Matt Ebert: Reveals the Leadership Secret to Scaling an Empire

0:00Don't be afraid to give up the control. In my case, I wouldn't have been able to grow. I didn't come from money, so I needed capital to grow. So the only way to do that is being willing to let investors partner with me.

0:21Mick:Welcome to Mick Unplugged, the number one podcast for self-improvement, leadership, and relentless growth. No fluff, no filters, just hard-hitting truths, unstoppable strategies, and the mindset shifts that separate the best from the rest. Ready to break limits? Let's go.

0:47Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to another exciting episode of Mick Unplugged. And today, we've got a billionaire on the call.

0:55Mick:From a single shop in 1999 to over 600 locations nationwide, he turned crash champions into a$3 billion with a B dollar powerhouse. And he did it all without a college degree. But what he realized was that when you put people first and you have a burning desire, great things are going to happen. Please join me in welcoming the bold, the relentless, the visionary, my guy, Mr. Matt Ebert. Matt, how are you doing today, brother? I'm good, Mick. Thanks. That introduction makes me blush a little bit. So appreciate that. Don't blush, man. It is all you. It is all facts. I meant to even add in there Chicago's finest.

1:35Mick:I was just in Chicago a few weeks ago and I wanted to hit you up, but you know, someone, I'm not going to mention anyone's name, didn't give me your contact number. So I couldn't hit you up, man. But just missed opportunity there. But I'll be back in a few months. So we'll make sure that that happens. But Matt, man, been a huge fan of you, the work that you do, but more importantly, man, the human being that you are. You do a lot of good in the world and you lead a dynamic team. And I tell people all the time, you want to see a great culture? Just look at the team. Great culture doesn't have to speak.

2:14Mick:It's shown in the team and what you have. When did you know that people and connection was really like a thing for you? um it it evolved to be honest um it really became a necessity just because it what we do as a service right um collision repair you can't do um service businesses typically without people and so just uh to have any kind of um leverage ability where it's not my own hands doing it You got to involve others. And so whether it's a team of two or three or in our case now, almost 11 ,000, it definitely requires teamwork. And so I think like I didn't have a big aha moment where I'm like, oh, teamwork's where it's at.

3:09It really it really did evolve from, OK, I can't do this on my own anymore. need some help and then um the biggest thing is learning as we we go as to how to keep that culture going when you get bigger it's a lot easier when it's just face to face uh but when you get more distant from the people as the organization grows those are the challenges that have been um tough to meet um some creativity um because you're depending on others to take care of that same culture through.

3:42Mick:Well, you do an amazing job, brother. Like I said, over 600 locations, you physically can't be everywhere all the time, but the culture is the same. You walk into one shop and it's like you walk into all of them. So that speaks volumes of who you are, man. So Matt, you know, on our show, we like to talk about your because that thing that's deeper than your why that true passion that fuels what you do. And a lot of times that can change from time to time and sometimes it can be different at home than it is in business so if I were to say Matt like what's what's your because why do you do what you do bro yeah it's it's all about the people um and um you know at the company today we say we champion people um and it's because we're helping people in a time of need so we get to take care of people um we also get to help people changed some lives, both through some charity stuff and also through career paths as the company has grown.

4:41But, you know, that too has evolved. If I go back to when I was, you know, teenage years, when I first got into the collision space, it was out of necessity. I had wrecked my car and needed to learn how to fix it. And what I would say is it kind of started from a place of making things better. So I had a problem. I wanted to fix it. even, you know, jobs I had as a teenager from cutting the grass to painting a house, like getting to see something in the before and after. And then, you know, that kind of evolved to just my attitude toward people, both in friendships and personal life and in, in business, it would surely be great at the end of this all for people to say that their life was better for having known me.

5:31Now, as through the company, we're able to do that at a grand scale where people are in a time of need and you never want to talk to us at Crash Champions until you have a wrecked car, but you sure do when you do. And so we're able then to help people in a time of need because someday odds are either you or someone you love is going to end up needing us. And so appreciate the opportunity to do that.

