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Rilla Labs

Inside the $80M Auto Service Empire | Rilla Labs x Adams Automotive

πŸ“… June 23, 2025 ⏱️ 49:35 🎀 Joe Adams, Sebastian Jimenez

Chapters

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  • 0:00
    From $3M to $80M in five years
  • 3:14
    America's largest auto service facility
  • 4:52
    Winning an industry built on distrust
  • 8:06
    Scripting the phone call (role-play)
  • 14:41
    Customers as profit centers, not costs
  • 21:14
    Building a word-obsessed culture
  • 22:52
    Validate, empathize, overcome
  • 26:07
    Why average tickets are higher
  • 29:24
    Say yes: nights and weekends
  • 32:38
    State inspections and the shuttle hammer
  • 39:11
    Invest in your people
  • 45:40
    Just say yes: execution over originality

Speakers

J
Joe Adams
CEO, Adams Automotive
Sebastian Jimenez
Sebastian Jimenez
Host β€” Founder & CEO, Rilla

Key Takeaways

✦

Adams Automotive grew from $3M to $80M in five years to become the number one auto service shop in America, anchored by a 56-bay flagship facility.

✦

In an industry defined by distrust, they win by giving customers a tour, transparent pricing, and treating every caller as a profit center, not a cost.

✦

The magic is scripting the words: answer the customer's question, then ask 'Is now a good time to bring in the vehicle?' and control the call.

✦

Handle objections like the AI framework β€” validate, empathize, then overcome: 'I completely understand hesitation about price; can I ask what you had in mind?'

✦

Say yes on the phone and never turn away a booking; being available nights and weekends beats competitors who close at 5.

✦

Higher-than-industry average tickets come directly from how customers are treated the moment they call in.

✦

Invest in your people β€” pay, benefits, tools, training, even the shuttle driver β€” so employees don't leave to undercut you.

✦

Joe Adams credits mentor Todd Hayes for teaching him to see customers as profit centers; execution, not originality, is the real edge.

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