Lance Ashby has a single piece of guidance for aspiring entrepreneurs: Don’t wait.
“I waited way too long in life to make the jump,” says Ashby, who owns Point S Tire and Auto Service in Spanish Fork, Utah. “Don’t be afraid, just do it. Get a good plan and find a great mentor. I waited until I was 54 years old and should have done it 20 years ago.”
For Ashby, who operates the business with his 24-year-old son Ethan, that mentor was none other than Les Schwab, the eponymous tire center founder.
“The Les Schwab organization did a really good job of training me,” Ashby says. “I remember going to a new employee meeting and Les himself stood up and said, ‘The day you’re ready to manage a store for me I’ll build a store for you.’ I’m living proof that he did that.”
Ashby says, “He taught me how to manage stores and be responsible for both the profits and the losses as well. It taught me how to be a good businessperson. That’s where I’ve drawn most of my experience from.”
Even though the COVID-19 pandemic set his business back in 2020, Ashby has no regrets. Here, he shares the strategies that have helped the business survive and thrive once again.