This episode is sponsored by Castrol and The Race Group. To learn more about Castrol Service, please visit:

https://www.castrol.com/en_gb/united-kingdom/home.html

Marc is 25 and runs Magnet Autos in Liverpool, a third generation family garage his granddad started in 1978 after accidentally buying the wrong building at auction. He came into the business straight out of school after six months at home, took over in October 2023 when his dad stepped back to care for his granddad, and was made managing director just under two years later. Turnover has roughly doubled in three years.

Tim Guidotti joins Alex on co-hosting duty for the first time, so there is a proper fleet conversation in here too: fleet versus retail margins, auto authorisation on the platforms, high spend reviews and de-fleeting, and why six technicians can run on one service advisor.

If you run an independent garage or you are heading into a family business handover, this one is honest about the parts that go wrong as well as the parts that work.

Topics covered:

Coming into the family business out of school and starting in the back office

How Magnet bought its way into fleet in 2004

Taking over in October 2023 when his dad stepped back

Going from mate to boss, and the hire he regrets letting go

Turning away the busy fools and £4,000 to £5,000 a week of turnover

Fleet versus retail: margins, authorisation and high spend reviews

Splitting workshop control from the front desk

The five year plan, ramps, and why he is not opening a second site

Timestamps:

00:00 - intro

01:44 - leaving school and the six months at home

07:29 - how magnet got into fleet in 2004

13:15 - the dip and taking over in October 2023

19:18 - the sultan of brunei cars

23:06 - Castrol | The Race Group Partnership

24:26 - the setup, the staff and buying the wrong building

33:02 - fleet versus retail margins and authorisation

39:15 - the numbers and turning away the busy fools

46:27 - becoming managing director

52:46 - the five year plan and adding ramps

59:36 - outro

Subscribe for more expert insight, honest conversation, and real stories from inside the independent garage sector.

https://beacons.ai/ontheramp

#garageowners #independentgarage #automotiveindustry #mechaniclife #ukgarages #trades #automotive #castrol #fleet #familybusiness #ontheramp

This episode is sponsored by Castrol and The Race Group. To learn more about Castrol Service, please visit: https://www.castrol.com/en_gb/united-kingdom/home.html

Sophie Lyden works alongside her dad at Westgate Tyres in Morecambe. Three depots on one street, 40 to 50 cars a day, and no booking system for tyres. She's also better known across the trade as The Tyre Lady, and became the person the BBC called when they wanted a tyre expert. She joins us to talk about how both of those things happened.

If you run a garage or sell tyres, this one's full of practical insight, and a decent argument that safety messaging is the best marketing you're not doing.

In this episode:

- Why Westgate doesn't take bookings for tyres, and how they cope with 40 to 50 cars a day

- The stock strategy behind their biggest tyre month

- TPMS, valve service kits, and the conversation most garages skip

- Why she checks dot codes on every car and advises at 3mm

- The crash outside the garage that started The Tyre Lady

- What road safety conferences never talk about

- How a LinkedIn post about a bad tyre reached 200,000 people

- Getting a tyre onto the BBC Breakfast sofa

- What she'd change about the MOT and the legal tread limit

- ADHD, postnatal depression, and running a business through both

Timestamps:

00:00 - intro

01:04 - how sophie ended up back in the family tyre business

09:11 - inside westgate tyres and their biggest month

18:31 - punctures, stock and what makes a tyre shop busy

24:51 - tyres or servicing, and which one she would keep

29:26 - castrol | the race group partnership

35:55 - the crash outside the garage that started the tyre lady

43:04 - road safety conferences, dot codes and the education gap

52:38 - testing tyres and keeping the tyre lady separate from westgate

60:37 - bbc breakfast and the families behind the campaign

66:46 - what she would change about the mot and the tread limit

75:07 - adhd, postnatal depression and understanding her own brain

83:40 - taking over the business and what comes next

88:05 - outro

Subscribe for more expert insight, honest conversation, and real stories from inside the independent garage sector.

https://beacons.ai/ontheramp

#ontheramp #tyres #tyresafety #garageowners #independentgarage #ukgarages #automotiveindustry #roadsafety #mechaniclife #castrol

This episode is sponsored by Castrol and The Race Group. To learn more about Castrol Service, please visit:

https://www.castrol.com/en_gb/united-kingdom/home.html

Fleet work divides the trade. Some garages swear by it, others swear at it. In this episode, Alex and Leo are joined by Tim Guidotti, second generation owner of Ferdotti Motor Services and founder of Fleet Guy, to tackle the myths head on. Alex explains why he spent years telling garages to get rid of their fleet work, and why he now admits he was wrong. Tim breaks down good fleet vs bad fleet, the truth about labour rates, how to actually win fleet contracts, and why the data suggests retail-only garages could be facing long term decline.

If you run an independent garage and you've ever dismissed fleet work, this one's full of practical insight.

Timestamps:

00:00 - intro

01:04 - tim's story, growing up in the family business

12:34 - joining the business and doing the deal properly

21:52 - Castrol | The Race Group Partnership

23:05 - why alex was anti-fleet, and admitting he was wrong

29:32 - the coffee test, good fleet vs bad fleet

41:09 - winning fleet work and keeping it

52:25 - should your garage do fleet, and where ownership is heading

1:03:05 - the labour rate myth, utilisation and productivity

1:09:23 - why fleet guy exists, building an industry standard

1:16:36 - fleet guy live, plus tim joins as co-host

Subscribe for more expert insight, honest conversation, and real stories from inside the independent garage sector.

https://beacons.ai/ontheramp

#ontheramp #garageowners #independentgarage #fleetwork #fleetmanagement #ukgarages #automotiveindustry #mechaniclife #castrol