STATS: On the Go Alignments and More Location: Montgomery, Ala. Website: mobiklift.com Cost: Average retail price is $24,000. Todd Pierson paid $30,000 Uses: Moving tires Training Required: On-site training available upon delivery
The Reviewer:
Todd Pierson, owner of two mobile businesses in the Montgomery, Ala., area, has been performing wheel repair for 18 years. Pierson opened The Wheel Doctor, a mobile tire repair service, 18 years ago and in September he started his new business—On the Go Alignments and More.
The Shop:
On the Go Alignments and More started after Todd Pierson came across an ad for Mobiklift platforms, which are mobile lifts, on his Facebook feed.
“When I saw it, the bells started going off in my head,” Pierson says. “Nowadays, nobody has time for wheel alignments or tire rotations, so I figured, why not bring it to them?”
On the Go Alignments and More has been in business since September, when Pierson purchased the Model 7,000 platform. Pierson hopes to eventually be the go-to mobile repair for the entire state of Alabama and is already thinking of franchising. At the time of the interview in January, the mobile business performed an average of 3–4 alignments, 10 oil changes and 1 rotation per day.
How it Works:
The platform is on wheels, allowing the user to move it wherever needed. Pierson says it looks just like a trailer with a lift on top of it. The vehicle is placed on the lift and can be lifted into the air to service, inspect, perform tire rotations, oil changes and alignments on most vehicles.
The Review:
Pierson says that the Mobiklift allows him to go directly to customers to perform wheel alignments and other services, which has started an entirely new business for him.
“The only difference between this and a traditional lift machine is the price tag,” Pierson says. “Traditional lifts can set you back $100,000.”
The Mobiklift isn’t attached to any computers, which is where the cost savings comes from. In order to do alignments, Pierson purchased a $10,000 alignment machine that uses lasers to point out any misalignments.
Pierson adds that the Mobiklift isn’t just for mobile repairers.
“Anyone can use it,” Pierson says. “It saves space; you can put a car on there and take it wherever you need to go.”
Jack Kiragu, product designer at Mobiklift, adds that it’s ideal for brick and mortar shops, especially those with limited space.“
Shops can use bays for larger projects that require more time and use the Mobiklift in the parking lot to do faster paced jobs,” Kiragu says.
Kiragu goes on to say that shops can use it for better time management, freeing up time in their bays for larger jobs while still being able to perform quicker paced jobs that yield a quick return on investment.
The ROI:
Pierson has built an entire business around the Mobiklift, so the ROI for him is more dramatic than it would be for a shop that already performs this type of work, but Pierson says that it’s brought him an additional $10,000–$12,000 per month. For other shops, the cost savings would come from making the cheaper investment while still being able to perform much of the same work.
