyne's emphasis on
speedy service. He has expectations that employees are expected to meet. "I expect the facility to remain clean," he said. "I also expect my worker to be honest and
attempt to see things through the eyes of the customer. We ask our customers for feedback. Whether it's positive or negative feedback."
More than 65 percent of all of Havoline's Fast Lube's customers are women. The rest of the customers are corporate people working in the nearby corporations. Rhyne gives God credit for his success. "The Lord gave me the drive I need in order to
succeed," he said. "In the last two years he has also taught me how to be patient and I'm thankful. When I was working in corporate America, I had high blood pressure. I don't have
high blood pressure anymore. I wake up every morning looking forward to going to work." "I am dedicated to my car ministry. My job is not only to produce a good product but to
reach down and give someone an opportunity that may not have been given a chance by someone else."
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