5:58Mick:I love that, brother. So Matt, we have something in common, right? So you were 16 when you had the crash and you decided to fix your car. So I'm going to tell on myself, my sister always tells this story privately. So I'm going to tell it publicly for the first time. So I was 16. I didn't have a crash, but I backed into something and my mom's car was white. So I backed into like an industrial trash can, trash, whatever. and there's this big green mark on the bumper of the car so me at 16 oh all right i gotta go figure this out so i go to the local lowe's and rochelle i know you're laughing but whatever and it was at this point in time matt that i realized all white is not the same so i go grab a can of white spray paint thinking I can just go spray over this green mark on the car nah bro it was it was an off-white that didn't match the car so my question for you Matt is did you were you fixing your car because you didn't want anyone to know or were you just truly intrigued that you wanted to fix the car because me I didn't want anyone to know and I went a good four days before my sister ratted me out.

7:13Mick:And so then I got in trouble. So unfortunately mine wasn't so minor. So there was no covering it up and hoping nobody, nobody would know. Um, it had to be fixed and fixed, right. And I was afraid of making an insurance claim because I was afraid then I couldn't afford the insurance. Um, and for me, the car was not just cool, but it was also freedom. So the first chance to ride around without my parents and getting to go wherever I wanted, so to speak was something I didn't want to lose. So I was determined to not make a claim and have the insurance get canceled to where I would lose that freedom that I had just gotten right away.

7:55So it was seemed pretty desperate at the time for me.

7:59Mick:Yeah. Yeah. That's crazy, dude. That's crazy. So I love that. And I want to go to the journey of starting the shop then. So when did you know that that's what you wanted to do? And then I'm going to have a few follow-up questions, but I want to start there. When did you know that, all right, this is what I want to do? Yeah, I always wanted to own my own business. Again, even in young years, I mentioned mowing the grass, I would push my lawnmower around town and mow people's grass for a few dollars. I grew up in a small town in Illinois and from that small town, I didn't really know anybody. So opening my own collision business, I was a little bit afraid of, well, where would I get work?

8:48How would I have any cars to fix? And so I opened some subway franchises at first as my first attempt in like an official business. Didn't do so well there. ended up going back to work in the body shop business, managing another person's shop. And he talked me into partnering up with him on a shop. So, and this was all in my twenties. So basically went from attempting something else that didn't work coming right back to the collision business. And the gentleman who shop I was running saw an opportunity for us to partner together in one. So that's how I ended up owning the first body shop.

9:27Mick:I like that, dude. So you start the first one walk us through the first couple of years right because you know if you're like me and I think we're a lot of like yeah when I started my first business I wanted to be as big and I'm using air quotes for those listening as big as I could but I don't think I could fathom what that really was right so like for me when I first started big was all right I can go from one customer to like a hundred customers and then a hundred customers to like 500 customers right so So when for you, when it was like, all right, I've got one shop, what is it like to have two or three shops?

10:05Mick:And I know that you said you were doing Subway, so you understood the franchise concept and how to grow. But when did you realize, man, this can really blow up? Embarrassingly, it took a long time, Mick. I, you know, I grew up in a small blue collar town. College wasn't talked about. It wasn't an opportunity for me. Thinking big was nothing that was presented to me as a kid. And so I literally was just trying to survive, trying to pay the bills in entering business. You know, the goal was just to make to make enough money to live at first. And then I started to observe things that were happening around me.

10:54So this industry is a very fragmented one and people began to consolidate it, acquire other businesses and grow big. And so as I was watching that years down the road, I felt like there was a need. That's where the industry was heading. And so to me, it was a little bit of survival instinct of if this is where the industry is heading and I want to be around the long term, I'm going to have to think about doing that. My partner was 20 years older than me and he wasn't ready to retire. So I had to kind of wait until 2014. So you're talking 15 years in the partnership, in the one shop before I could grow.

11:40And during that time, I spent a lot of time reading, studying, expanding what I knew. So I was a little bit kind of handcuffed and then set free and ready to go pretty fast by that point in time. It's funny because I thought I had missed out on a lot of opportunity. Little did I know there's still a huge amount of opportunity out there. So it took me a while to think bigger. um and then i used to think you know and then it started with okay a couple shops and then okay let's be a strong regional player and then um covet is where the whole national view came in because that's when um relationships like insurance partners that refer a lot of work they change the game even more from it's much more efficient and easier for them to deal with national partners through direct referrals than it is, say, 30 ,000 individual shops across the country.

