Meet The Tuffy Team

Roger W. Hill – President/CEO:

Roger has over 26 years’ experience in franchising, and has been employed by Tuffy since March 1991 holding the following positions; President/CEO; Vice President, General Manager; Vice President of Operations; Director of Operations; and District Manager. Mr. Hill was also President/CEO; Vice President, General Manager; and Vice President of Operations of Car X.

Karen Vellequette – Chief Financial Officer & Assistant Secretary:

Karen has over 22 years’ experience in finance, and has been employed by Tuffy since January 1995 holding the following positions; Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Secretary; Controller; and Assistant Controller. Ms. Vellequette was also Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and Assistant Secretary of Car X.

Eric Schmitt – Director of Franchise Development:

Eric has over 35 years’ experience in Franchise Development, and has been employed by Tuffy since April 2017. Prior to that, Mr. Schmitt was President of Kitchen Solvers; Market Development Manager for ServiceMaster; President/CEO for Tossed Franchise Corporation; Senior Director of Franchise Development for Atlanta Bread Company, Director of Franchise Development for Marco’s Pizza, Mr. Hero; and Physicians Weight Loss Centers.

Travis Mulligan – Director of Franchise Sales:

Travis has over 7 years’ experience in sales, and has been employed by Tuffy since April 2018. Prior to that, Mr. Mulligan was Commercial Territory Manager for IGS Energy; and Freight Broker for Bolt Express.

David Schak – Director of Real Estate and Construction:

David has over 45 years’ experience in Real Estate and Construction, and has been employed by Tuffy since June 1992.

Barry Unrast – Director of Marketing:

Barry has over 14 years’ experience in Marketing, all of which at Tuffy and has held the following positions: Director of Marketing, Advertising Executive, and Advertising Account Representative

Daniel Glacken – Director of Franchise Operations & Training:

Daniel has over 32 years’ experience in Operations, and has been employed by Tuffy since December 2012.Prior to that, Mr. Glacken was Senior Training Manager for Midas International; and Sears for 25 years as Automotive Manager, District Manager, Region Manager and Director of Training.

James Christian – Director of Company Store Operations:

James has over 20 years’ experience in Operations, and has been employed by Tuffy since October 2001 holding the following positions; Director of Company Store Operations; Operations Manager; and Director of Company Stores.

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Testimonials

  • Kim Kappes, was asked. What has being a Tuffy franchisee meant to you and your family?  Kim said, “It has meant everything. Tuffy helped me and my wife Shelley, who also is involved in the business, achieve financial security for ourselves and for our family. I love you guys.  If you’re willing to work hard and if you enjoy the sales process, and I do, you can make a lot of money in this business.  Anytime you have someone seriously interested in becoming a Tuffy franchisee, I’ll be happy to talk with them and answer any questions they may have.”

    Kim Kappes, Fargo, N.D.

  • As a young 27-year-old entrepreneur who wanted to take a dream and turn it into a reality, Tuffy took me seriously!  Starting from day one with onsite support from District Manager Scott Adams to continued training support empowering my staff to grow. With this support and hard work, I was able to grow into 3 stores in less than 3 years with a plan for more on the horizon. If someone told me five years ago this is where I would be, I would have thought that’s impossible. Thanks for believing in me Tuffy!!

    Aaron Suffoletto, Gahanna, Grove City, and Lewis Center, OH

  • My wife and I have owned a Tuffy® Auto Service Center for over 8 years, and it has been an excellent experience.  My background is engineering and I have led engineering teams, but this is my first experience in a retail auto service business and owning my own business.  The training and support from Tuffy allowed us to take a failing location that had been closed and turn it around to become a top-ten store nationally (2015).   Tuffy provided training at their facilities, at other store locations, and at my store.  In just 8 months we had built a business that was running in excess of $1M/year by following their tenets, procedures, and guidelines.

    My District Manager Warren is a great guy – he helped me with the hiring of my initial team, gives advice on various issues whenever I ask, has been here to help with the training process, and is always available for questions and to help with any issues that arise.  The support staff at Tuffy Corporate is likewise extremely helpful.  Tuffy’s CFO Karen and President Roger have been there for one-on-one meetings, support, and advice whenever I have asked.  The Director of Franchising Bob is a great guy and helped tremendously with the purchase of the franchise.  Barry has helped us at every step with advertising, promotions and our website which has filled our shop with customers.  Once they are there, implementing the training on how to run the shop and deal with our customers has kept them coming back.  In the rare instance, there is a customer complaint or issue, Bridgette and Warren do a fantastic job of resolving it.  Tuffy has a Franchisee Advisory Council which represents our issues, views, and concerns and works with Tuffy for our benefit.

    Overall this has been a very rewarding experience, a lot of hard work, and an opportunity to control our own destiny.

    Jim Heim, Loves Park, IL

  • Tuffy is amazing. Tuffy has successfully combined integrity, efficiency and experience into the franchisee recipe. Their support system is instrumental in creating an environment where anything is possible and success is expected.

    Jeff Denney, Dothan, AL, Ft. Wayne, IN Destin, Gulf Breeze, and Panama City Beach, FL

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