You didn't open a shop to live in your DMs and missed calls.
I'm an advisor and operator for auto specialty shop owners who are tired of being the bottleneck. We start by figuring out what's actually broken — phones, scheduling, quotes, follow-up, pricing, cash flow. Then we fix it together, with operational changes first and technology second. The same process that built Zamu Tints into a hands-off front-of-house operation.
Chicago-based · On-site across the Midwest · Virtual nationwide
If any of this sounds like you, you're in the right place.
You built a real shop. Reputation's solid. Schedule's full. But —
You're answering quote DMs at 11pm because if you don't, the lead goes cold
Your phone rings during a job and you can't decide whether to stop or let it go to voicemail
Half your week is spent quoting jobs that ghost you
No-shows are eating 10–20% of your bookable hours
You haven't taken a real weekend off in months
Your wife/husband/kids know your shop better than they know you
You're booking out 3 weeks but somehow there's never enough cash
Every "AI agency" cold-calling you sounds the same and you don't trust any of them
Operations first. Technology second.
Four steps. Each one earns the next. No lock-in at any stage.
Free 15-min call
Quick fit check. I find out what’s going on at your shop, you find out if I can help. Zero pressure. Zero pitch.
Shop Diagnostic — $500
Half a day on-site if you’re in the Midwest, or a deep virtual session if you’re anywhere else in the U.S. I look at how your shop actually runs — how the phone gets answered, how quotes get sent, how jobs get scheduled, how follow-ups happen (or don’t), how pricing works, where the cash leaks. You walk away with a written 30/60/90 plan ranked by ROI. This is a real deliverable, not a sales call. Most shop owners say this alone was worth it. If you go on to a larger engagement, the $500 is credited toward it.
Advisory engagement
If we both want to keep going, we work the plan together over 60–90 days. Working sessions as needed (not a forced weekly cadence — I know you don’t have time for that). Operational changes first — pricing, hours, who answers the phone, how the day flows. This is the part that actually moves the needle and the part most tech vendors skip. Engagements typically run $2,000–$15,000 depending on scope, agreed up front, no subscription lock-in.
Optional tech build through BizTechy.ai
If your plan calls for an AI receptionist, scheduling automation, a CRM build, a website refresh, or after-hours follow-up automation, we build it together through my technology arm BizTechy.ai. You pay at cost, not at agency markup. You own what we build. No monthly retainer trap.
Learn more about BizTechy.aiHow this works in practice: Zamu Tints, Chicago
The shop that became the prototype.
Edward owns Zamu Tints — an established window tint shop in Chicago with a great reputation and a full schedule. By every external measure, he was winning. Internally, he was answering quote DMs at 11pm, losing booking opportunities to slow response times, and watching no-shows eat into the bookable hours he'd worked years to build.
We started with a Shop Diagnostic. Two hours in, we'd mapped where the leaks were. Over the next several weeks we refreshed the website, automated the scheduling and intake, built him an after-hours follow-up flow, and tightened up his pricing logic. Edward now runs the front of his business on autopilot and got his evenings back.
Edward is also a friend of the work. He's a featured guest at our Chicago meetup and an upcoming guest on the Startup or Shutup podcast. If you want to verify any of this, listen to the episode when it drops or come meet him in person. That's the kind of relationship I build with the shops I work with — not a vendor invoice, an actual ongoing partnership.
“[Quote from Edward — to be added once captured. Suggested length: 2–3 sentences.]”
Sell you software you don’t need. If a $0 fix works, that’s the fix.
Push a 12-month retainer. You pay for outcomes, not subscriptions.
Talk to you like a consultant. I’ve been the bottleneck. I get it.
Hand you a 40-page strategy doc you’ll never read.
Pretend to know your industry better than you do. I learn your shop; you teach me what makes it tick.
Take you on if I can’t help. The free call is also where I disqualify.
I'm not an AI agency. I'm an operator who helps shop owners.
Every cold-call you've gotten this month from an AI agency sounded the same. AI receptionist. Save 10 hours a week. $497 a month. I'm not that. I've actually run businesses with staff, margins, and customers yelling on the phone. I know what it costs to be the only one who can do everything in your shop — and I know what it takes to stop. The tech matters, but it's the second move, not the first.
More than advisory.
Private community access
A community of current and past advisory clients, including other shop owners. Resources, intros, peer support.
Lifetime PeerFounder membership
Every engagement includes lifetime free access to PeerFounder — community, learning, and micro-funding tools designed for small business owners.
Featured on the podcast
Engaged clients get featured on Startup or Shutup for exposure to a growing audience of operators and small business owners.
My professional network
Intros and connections from a network built across trades, healthcare, fintech, and the Chicago entrepreneur community.
Common questions.
Auto specialty is my featured niche, but I work with established small business owners across industries. The reason I have a dedicated page for shops is that this is where I’ve gotten the strongest results recently — and where the operational playbook compounds best.
Owner-operators with 2+ years in business and roughly $300K–$3M in revenue. Usually 1–10 employees. If your shop is brand-new or pre-revenue, advisory probably isn’t the right fit yet — check out PeerFounder for early-stage resources.
Yes. I’m Chicago-based and the on-site Shop Diagnostic is easiest within the Midwest, but I run deep virtual Diagnostics for shop owners anywhere in the U.S. Same written deliverable, same depth, same plan.
Because it’s real work, not a sales pitch. You walk away with a written 30/60/90 plan ranked by ROI. Charging filters for serious buyers and respects both of our time. If we go on to a larger engagement, the $500 is credited toward it.
Engagements typically run $2,000–$15,000 depending on scope. We agree on a fixed scope and price after the Diagnostic, so there are no surprises and no subscription lock-in.
No. Most shops do because the work integrates naturally, but the advisory engagement and the tech build are separate. You’re never required to take a tech build, and if you’ve already got tools you like, we work with what you have.
Three ways. First, I do the operations work before the tech work — most agencies skip that step because they can’t sell it. Second, I build tech at cost through BizTechy.ai, not at agency markup. Third, I disqualify on the free call if I can’t help — I’d rather pass than waste your money.
Ready to figure out what's actually broken at your shop?
Everyone starts with a free 15-minute call. I find out what's going on, you find out if I can help. Zero pressure. If we're a fit, we'll talk about next steps from there.