Exploring Life & Business with Read Hauck of Camel Express Car Wash

Today we’d like to introduce you to Read Hauck.

Hi Read, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
In 2012, I was laid off from my job after ten years of climbing the ladder in the medical device sales field. That same day, I lost my younger brother in a motorcycle accident.

Due to these two major events and fueled by having a new wife & baby on the way – I was given clarity and drive to seek my true calling.

Drawing on the bold, entrepreneurial spirit that ran through my family—my dad is longtime local entrepreneur Christie Hauck, founder of Christie Cookie Co— I started looking for the areas that merged my passions & an unmet need in the community. Driving across town to wash my car, lightning struck.

Nashville had a massive demand for fast, affordable, quality car washing that had not been addressed by any one company. I went to work immediately learning about the car washing industry, managing to make ends meet while building knowledge and planning. We found the right spot, and I offered my entire life savings up to purchase what would become the first Camel Express location, at 3430 Doverside Drive.

I have not looked back since. Camel Express #1 began washing cars in October 2016. Today, there are three existing Camel Express locations in the Nashville area, with a total of 8 new planned locations set to be opened over the next two years.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I had no clue what it would take to put a car wash on the site, or if Metro Nashville would even allow it. There was a 2- year learning curve where I learned everything under the sun about building a new car wash, from civil engineering and construction to hiring a team of employees to run a business.

After taking out a line of credit on our home which was fully paid for, I put every penny towards engineering and site development while pitching the idea to 16 banks that all said the same thing, “No, we will not fund this project, it’s too risky”. The 17th bank said yes and that was all I needed for 3430 Doverside Drive to become our first real car wash location. A car wash business has a lot of literal & figurative nuts & bolts.

The most important components to facing any obstacle are my family & the team around me. My wife, Brittany, provides grounding & sound logic in my decision-making. Our operations director, Tyler Slaughter, takes the day-to-day hurdles largely off my shoulders and I focus on the bigger picture matters. All together, we can move mountains.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Camel Express was founded because the car wash industry in this region had historically provided marginal service levels, little innovation, and poorly maintained facilities. Our mission is “To provide the greatest car wash experience, every single time,” and that’s exactly what we come to work to do every day.

My goal was to build a full-service-driven organization. At the site level, the customer service we provide remains unmatched in this area and around the country. In a broader sense, we serve our community by partnering with a new nonprofit partner each quarter to deliver monetary donations as well as time and resource contributions in hopes of making a lasting impact.

We have been featured in every car wash publication in the country as one of the nation’s most up-and-coming service-driven, innovative car wash organizations.

We are constantly upgrading, maintaining, and employing the latest in-car wash tunnel technology to provide the cleanest, shiniest cars in the Nashville area. Our focus on offering the best in technology & equipment advancements, along with spacious, well-maintained, brightly lit facilities, and most importantly our welcoming, friendly team make Camel Express a destination business.

Customers reinforce this focus by letting us know they choose us for the experience factor. Our careful attention to service & experience has paid off and we hope to continue this tradition for many years to come here in Nashville. We love this community, it’s our home, and we hope you’ll come by and see us very soon!

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Our brand director, Sarah Parker Masse, who is also my little sister & developed the visual identity & brand with me, wrote the following history of our mascot, Clyde the Camel. She says he’s an embodiment of my best qualities — I think she’s flattering me.

“Clyde the Camel, an origin story.” Born in Nashville, TN, Clyde the Camel knew early on he was not like most camels. While his friends and family were always huge advocates of hoarding water for reserve in their humps, Clyde was determined to share his water with the world.

He was always washing something – pressure washing the sidewalk or washing his dad’s car – he even let his little sister use his water to fill up her kiddie pool for a few summers. What’s more, Clyde loved to keep things clean. As his friends in grade school spit and waited weeks to bathe, he came to class each day with his school uniform pressed and tidy, not a stitch out of place.

He never looked down on his friends for not caring so much about their appearances, after all – they were only kids, he just knew who he was and what he liked from the very start. When he grew up and went out into the world, he searched high and low for an industry that suited him. He did not know where he belonged, but he was determined to never give up on finding work that made him truly happy.

One day, on his walk home from yet another interview at a dead-end job sitting in a cubicle, Clyde saw a long building with cars going in dirty and coming out shiny and clean! As he got closer, he heard music in the parking lot and realized that people were parking their sparkly cars outside, and then vacuuming out their vehicles. “So much glorious cleaning!” Clyde said to himself. Everyone was cleaning! This was the work of his dreams!

He marched right up to the front door and said, “My name is Clyde the Camel, and I was born to work in car washing!” From that day forward, Clyde did nothing but study the car wash industry and worked his way up at that very car wash. Eventually, Clyde decided to open his own tunnel wash. He thought about every single aspect and paid close attention to all the smallest details and all the biggest, too.

When it came time to name it, that part was easy – Camel Express Car Wash, of course. Today, for all the team members at Camel Express, Clyde stands as a testament to not settling, searching for your passion and going for it, and knowing that with hard work and determination – you can achieve your wildest dreams – one car at a time.

Pricing:

• Ceramic Camel $25 single • $39 Unlimited monthly
• Ultimate Wash $20 single • $32 Unlimited monthly
• Premium Wash $15 single • $29 Unlimited monthly
• Deluxe Wash $10 single • $22 Unlimited monthly

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://camelexpress.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camelexpresscarwash/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecamelexpress
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/camel_express