12:42And so seeing that accelerate led to, hey, I think being regional isn't even going to be enough. We really need to be a national player long term. And so that pivot came in the middle of COVID, just reacting to the marketplace and the world around us.

12:59Mick:Yeah, Matt, I love the vulnerability and honesty there. And I think that's a great lesson for early entrepreneurs. You know, a lot of times you're going to hear think big, grow big, and all of that is true, but it's got to be stages. And sometimes those stages are a year. Sometimes those stages take five to 10 years to get there. But I think the leadership lesson, the entrepreneur lesson, first and foremost is make sure that you and your employees can eat and do enough to make sure that that happens. Right. Like when I started my first business at the end of the day, Matt, like this was the truth, bro.

13:40Mick:I wanted to be able to get my kids McDonald's when I could, but then take them to Applebee's or Chili's every once in a while. Right. So literally those were the basic goals. And I didn't try to go outside of that until I knew, all right, I'm comfortable. Let's get uncomfortable so I can grow more. Let's get comfortable. Then let's get uncomfortable again so I can grow more. I'd love for you to expand on that for the viewer or listener that's an early stage entrepreneur, how important it is to make sure that you and your team have food on the table before you really start doing anything else. Oh, 100%.

14:16Um, the, the thing is like, you learn pretty quick, the cashflow matters. And so, um, if one thing's for sure, I learned this in the subway business. If you have one that doesn't make money to getting to thinking that that's going to change your world, isn't the case. You, you need to figure it out with the one first. Um, but you know, this goes back to, uh, my, my childhood, really, I wasn't naturally gifted at, I don't, I don't think anything other than learning. So it wasn't, didn't have natural athletic ability, was the last pick in basketball. They picked the girls before me. They would, they would, they would say, Hey, we'll give you Matt, you know, we'll play one short.

15:00We'll let you take Matt, but you know, not being naturally gifted at things like that, I think gave me the superpower of determination of figuring it out. And, and so the ability to stick with something and learn. You learn first how to do it once and then twice and then three times. But I think that figuring it out is super important, especially if you're going to scale it, because then it has to move on beyond just your intuition, beyond just me being there at the counter, talking to the customer, doing the right thing. You have to learn how to manage other people into having them help you do the right thing as well.

15:43And so you need some systems, processes, et cetera, to do that. Once you figure it out, then you build those and then you can try it a second time, a third and a fourth.

15:54Mick:And the second lesson that you just talked about in there, Matt, is also something that I talk to leaders and entrepreneurs about is you've got to understand your outside influences, meaning, hey, COVID's happening. What's the world doing? My centers of influence, right? The insurance industry for you, probably some car rental industry has changed as well, too, right? Understanding that what happens today isn't necessarily the same thing that's going to happen next week. And again, I think a lot of times entrepreneurs and leaders get so much tunnel vision that they're not paying attention to the market.

16:32Mick:They're not paying attention to what influences their business. Talk a little bit about why that's so important for the entrepreneur leader. Yeah, I think it's, you know, one thing I learned early on is somebody taught me, and it's probably in many books, but if you want, the way to get rich is find out what people want and bring it to them. And so it's simple concept, but really, what is it that people want? Where is the business need to be tomorrow to meet people's needs? And if you can do that, you'll be successful. So one kind of blessing and curse for the industry that I'm in is vehicles are changing so rapidly today.

17:21Like it's screamingly obvious. It's not even gradual. Like cars five years ago compared to today because of the ADAS systems and the attempt to build them out to be self-driving one day, all of that is happening so fast. it's clear to see that there's no way five years from now the business can operate the same as it is today sometimes i think it's more gradual of an evolution than than what i'm seeing in this rapid transformation um but recognizing where things are heading and then what will this business have to be to meet the needs of people five years from now is is very much on my mind and It seems should be on every business's mind.

18:07I don't want to go the way of the dinosaur. So even from what we do as a core, which is fix cars that have been in collisions, they're trying to make cars stop having collisions. Now, there's 280-something million vehicles on the road. It's going to take a long time before that happens. But at some point in time, we'll have to do other services to these vehicles in order to continue. I happen to be in an industry that's making it pretty obvious at the moment that you need to pivot and grow and change in order to meet the needs of the customer. But I think every business does. Sometimes the change isn't so obvious.

