A customer’s car is washed automatically at the West Broad Street location of Hogwash Express Car Wash, which Janet and Tom Hogg recently opened.
Charles Woodson applied wax shine to a tire at the Car Pool Car Wash location in Short Pump last month.
Jefferson Bates vacuums a car at Car Pool Car Wash in Short Pump Wednesday, November 17, 2021.
Catherine Ramsey (left) and Melanie Perez vacuumed a car at the Car Pool Car Wash in Short Pump in November.
Andrew West shines the trim on a car at the Car Pool Car Wash in Short Pump.
Husband-and-wife team Janet and Tom Hogg have opened two Hogwash Express Car Wash locations in the Richmond area.
An employee of Hogwash Express Car Wash worked at the location at 4205 W. Broad St. last month.
Hogwash Express Car Wash is located on 4205 W. Broad St. in Richmond, Va., Monday, Nov. 15, 2021.
Hogwash Express Car Wash’ co-owners and wife and husband Janet and Tom Hogg are shown at their business on 4205 W. Broad St. in Richmond, Va., Monday, Nov. 15, 2021.
Hogwash Express Car Wash’ co-owners and wife and husband Janet and Tom Hogg are shown at their business on 4205 W. Broad St. in Richmond, Va., Monday, Nov. 15, 2021.
A car is run through the car polisher at MegaWash Thursday, November 11, 2021.
(L-R) Cody Nuechterlein and Rebecca Warren prepare a car to be run through the car polisher at MegaWash Thursday, November 11, 2021.
MegaWash employee Cody Nuechterlein watches as a car is run through the car polisher Thursday, November 11, 2021.
Tyree Brown is chief operating officer of Car Pool Car Washes, shown at the company’s 11950 W. Broad St. location.
New automatic 2-minute car wash in 30 seconds
New options for washing your car or other vehicles have been sprouting up around the Richmond region over the past couple of years, with more on the way.
Many of these new car wash places offer the latest technologies and equipment for automatic, quick-service car washing, while some are sticking to the time-honored model of washing cars using human elbow grease.
“There is a lot of private equity money that is chasing car washes because they have a reputation for being strong cash-flow producers,” said Miles Morin, a partner in MegaWash, which opened a car, truck and RV washing facility off U.S. 1 in Hanover County in September.
Car washes remain a largely fragmented service nationwide, with no large, dominant chains, Morin said. “There are a lot of medium-sized players,” he said.
Within the past three years, car wash businesses such as Flagstop Car Wash, MegaWash, Rio Car Wash, Tommy’s Express, and Hogwash have opened new locations in the Richmond area. The car washes are competing by seeking prime real estate locations for new facilities, offering membership plans, installing high-speed equipment and some offering free vacuum services to make car washing faster and more convenient.
“There is competition that is coming into this market, there is no doubt about it,” said Rob Worrell, a partner in Tommy’s Express Car Wash, a franchise operator that has opened two locations in the Richmond area, with two more — one on Arthur Ashe Boulevard and one on West Broad Street near state Route 288 — scheduled to open in 2022.
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