Congratulations to Tom Hoffman Jr., on being inducted into the Northeast Regional Car Wash Hall of Fame! Tom’s lifelong dedication, leadership, and commitment have made significant impacts not only for the Northeast Region but also for the industry as a whole.
Since the 1960s, the Hoffman family has been washing cars in upstate New York. The Hoffman Car Wash empire has steadily increased over the decades as more family members grew up in and became key members of the enterprise.
Tom Hoffman Sr. and his wife, Carole opened the first Hoffman Car Wash in 1965. The Hoffman family owned and operated a bowling alley and entertainment complex in Albany, NY, for many years. In the mid-1960s, they decided to expand their offerings to include an in-bay automatic car wash at the site.
“My father and grandfather built the car wash and installed an early in-bay automatic unit, and almost immediately recognized it was a disaster,” says Hoffman Car Wash CEO Tom Hoffman Jr. “It was just bad equipment. They took it out and installed self-service car wash equipment in a small four-bay building right next to the bowling alley.
“Around six months into the car wash business, the bowling alley was struck by lightning and was destroyed. The family decided to focus all their efforts on the car wash business. Within a few years, there was a conveyorized wash at the bowling alley site, and they were on their way.”
Hoffman Car Wash continued to expand through the late 60s and 70s, owning and operating self-serve and in-bay units in New York’s Capital Region, before entering the full-service sector in 1978. Fueled by the success of their first large-scale, full-serve location, the Hoffmans continued to expand, adding design and development to their portfolio as they built their sites and experimented with equipment manufacturing.
As expansion ramped up, Tom Jr. joined the business in 1982 after graduating from high school. Working alongside his father, the younger Tom helped oversee the company’s growth, entrance into the quick lube market, and eventual launch of Hoffman InnovateIT, the family’s equipment manufacturing and distribution company, in 2018.
Following years of growth, development, and change, the Hoffman family is in a place of relative calm. For the first time in a long time, they are not building a new site (although they are always on the lookout for the next opportunity) and can take a moment to take stock of their various holdings.
In addition to their expanding InnovateIT empire, the family owns and operates 33 car wash sites with various concepts within a two-hour radius of their Albany, NY headquarters.
Hoffman Car Wash operates flex-serve, full-serve, in-bay automatic, and self-serve sites throughout its territory. There are even four sites that feature express, free vacuums, in-bays, and self-serve bays all in one location — the ultimate choose-your-own-adventure experience.
For more information visit https://www.hoffmancarwash.com.
