LAS VEGAS -

You buy a car after being told there had not been any smoking in the vehicle.

You bring the car home, and then a day later … sniff, there it is.

That, in a nutshell, was the experience that helped prompt NuVinAir chief executive officer and founder Kyle Bailey to start the company that provides vehicle cleanliness solutions to automotive businesses, says its new chief operating officer Troy Blackwell.

“When people do smoke in the car, they pull the seatbelt out. They buckle it. Well, the smoke’s getting in the belt,” Blackwell said in an interview at Used Car Week last month. “And then the belt, it coils back into the door. So, there is some process that’s involved in teaching and educating people that are cleaning cars.”

Blackwell, who joined NuVinAir as senior vice president of global operations in August after leadership roles with AutoNation and CarMax, was named COO on Wednesday.

During his time with AutoNation, Blackwell helped launch the retailer’s AutoNation USA chain of standalone used-car stores. And before that, his time with CarMax included roles as regional sales development leader and general manager.

“After hiring Troy, we immediately began to see the value of his corporate-leadership background and vast network, which he has been harvesting over his 20-year career, and the benefit they provide to our growth strategy,” Bailey said in a news release. “Now as a member of our executive team, Troy will continue to provide his strong leadership and vision as we continue our aggressive growth track.”

Blackwell added in the release: “As COO, I look forward to playing a greater leadership role in managing our incredible team, as well as driving the company’s robust franchisee network that now spans more than 40 territories.

“Since joining NuVinAir earlier this year, I’ve gotten a real grasp on the company’s untapped growth potential, and my new role will enable me to scale our partnerships faster and more effectively.”

Blackwell spoke with Auto Remarketing in November, discussing the company’s inception, its plans and the market needs it aims to solve for the auto industry.

The Dallas-based company said in a news release it offers various cleanliness products to companies within the auto space.

NuVinAir started on the dealer side, aiming to provide stores with solutions for “getting the car back to factory-fresh,” as the tagline goes, and doing so in a quick manner.

Blackwell said NuVinAir has started to generate a lot of interest among rental car companies, who are looking for a solution for vehicle smells that is more time-efficient.

“For the rental car market, today there’s a segment of cars that come back (that need such treatments),” he said. “Now they may charge the customer or what have you, but in the end, those cars just sit and they’re not generating revenue. 

“They’ll sit for three, four days until a vendor can come in from the outside and then go treat that car. So, there’s lost time there,” Blackwell said.

Sometimes they have to give money back to customers when the user does not have a good experience due to smells in the car from prior usage.

And these days, one smell that is becoming more common, particularly in rental cars, he said, is the odor of marijuana, as that becomes legal in more states.

But it’s not just the smell of cigarette or marijuana smoke the company aims to filter out.

Everything from spilled milk to fast food to pets can leave a lingering odor.

A lot of what they tackle is just the “everyday” smells.

Once a car has been treated, that treatment will last until a new odor is introduced, Blackwell said.

As it pertains to dealerships, one area NuVinAir is aiming to tackle is retention, hoping to give dealerships another ancillary opportunity on the service side.

“They’re struggling getting cars back into the store,” he said. “Today, oil changes are 7,500 miles for most cars. So, now, all of a sudden, with the way cars are built, they’re not seeing that customer as frequently.”

The thought is to get that customer back in the store for a treatment on a regularly scheduled basis.

“So, maybe 12 treatments over three years. And can they schedule that out. Get them back in the store once a quarter,” Blackwell said.

Asked if the company sees opportunity in the mobility space, he said, “That’s certainly a target. There’s so many buckets of opportunity.”

There certainly is a lot of opportunity on the dealer side. Freshness can be key in the used-car market, where a smell in a vehicle can be a turn-off to a potential buyer.

“Going back to my early days with CarMax in ‘03, the very first question we asked on transfers, because in CarMax’s world you moved cars all over the country — customers did, and the question was, ‘Is this a smoker’s car?’ And it’s still today. That question is asked. So, to me, part of it, from the retailer mindset says, well as soon as you come back and answer the customer that, yes it’s a smoker’s car, that customer’s out. They move on. 

“There may not be another used car like that particular one, so they go elsewhere.”