Drive Automotive is a multi-unit operator of retail tire and automotive service centers, managing 40 stores across six U.S. markets. The company’s portfolio includes 22 locations under their flagship brand, Service Street Tire & Auto Repair, along with additional stores operating under various brand names.
In 2021, Drive Automotive embarked on an expansion strategy through both build-to-suit developments and acquisitions.The company needed a solution to evaluate new store opportunities and ensure optimal site selection decisions.
Having previous experience with Buxton’s location intelligence platform, Drive’s management team recognized the value of partnering with an industry leader in analytics.
“Drive’s management team had significant experience with Buxton in prior roles, which ensured Drive could quickly get up to speed,” explains Matt Hill, Sr. Director of Business Development at Drive Automotive. “The familiarity with the platform combined with Buxton’s user-friendly platform and significant support for marketing and other non-real estate areas made Buxton an easy choice.”
Boosting Confidence and Speed in Site Selection Decisions
Drive Automotive subscribed to Buxton’s SCOUT and Mobilytics applications, which allow them to evaluate trade areas based on a range of population, market, and customer insights.
For the development team, having the ability to access location intelligence during the site selection process has been particularly beneficial. “The ability to look at demographic data, competition data, traffic counts, etc. to gain insight into the likelihood of success at a given site has been invaluable,” notes Hill.
The Drive Automotive team also integrated insights from SCOUT into their internal workflows. The team developed an internal, proprietary site selection model to streamline their evaluation process. By quantifying key trade area metrics using SCOUT’s configurable reporting feature and pulling additional metrics from the platform to incorporate into each site evaluation, the business development team strengthens their model’s scoring abilities.
“We run the model on every site we review to gauge revenue potential at new sites,” says Hill. “Our confidence in the model enables us to make quick decisions on sites and prioritize our time accordingly.”
Moving Beyond Real Estate to Inform Local Store Marketing
Beyond real estate decisions, Drive Automotive also utilizes Buxton’s Mobilytics tool to inform their marketing strategy. The platform helps the team understand trade areas, analyze their existing customer base, and identify untapped customer opportunities within their markets.
“The Mobilytics reports provide key insight into site-level marketing strategies,” Hill explains.
“Buxton is the industry leader in the location intelligence space for a reason. The platform is easy to use, provides key data and insights needed for success, and has the support team ready to ensure you get what you need and more out of the platform.”
The Bottom Line
Drive Automotive has successfully implemented a data-driven approach to growth, using Buxton’s insights to evaluate opportunities and make confident decisions about new locations. The company continues to leverage both the real estate and marketing capabilities of the platform to support their expansion.
“Buxton is the industry leader in the location intelligence space for a reason,” concludes Hill. “The platform is easy to use, provides key data and insights needed for success, and has the support team ready to ensure you get what you need and more out of the platform.”