18:50Yeah.

18:51Mick:You know, Matt, I want to applaud you for something that you and your business, your company do amazing. And I like to say there's probably three or four brands that really do this. But for you, I'm going to say McDonald's, right? When you walk into one Crash Champions, you've walked into all of them, meaning even down to floor mat placement. I don't even know if you realize that, bro. But like where the floor mats are, what the lobby looks and feels like. Like looking into the shop itself, like seeing the brand, seeing everything that's uniform. And you can't do that without something you were talking about earlier, right?

19:28Mick:Systems and processes. That makes it easy to replicate who you are and not have to worry about, you know, oh, well, this branch or this store, this region does something this way and this region does it another. Then there's no continuity. You can't promote. You can't scale humans when things are different. So, one, I applaud you for that. But two, let's talk to the viewer and listener about why consistency processes and systems are so important when it is time to scale and to expand. Yeah, because the results matter, because the perception matters. And I appreciate the compliment, Mick, but we're a work in progress, too.

20:08It's not to the degree that I would love it to be, which is perhaps what it never will, right? I'll always want things to be better and always want them to get there. But you need that consistency. The McDonald's is the perfect example. If you couldn't count on the same French fries at every drive-thru you pulled in, you wouldn't treat it the same. And so I think that's pretty understandable to everyone that when you see that name, you expect it to be the same. Um, and from our standpoint, our customers are, we're a once in a decade event, probably, um, less you're in your teenage years than we happen to be maybe, maybe more often.

20:56But, um, for, for us, it's more of a, how do we get a universal result of a happy customer and a happy insurance partner and a happy employee? And that's the forever moving target and goal. So again, we look at it from a people point of view. So in championing people, it starts with our own employees can't have a great customer experience without a great employee experience. So how do we make sure that they have the tools that they need? How do we make sure that they have an environment that they want to work in? How do we make sure that we treat them well? Well, you got people in the middle that varies a little, but as much as you can solve for variances, the more you know that your employees will be happy there.

21:46Then you know that the customers will get the same experience and they'll be happy. So it's really looking at it from a customer point of view. How do you get there? And consistency is definitely a key part of it.

21:58Mick:Absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely. Another thing that you've mastered really well that I don't think you get enough credit for. So I'm going to give it I'm going to give it now because that's what I do is mastering mergers and acquisitions. Right. Like I tell people a lot of times you can't you can't scale without some type of acquisition. Right. But but in order to do that, you have to know what you're looking for. You have to have the ability to not just acquire, but in your instance, fold people into a culture, which is darn near impossible to do a lot of times, right? Especially with mom and pop acquisitions that sometimes feel like they're going into a corporate.

22:39Mick:There's always that little bit of tug, that little bit of friction, but you've really mastered how to bring people into your culture through acquisition. So talk a little bit about that, brother. Yeah. Again, I would say best thing to do is put yourself in the other person's seat. And so I remember early days, for example, the seller would be nobody can know until the money's in the bank. And then you're walking in the deals close the money's in the bank and you're walking into the employee surprise. what a horrible, horrible experience. And so learn very quickly. And to this day, hundreds of acquisitions later, we still have to talk the sellers through it.

23:21Like, no, we want to get the contract firm, get you comfortable, but we have to let the people know early, like they're going to be upset with you, the seller, because they're going to be mad that you didn't trust them. Adults don't like surprises, kids do. So announcing early and having that month to sit down with each employee and talk through what this means for them and what it's going to look like going forward for them is just one avenue of trying to bridge that culture difference because it is going to be a bit different. So the sooner you can talk about it, the sooner you can start to get their buy-in and their willingness to give it a try.

24:04And then you make mistakes and you learn from them. And that getting in there ahead of time so that their first paycheck goes well. And all those things where people get nervous, you want to make sure to deliver the best experience you can out of the gate. And then, you know, the culture, one of the reasons why I'm on your podcast or even started doing any of this is because it's not my comfort zone. I was, you know, I'm only a year in, but a year ago, probably a disaster. And I'm probably still closer to that than a master of doing these interviews and things. But it started from how do people get, because it's so many people, how do people get to know us or about us?

24:49And so putting, putting content online that anybody can check out is a great way for people to get to know us. That's how this all started.