Today we’d like to introduce you to Will Sweatt
Will, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I graduated from USD in 2020 with a job in sales lined up (or so I thought). Because of COVID-19, the company went on a hiring freeze and pulled my offer. With no money and the worst job market imaginable, I had to either find a way to make money or move back in with my parents in Minnesota. I decided to post ads on Craigslist for four service businesses: dog grooming, tutoring, surf lessons, and car washing. In the first few days, I got a hit on car detailing, so I went to the supply shop, bought my first vacuum and set of chemicals, and it just kept rolling from there. I’d get another job, buy more detailing supplies, and post another ad. For the first few months, I was detailing out of my Toyota Camry until I pulled up to a job site, and a customer with a thick Russian accent took a look at me and my car and said, “I don’t want a Mickey Mouse job” (I’m still not quite sure what that means) and left the appointment. After that, I bought my first truck and started taking it more seriously. I committed to making the business look as professional as possible at all times—uniforms, vans, logos, a website, and the best equipment and supplies we could get our hands on. I realized that these things really matter to customers and help build trust. Today, we have six detailing vans on the road and seven detailers operating them. I look at local service legends like Bill Howe Plumbing and ASI the White Glove Guys and aim to bring a service of that scale to the San Diego detailing market. So far, there isn’t a clear household name for auto detailing services, and our goal is to fill that space. Bill Howe, ASI, Terminix, SD Select Detailing. We have doubled our business every single year since 2020, and as of right now, I don’t see any reason we won’t continue on that track for the foreseeable future. Supportive family and friends, super honest hard-working employees, staying close to God, and staying away from the PB party scene have been the biggest difference makers.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
A couple of years ago, when I was detailing solo, I got hurt and was out of commission for a couple of months. It was really scary realizing that if I got hurt, there was no workers’ comp, and I was completely screwed. That’s when I realized that if I wanted any job security, I needed to start scaling as soon as possible. I took 12 months to master the craft, learn as much as I could about car detailing, and build the best detailing rig possible. Then I started hiring and getting more vans.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Right now, we mainly specialize in two services: mobile auto detailing and ceramic coating installation.
We’ve found that it makes much more sense to detail customers’ cars at their location and save shop space for higher-ticket services that need to be done indoors, such as ceramic coating, window tinting, and paint protection film.
Car detailing includes a broad range of specialty services: waxing, polishing, headlight restorations, shampoo and extraction treatments, light scratch removals, ozone odor elimination treatments, bio-enzyme disinfections, engine bay detailing, RV detailing, motorcycle detailing, boat detailing, commercial fleet washes, and more.
We avoid over-complicated packages and service offerings. My goal has always been to keep things as simple as possible: “Full Detail,” “Interior Detail,” and “Exterior Detail.” We stay far away from terms like “Mini Detail,” “Bronze Detail,” or “Express Detail”—anything that suggests cutting corners to lower the price. Offering cheap details often leads to bad reviews, and maintaining a strong reputation is crucial.
There are many high-quality detailing services in San Diego. While I’m very proud of our service quality, it’s not what sets us apart.
Here’s what we offer that most other businesses don’t:
-7 days a week service, 365 days a year
-Same-day appointment availability
-Reliability, always show up on time. Never sketchy or flakey.
-Our own spot-free water supply
-Onboard power supply
-Ultra-quiet detailing equipment
-Quick, clear, and thorough communication
-Follow-up and accountability; we stand by our work
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Starting a business is always a risk. If you looks at the stats on starting a small business from scratch – it’s pretty daunting. I wouldn’t describe myself as a big risk taker, because the risks that I have taken to make the business work have been pretty calculated. However, one of the biggest keys in growing this business is willingness to take on debt. These small service businesses are super slow growing, so debt is really the only way to supercharge that and make quick progress.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sandiegoselect.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandiegoselect_detailing/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sd.select.detailing/
