Longtime German car repair business has new owners

For 47 years, Reinhard Larisch was the longtime owner of German Car Service, a business that occupies a building on Martin Way East, not far from Carpenter Road. As the name suggests, his repair business focused on Mercedes, Volkswagen, BMW and Audi vehicles.

Meanwhile, business partners Palmer Higa and Jorge Ruiz, who also work in the commercial real estate world, were asked to list his building for sale. Instead of selling it, though, the business partners eventually decided to buy it and the business. They took over in October 2015.

In almost the year since, the partners have added to the staff, invested in equipment and plan to expand into 2,500 square feet of space next door. The main shop measures 4,300 square feet.

“His reputation was phenomenal,” said Higa about Larisch.

The business works on 12 to 15 vehicles at any one time and focuses on maintenance and drivability issues, such as check engine lights or other sensors that are triggered by vehicle problems. They also do oil changes, brakes and other ongoing maintenance. Major work on engines and transmissions is farmed out to other businesses, Higa said.

Most repair work is completed within one day, while some repairs take 24 hours, Higa said.

The business tends to work on German cars in the 2005- 2010 age range because newer German cars are still covered under warranties, which means those owners still take their cars to dealerships for repairs. Most of their business comes from longtime customers who make appointments, with a smaller percentage of drop-in customers, he said.

German Car Service today is a different place than it used to be, Higa said. For one thing, it has eight employees, with plans to add another technician.

Don Granberg, who has worked at the business for 14 years, said Larisch was a “laid back” owner, who also was selective about the kind of work he agreed to do. That allowed him to maintain a relatively small staff. At one point, it was Granberg, Larisch and his wife, who did the books, he said.

Higa and Ruiz are experienced investors. They also are co-owners of the Olympia Furniture Co. in west Olympia, and Ruiz recently bought the Rockway-Leland building in downtown Olympia, which is home to KXXO 96.1 FM, better known as Mixx 96.

When they are evaluating a new deal, they look at cash flow and whether the business has a good reputation.

“If the numbers make sense, we’ll take a look at it,” Higa said.

This story was originally published September 3, 2016 at 4:17 PM with the headline "Longtime German car repair business has new owners."