OpenRoad Dealership Group is going into the car wash business through its OpenShine division.

And while OpenShine is starting as a franchisee of an American car wash brand, you may see OpenShine-brand car washes in Canada one day, Christian Tjia, operations manager at OpenShine Holdings Ltd. said.

“For our long-term strategy, we are definitely exploring different options,” he told Auto Remarketing Canada. “The car wash market in Canada is pretty significantly behind the America car wash market.”

OpenShine recently broke ground on a Tommy’s Express Car Wash in Brampton, Ontario. It plans three more Ontario locations, in St. Thomas, London, and Waterloo. But that is just the beginning.

Tommy’s Express, based in Holand, Mich., takes the basic drive-through car wash concept and “elevates the experience”, Tjia said.

The car progresses through a 110-foot tunnel on a conveyor belt where it is washed using detergent developed by Tommy’s. The building has an arched acrylic roof and windows. “On a nice sunny day it is bright inside,” Tjia said. “The available washes in Canada can’t compare.”

The tunnel is entered through a gated pay link and after the wash Tommy’s Express has free vacuums and mat washers, including a molded mat washer, Tjia said.

Four wash levels are on offer for anyone using Tommy’s Express. For members, the tunnels have license plate readers, and the gate opens automatically. Non-members buying a single wash use a pay link.

Members can use any Tommy’s Express location, including those in the U.S.

Already planning expansion

OpenRoad Automotive Group has dealerships in 36 locations in the Vancouver metro area, Ontario and Washington state in the U.S. The group decided to go into the car wash business because “we wanted to provide our customers a full range of services,” Tjia said.

The Brampton location is set to open in the summer of 2025. “We do offer free car washes during our opening weekend so customers can see what our wash is like before committing to a membership,” Tjia said.

OpenShine is “continually searching for land” for new locations, Tjia said. It recently closed on a new property, he said, declining to reveal the location. “We don’t plan on slowing down yet,” Tjia said. “Our plan is to open about one a year. ”

OpenShine does not have exclusive rights to the Tommy’s Express franchise in Canada. “That is something we would like,” Tjia said.

Seeking synergies

The Brampton Tommy’s Express is near OpenRoad dealerships and OpenShine is “exploring opportunities” to open more near OpenRoad dealerships, but that isn’t a prerequisite for a site, Tjia said.

OpenRoad has more dealerships in British Columbia than any other province, but OpenShine isn’t exploring opportunities there yet. “We want to build our core brand before expanding,” Tjia said.

OpenShine will seek synergies with the OpenRoad dealerships, however. For the Brampton location, “if you’re buying a new car from the OpenRoad, the Honda or the Toyota (OpenRoad dealerships) next door will be providing free car washes for a few months,” Tjia said.

If a car is brought in for service at an OpenRoad dealership, before it is returned to the owner the car will be washed at Tommy’s Express as well “so then you can see the quality of the wash,” he said.

Doing due diligence

OpenRoad researched Tommy’s before approaching it for franchises, Tjia said, and “we saw Tommy’s Express aligns with our values very well.” That included an intense focus on customer satisfaction. “It leaves a good feeling when you are leaving the wash,” he said. “You know the team members really care about you.”
Tommy’s also sells their car wash technology as a white-label product and OpenShine may be interested in having own-brand car washes, Tjia said.

“For our long-term strategy, we are definitely exploring different options,” he said. “We are definitely looking to expand so our members get better value for their membership.”

For now, however, he is focused on opening OpenShine’s first Tommy’s Express Car Wash in Brampton.

“We are seeing if Canadians are excited to have a car wash tunnel where they can be in an out in three minutes,” Tjia said.