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Welcome to the 2019 Top 50 U.S. Conveyor Chain List, accounting the leading operators of conveyor/tunnel carwashes based on number of locations. Since last year’s list, our editorial staff has worked with industry partners as well as carwash owners and operators that are found on the list to compile this research in order to ensure the highest level of credibility possible.

Only five years ago, as our country and industry were in the midst of recovering from one of the most significant economic setbacks in recent decades, our 2014 Top 50 list looked much different. Mister Car Wash led the 2014 list with 134 locations, and the baseline to make the list was only six locations. Zips Car Wash, according to the 2014 list, had 12 locations (now 194 locations). Many of the carwashes on the 2014 list would eventually be acquired by some of this year’s Top 50 companies.

Although the industry has changed immensely — especially among tunnel/conveyor operators — it is still considered highly fragmented and primed for more consolidation. While the Top 50 conveyor operators still only own a single-digit percentage of the total number of locations in the U.S., some experts believe that within the next five to 10 years, that percentage could climb to 20% to 40% as the push to consolidate continues.

Our 2014 list featured just 894 locations. Only five years later, this year’s list contains 1,837 locations — a 105% increase over this period.

While change has been relatively fast among this segment of operators, experts suggest that this is just the beginning phases of consolidation for various reasons, including the availability of capital.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the familiar top five.

This year, Mister Car Wash grew by 54 locations and managed to surpass 300, keeping its hold on first place. Zips also grew by 54 and is nearing the 200 mark, solidifying its position in second. International Car Wash Group remains in third place, having grown by 17 locations and getting to 151. Quick Quack rose from fifth into fourth place by adding 27 locations and surpassing the 100 mark. Finally, Autobell rounded out fifth place with a total of 84, having added three locations.

Without further ado, we present the 2019 Top 50 list.

1. Mister Car Wash

Tucson, AZ
www.mistercarwash.com
318 locations

The Mister Car Wash brand is anchored in quality, friendliness and its commitment to creating memorable customer experiences. Mister Car Wash’s people are what make it successful and allow it to achieve these high standards. The company continues to focus on recruiting and retaining top talent, developing best-in-class training programs and investing in employee benefits to cultivate a positive company culture. The Mister Car Wash brand is about inspiring potential and giving both its employees and customers the motivation to be their best.

2. Zips Car Wash

Little Rock, AR
www.zipscarwash.com
194 locations

The Zips Way culture at Zips Car Wash continues to grow, as does their footprint across the United States. By year end, Zips will operate 194 stores in over 17 states in an effort to grow in their endeavors to do more for the communities they serve. In 2019, Zips formed a partnership with Susan G. Komen® and will embark on a journey to Wash for a Cure over the coming year. In addition, Zips is utilizing technology to offer unique offerings for their customers. Their strong community partnerships show their intense pursuit to change the way consumers think about the carwash industry.

3. International Car Wash Group (ICWG)

Centennial, CO
www.icwg.com
151 locations

The International Car Wash Group (ICWG) is the world’s largest local carwash, cleaning more than 40 million cars a year. It operates over 900 locations in 14 countries across the U.S., Europe and Australia, with 151 U.S. venues. The company was founded in Germany in 1965 under the IMO brand, the name still used at its non-U.S. locations. ICWG operates in the U.S. under the Car Wash USA Express, Goo-Goo Express and Supersonic Car Wash brands. ICWG is committed to operational excellence and innovative customer service.

4. Quick Quack Car Wash

Roseville, CA
www.dontdrivedirty.com
101 locations

Founded in 2004 in Sacramento, California, Quick Quack Car Wash is a fast-growing chain of exterior-only, express carwash locations in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Colorado. Quick Quack is regularly recognized for its community-building efforts as well as its environmentally friendly business practices. In addition to a big yellow mascot duck named “Quackals,” Quick Quack is best known for free, self-service vacuums and unlimited carwash memberships. Don’t Drive Dirty!™

5. Autobell Car Wash

Charlotte, NC
www.autobell.com
84 locations

Celebrating 50 years of customer service in 2019, Autobell® Car Wash was founded in 1969 in Charlotte by the late Charles Howard Sr. and remains privately held and operated by subsequent generations of the Howard family. Now operating in North and South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia and Maryland with consistent expansion, Autobell continues its commitment to customer focus, environmental protection and conservation, employee training and development, community relations and charitable support.

