When Dave Markert’s BMW 328i’s engine failed, the college student had no idea the breakdown would launch his career. He met Rob Eskew as they exchanged BMW parts and by 2012, they had forged a business that keeps growing.

At first, they called their auto shop Markert Motor Works. However, some people found the name hard to pronounce. Then, Rob saw the word True on the back of a $7-million yacht and everything clicked.

“We wanted something short that means something and goes beyond the basics,” Dave says.

The duo changed the business name to True Automotive in 2019. After all, it embodies their vision of the direction they wish to help steer the automotive repair industry.

Since their early days, this pair has acquired five more shops and are renovating a sixth. Five of them are in the Atlanta area, with one in Colorado.

“We always wanted to grow,” says Dave, who acts as chief financial officer. “We are always trying to improve the things we do and the people we work with.”

One of the tools they added to their kit was Shop-Ware’s automotive repair business software.

Big plans fueled by auto repair program

Once Rob and Dave opened their second store, they went shopping for auto repair programs. It took three tries until they landed on Shop-Ware, just in time for their third shop to come aboard.

“We were creating a big, profitable business to take care of our team,” Dave says. “We needed a way for them to grow far past what a $100,000 store can do for them, including a nice shop and benefits.”

Now, that team numbers 46 with a diagnostic technician, a floating trainer and an accounting department.

Above all, it keeps growing as other auto repair veterans sell their shops. By luck, the sixth shop they purchased already uses Shop-Ware. “We just have to change the sign outside,” Dave says with a smile.

Ultimately, he would like to build the team to 500 employees working at 40 to 50 unique shops. “That seems like a nice big number,” he says.

Counting on multishop intel

Their recipe for success relies on Shop-Ware’s multi-shop features. The automotive repair business software allows the co-owners to monitor data across all stores. No one else offers that level of insight, Dave notes.

It saves him from logging in and out of auto repair programs repeatedly and it gives him more personal time. Since he started, his goal was to “work himself out of a job” as a hands-on manager.

Now, he has a new one – as a father. Dave and his wife Laura welcomed David William Markert the Third (Liam) to their family seven months ago.

“My goal was to be present for him,” Dave says. “That means no more 70 to 80-hour weeks.”

Meanwhile, True’s techs and service advisors also like using Shop-Ware while customers find it great to get a grasp on repairs.

“We’re a very data-driven business,” Dave says. “That keeps us with Shop-Ware. We can see the trends and I like pulling up data on my phone. It’s a godsend.”