Buff Guys Mobile Car Wash and Detailing

AFTER SEEING LONG lines at the car wash, friends Ivan Longoria and Isaac Suarez had an “aha” moment at a stoplight one day in 2017.

“Dude,” Longoria asked Suarez. “What if we made a car wash service that comes to you?”

Three weeks later, they were in business.

The secret to Buff Guys’ rapid rise? The convenience factor.

“There are a lot of things people never get around to because it’s inconvenient,” Longoria said. “People know other detailers in town, but you have to get out of bed, drive over, set an appointment, then give up your car for an afternoon. Our competitive edge is, you don’t have to go anywhere.”

Buff Guys customers can, in fact, get their car washed without leaving their beds. After sending a Facebook message, customers are prompted to answer questions about their vehicle and select a package. From there they can either bring their car to the garage, or have the car wash come to them.

Packages start at $25, but customers can add a la carte services, like pet hair removal or paint detailing.

“The people who pay for those services are in dire need of them,” Longoria said. “They’ve been wanting to do them for a while but can’t find the time.”

Longoria takes pride in the fact that Buff Guys is “truly mobile,” meaning they don’t use their customers’ water
or electricity. Instead, their truck hauls 260-gallons of water, plus a generator, wherever it goes.

““We could set up in the middle of the desert and still be able to wash your car,” he said. ”

But in the detailing business, being mobile has its challenges. Rainy days hamper business. Other services, like buff wax, can’t be done in the sun. Those issues prompted Longoria and Suarez to open a garage.

Longoria says the brick and mortar building helps them appeal to a different type of customer.

“There are some people who think if you don’t have a brick and mortar building, there’s no validity to the business,” he said.

After he noticed the space on the other side of the garage had a perfect spot for a kitchen, Longoria and Suarez decided to use the extra storefront to open a pizza place. Thin and Crisp Gourmet Pizza opened earlier this fall.

Making pizza not only allows Longoria to flex his cooking muscles, but also ties into his and Suarez’s larger vision: to create jobs. Right now they employ six part-time car washers, but hope to grow that number.

“We’re looking at it as an opportunity to build Topeka up,” Longoria said. “We want to empower people to be able to work for themselves.”

The mobile app Buff Guys has in the works will further that mission. Similar to the Uber app, users will be able to sign in as either a car washer or someone who needs their car washed, and make it easier for both customers and employees to book appointments.

It’s an expensive venture, but, to them, the price is well worth it.

“We’re not about ourselves,” Longoria said. “Our end game is to invest in Topeka and create jobs.”