Rank	Organization Name	City	State	URL	No. of locations
6	Wash Depot Holdings Inc.	Fort Lauderdale	FL	www.cleancarfeeling.com	47
7	Golden Nozzle CarWash	Worcester	MA	www.goldennozzlecarwash.com	42
8	Mammoth Holdings	Atlanta	GA	www.mammothholdings.com	36*
9	Raceway Express Car Wash	Phoenix	AZ	www.racewaycarwash.com	35
10	Tidal Wave Auto Spa True Blue Car Wash	Thomaston Scottsdale	GA AZ	www.tidalwaveautospa.com www.truebluecw.com	34 34
11	Crew Carwash	Indianapolis	IN	www.crewcarwash.com	33
12	Terrible Herbst	Las Vegas	NV	www.terribleherbst.com	30
13	Delta Sonic	Buffalo	NY	www.deltasoniccarwash.com	29
14	BlueWave Express The Wash Tub	San Rafael San Antonio	CA TX	www.bluewaveexpress.com www.washtub.com	28 28
15	Brown Bear Car Wash Sam’s Xpress Car Wash Tommy’s Express Car Wash	Seattle Matthews Holland	WA NC MI	www.brownbear.com www.samsxpresscarwash.com www.tommys-express.com	27 27 27
16	Tiger Express Wash	Columbia	MO	www.tigerexpresswash.com	26
17	Waterway® Carwash	St. Louis	MO	www.waterway.com	25
18	Cobblestone Auto Spa Mike’s Carwash Super Star Car Wash	Phoenix Loveland Chandler	AZ OH AZ	www.cobblestone.com www.mikescarwash.com www.superstarcarwashaz.com	24 24 24
19	Express Wash Concepts Fuller’s Carwash Russell Speeder’s Car Wash	Etna Hinsdale Norwalk	OH IL CT	www.expresswashconcepts.com www.fullerscarwash.com www.russellspeeders.com	23 23 23
20	Splash Car Wash	Greenwich	CT	www.splashcarwashes.com	21
21	Surf Thru Express Car Wash	Bakersfield	CA	www.surfthruexpress.com	20
22	Kaady Car Wash	Portland	OR	www.kaady.com	19
23	ScrubaDub Auto Wash Centers	Natick	MA	www.scrubadub.com	18
24	Hoffman Car Wash Quick N Clean Rich’s Car Wash Washman Car Washes	Albany Scottsdale Saraland Portland	NY AZ AL OR	www.hoffmancarwash.com www.quicknclean.net www.richscarwash.com www.washmanusa.com	17 17 17 17
25	Car Spa Fast Eddie’s Car Wash & Oil Change Frank’s Car Wash	Dallas Swartz Creek Columbia	TX MI SC	www.carspa.net www.fasteddiescarcare.com www.frankscarwash.com	16 16 16
26	Francis & Sons Car Wash Whitewater Express Car Wash	Phoenix Cypress	AZ TX	www.francisandsonscarwash.com www.whitewatercw.com	15 15
27	Fast5xpress	Irvine	CA	www.fast5xpress.com	14
28	Jacksons Car Wash	Scottsdale	AZ	www.jacksonswash.com	13
29	Shammy Shine	Milford	NJ	www.shammyshine.com	12
30	Breeze Thru Car Wash Royal Car Wash Scrub-a-Dub Soapy Joe’s Car Wash Speedy Splash Car Wash Super Car Wash Wash Masters Car Wash	Fort Collins Rochester Milwaukee San Diego Fayetteville Royal Oak Irving	CO NY WI CA AR MI TX	www.breezethrucarwash.com www.theroyalwash.com www.scrubadub.biz www.soapyjoescarwash.com www.speedysplash.com www.supercarwash.net www.washmasters.net	11 11 11 11 11 11 11

Editor’s note: The information provided in the 2019 Top 50 list was compiled based on last year’s list, submissions, internal research conducted with our team and our industry partners, and by investigating carwashes’ websites. Carwashes included in this year’s list may or may not have been confirmed by their owners in 2019. If you believe your conveyor carwash chain should be included in Professional Carwashing & Detailing’s annual Top 50 list, make sure to be on the lookout for the 2020 Top 50 submission request, or email Associate Publisher – Editorial Rich DiPaolo at [email protected] for more information.

*POST PRINTING UPDATE: Mammoth Holdings’ listing was noted as 32 locations in the November 2019 print edition of Professional Carwashing & Detailing. However, as of Nov. 1, 2019, this chain operates 36 conveyor locations.