The NOLN Podcast

Give and Give: Training Aspiring Leaders to Help Their Teams Win (with David Rogers)

Leadership training expert David Rogers, co-founder of Auto Profit Masters and Shop4D, joins the NOLN Podcast to share insights on “the management triangle,” how his military background and time spent working in the fine dining industry helped to shape his outlook on management in the automotive maintenance industry, management best practices, and lessons he has learned throughout his career.
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How to Keep a Customer for Life

Nestor Gutierrez, CEO of Rancho Express Lube in Rancho Cucamonga, California, says retaining customers comes down to how you treat them and their vehicles. Gutierrez explains how personalized interactions, community involvement, and added perks can foster customer loyalty and differentiate quick lube shops from their competition.
This article originally appeared on NOLN.net on Feb. 23, 2026.
Read by Brittany Duncan 
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Give Up What You Don't Need (with Chris Messer, Mike Jones, and Louie Sharp)

In this episode of the Endeavor to Discover series, Louie Sharp, owner of Sharp Auto Body in Chicago, joins hosts Chris Messer and Mike Jones for a discussion about giving up what you don’t need. Sharp shares his journey of building his business and why it was important to let go of negativity, emotional baggage, and limiting beliefs. Sharp, Messer, and Jones also explore the idea that choosing curiosity over reaction leads to better leadership outcomes and explain how understanding employees’ underlying issues can foster trust and better performance.  
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Reflecting on the Quick Lube Industry's Evolution (with Amber Kossak and Crystal Mathews of Solid Start/True Brand)

As National Oil and Lube News begins its 40th anniversary celebration, the NOLN Podcast welcomes Solid Start CEO Amber Kossak and President Crystal Mathews to reflect on the quick lube and fast maintenance industry’s evolution. Kossak, who has more than 30 years of experience in the business, and Mathews, who joined the industry in 1999, share insights on game-changing moments, major developments, short-lived fads, and common threads that have defined the industry for decades.
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Feature Read: Back to Basics: It's Time to Review the Services You Offer

Analyzing percentages and efficiencies can help determine what services to keep, and which to ditch.
Even when business is running smoothly, it is still worth evaluating the services offered to customers to determine what is working and where a shop might find better efficiency and improvement. In some cases, the answer might be to grow the business by moving some services to a second location. In other instances, cutting a service because it takes time away from other tasks might be necessary to tune up the shop.
This article originally appeared on NOLN.net on June 4, 2025.
Read by Brittany Duncan 
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Revamping a Customer Service Training Program (with Jason Johnsey)

Having grown to more than 900 locations, including company owned, franchise, and licensees, FullSpeed Automotive recently rolled out a new training program that puts a greater emphasis on the customer experience and consistency from shop to shop. At the forefront of this launch is Jason Johnsey, the company’s director of training and development. Johnsey joins the NOLN Podcast to dig into FullSpeed’s mission to revitalize its customer experience, collecting data on where improvement was needed, the importance of listening to both guests and internal feedback, and what the company hopes to accomplish with its revamped training initiative.
Johnsey also shares tips for how shop operators can evaluate their own customer experience and determine whether its time for a tune up their protocols.
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Feature Read: One Size Doesn't Always Fit All

For the automotive service industry, location is crucial to building a solid customer base, ensuring easy access to the shop, and, notably, community acceptance. All three are critical to any service business. Even as a community will want convenience, there are concerns about increased traffic, noise, parking, market saturation, and cultural considerations. Those are among the many issues quick lube operators face when building new facilities.
 
This article originally appeared on NOLN.net on Jan. 13, 2026.
Read by Brittany Duncan
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Getting Everyone on Track: Keys for Building Staff Alignment Within Your Shop (with Sara Welch and Mike Mooney)

Modern Tire Dealer managing editor Sara Welch and Mike Mooney, a speaker, coach, author, and strategist, discuss strategies for motivating teams, aligning personal and company goals, and tips for building commitment from your employees. 
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>> Submit a nomination for NOLN Operator of the Year

Fearless to Courageous (with Chris Messer, Mike Jones, James Baxter, and Hunter Barton)

In this installment of the Endeavor to Discover series, Chris Messer and Mike Jones welcome president/founder James Baxter and store manager Hunter Barton of Neighborhood Tire Pros in Atlanta. By 2008, Neighborhood Tire Pros had grown to 14 locations before the nation’s economic downturn put a strain on the business that led to the sale of 10 stores.
Baxter and Barton discuss the climb back, putting a focus on the remaining four core stores with an emphasis on growth, people, financial transparency, and clear vision-setting to reach a level of profitability that is triple what Neighborhood Tire Pros achieved with 14 shops. The conversation underscores the difference between fearlessness and courage, as well as the power of intentional, people-centered leadership.
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>> Click here to take the 2026 NOLN Operator Survey

Feature Read: 2025 Operator of the Year Brian Morrison

As a skilled leader who is known for lifting up those around him, Brian Morrison has thrived as the operator of 19 quick lube facilities. Once an executive in the food service industry, Morrison now oversees a burgeoning network of franchise locations for FullSpeed Automotive’s SpeeDee Oil Change & Automotive Service and Grease Monkey brands. A skilled business leader, a charitable boss, and a proud family man, Morrison is the NOLN Operator of the Year for 2025.
This article originally appeared on NOLN.net on Sept. 2, 2025.Read by Brittany Duncan 
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Do you know a quick lube operator who excels in all aspects of shop ownership—from business performance to staff leadership to community involvement? Nominate them for the 2026 NOLN Operator of the Year Award.
>> Click here to submit a nomination today
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