Mister Car Wash Hits 500

Tucson Company Reaches Milestone with Newest Location

By Tom Leyde

Mister Car Wash just made history by opening its 500th location in the United States.

A celebration was held Sept. 20 at the new location at 7471 S. Houghton Rd. Free car washes were offered that day and during the next two weekend days. Employees sported lapel pins bearing “500.”

Tucson-based Mister Car Wash operates in 21 states and 70 cities, and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

“It’s a huge milestone for the organization,” said Mister Car Wash CEO John Lai at the event. “When I started 22 years ago, we had 32 stores, and it’s been a long journey. We did it one store at a time. But for us to get to become the No. 1 car wash company in the United States is something we’re very, very proud of.”

A few weeks earlier, Mister Car Wash opened another new location on Tangerine Road in Marana.

Mister Car Wash went public in June 2021 and has since enjoyed tremendous growth. “Our footprint stands as far east at Maryland and as far west as California, and from Minnesota down to Texas and Florida, said Lai, a 1987 University of Arizona graduate.

“California is our fastest growing market, where we have over 50 stores now,” Lai said. “Our vision and dream is to create a network of stores where we’re synonymous with the car wash category, similar to Starbucks.”

“Mister Car wash is proud to contribute to the local community by creating jobs, supporting local initiatives and providing top-notch car wash services that help keep our neighborhoods looking their best,” said Edgar LaMadrid, Mister Car Wash region manager. 

“The company is passionate about our people, and we’ve created a culture based on caring, hard work and fun that allows employees to grow as the company continues to grow,” LaMadrid said.

Tucson Mayor Regina Romero said, “Congratulations to Mister Car Wash on their 500th store opening. Starting with locating their national headquarters in Tucson, CEO John Lai and Mister Car Wash have been great partners to the city of Tucson.”

Mister Car Wash was founded in Houston in 1969, offering its unity chemistry system. The company was acquired by Car Wash Partners Inc. in 1998. It set out to become a national brand in 1996 and continually redefined the car wash experience. Mister Car Wash pioneered its Unlimited Wash Club in 2003. Three club membership tiers offer unlimited washes for the membership fees.

By 2012, Mister Car Wash took the lead as America’s largest car wash chain, with more than 1.5 million Unlimited Car Wash members. Lai said the company focuses on five fundamental stakeholders: employees, customers, shareholders, the community and the environment.

“We have 6,500 employees that show up every day and wave and smile and show a general level of appreciation,” Lai said. “How we’re able to achieve that level of customer services again and again across such a large network of stores that’s geographically spread out is that we take care of our people.”

The company focuses on paying employees well, treating them well, training them well, and supporting them and creating career opportunities for them to excel, Lai said.

“We put our people at the center of our universe,” he said. “And by doing so, we call it the virtual cycle. We’re taking care of people who take care of the customers, and if the customers feel that general level of appreciation, and we think they do, then they’re going to be happier and more loyal and they’re going to tell their friends, which then will allow us to become more profitable, which will please our shareholders.”

Lai said the company is significantly more efficient than home washing. Mister Car Wash recycles over 30% of the water it uses, “so it’s super, super environmentally friendly.”

To further bolster its environmentally friendly image, the company is partnering with the city of Tucson to raise $250,000 for the Tucson Million Trees program. It committed $100,000 to a kickstart fund and is committed to matching an additional $50,000. The goal is to increase the tree canopy in heat-vulnerable communities.

“If we can focus on doing good in all of those five (fundamental) areas, we should get special credit as a company,” Lai said.