Hidden Gems: Meet Paul Shedd of A.K. Lube & Auto

Today we’d like to introduce you to Paul Shedd. 

Hi Paul, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in GA. As a young adult I worked on a couple different race teams. I learned so much during this time and realized I actually enjoyed working on the race cars. Once I graduated high school I started as a shop helper and slowly moved up learning all I could. While working there i met my wife and we married in 2009. It didn’t take long for us to realize we shared a dream of owning and running a business of our own one day. We moved to Nashville in 2010 and I got a job at a trucking company, again working in a shop under someone working on 18 wheelers. After a few years, I was offered a shop foreman position at an erosion control company. It was there that I quickly learned how to run a shop. I was over their entire fleet and all the responsibilities that came with keeping the shop functionable. We had our first daughter in 2013 and a set of boy/girl twins in 2016. In 2019 when it came time to put our twins in daycare, we had to find a way to afford the extra cost of having 3 in daycare. I started doing side jobs in my driveway with my brother to help with the extra expense. This is where AK was born. I worked my full-time job as a shop foreman during the day and in the evenings and weekends, my time was spent building AK with my brother. After 9 years being in Nashville, an opportunity was dropped in our laps to buy a shop. We quickly jumped and after a year of negotiations we closed on our very own business. AK Lube & Auto opened its doors in April 2020.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It wasn’t always an easy ride. Once we moved to Nashville one of the struggles, I faced was finding someone to give me the chance to prove that I was a good mechanic. I was very young and everyone doubted my knowledge of both gas and diesel vehicles.
One of the biggest struggles I faced was spreading my time between my full-time job, AK, and my family. AK quickly grew and I was sitting with a full-time job, a full-blown business being ran out of my garage, and my wife and 3 children. I knew I had to figure something out and soon. With the constant help and support from my wife, we pushed through and never lost focus of the end goal.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are a local family owned and operated business. We take pride in our work and value our customers opinions.

AK handles most mechanical needs for both gas and diesel vehicles. We offer tire services, motor swaps, transmission swaps, all basic repairs, tune-ups, oil changes, wiper blades, belt replacement, ac services and so much more.

Contact Info:

• Email: aklubeandauto@gmail.com
• Facebook: aklubeandauto