Your Name: Stewart Waliser

Your Business: Stew's Self Service Garage (website)

How did you start your business? What did you do before? 

I was sitting in my college dorm room at Central Washington University thinking to myself I wish I had a place to wrench on my truck. I decided that I wasn't alone, and decided I was going to make the ultimate place to work on your own car.

What makes your business different / better than your competition?

Well, I don't really have any direct competitors, however we do provide a lot of value to our customers. In a lift rental you get the lift, tools, equipment, expert advice, heated shop, a workbench, gloves, fluid recycling, and more.

What has been the biggest challenge that your business has faced over the past few years?

The biggest challenge was just getting open. We had many road blocks mainly because people didn't have any interest in working with a 19-20 year old trying to open an incredibly unique business.

What is one surprising thing about your business?

Most people think that only cheap cars are worked on here, and the only jobs that can be done are oil changes and other simple services. This is however opposite of what we usually see. You can do any mechanical job here in our shop on whatever car you want to. We have everything from Hondas to McLarens that come to our shop.

What was your first really special car?

My first special car was my 1998 BMW M3 sedan in Estoril Blue with dove grey interior. I got it right before graduating high school and had finally gotten an enthusiast car to match my car enthusiasm.

If you didn't work in the automotive field, what would you do for a living?

I had been on the path to go to Med School with plans to be a cardio-thoracic surgeon before I ended up doing what I'm doing now. I'd probably end up being a lawyer at this point if I had to get out of the automotive field.

For more information about Stew's Self Service Garage, visit https://stewsgarage.com