'He's Doing More Business Than All the Sharks Combined': How Crash Champions' CEO Grew From One Location to $3 Billion in Revenue — and a Mentorship From Daymond John Matt Ebert is the founder and CEO of Crash Champions.
By Sherin Shibu Edited by Melissa Malamut
Key Takeaways
- Matt Ebert grew Crash Champions from one auto body shop to 650 locations and $3 billion in annualized revenue.
- The growth caught the eye of Shark Tank investor and FUBU founder, Daymond John.
- The duo sat down for an interview with Entrepreneur.
In 1989, 16-year-old Matt Ebert got into a car accident that wrecked his vehicle. Though just a teen, he resolved to fix it himself, learning from an auto technician who taught him the ropes at night. Ten years later, Ebert opened his first auto repair shop, New Lenox Auto Body, with a business partner. In 2015, he bought out his business partner and renamed the company Crash Champions.
After the rebrand, Crash Champions started growing quickly, expanding to 13 locations in 2019. That same year, Ebert took on a private equity investor A&M Capital, which has over $5.9 billion in assets under management.
Now, the company has 650 locations across 38 states. Most of the growth came from acquisitions, with Ebert buying existing mom-and-pop repair shops.
Ebert, now 52, tells Entrepreneur that Crash Champions is on track for $3 billion in annualized revenue this year, up from $40 million in 2019. Crash Champions is now the third largest collision repair company in the U.S., after Caliber and Gerber, and employs over 11,000 people.
Along the way, Shark Tank investor Daymond John, 54, took an interest in Ebert's business. About six years ago, the duo struck up a mentor-mentee relationship, meeting in person multiple times to discuss Ebert's business.
Entrepreneur sat down with John and Ebert to discuss how the business — and mentorship — has grown.
Daymond, what stood out to you about Crash Champions?
John: He absorbed, or partnered, or created, 630 operating retail locations in the course of five years. He's addressing an industry that's not going anywhere, it's only growing. I just find it fascinating that he's doing more business than all the Sharks combined in a short time.
Matt, how did you grow your business so quickly?
Ebert: A lot of it's been done through M&A (mergers and acquisitions). The industry is an environment where many shop owners are of that Baby Boomer generation where they're ready to retire, and their kids either aren't interested in the business or can't run it. We reward those owners and sellers for all their hard work, and they, in turn, trust us with that legacy of the business they built for all those years.
Related: Baby Boomer Businesses Are Up for Grabs — Here's How Entrepreneurs Can Benefit In 2025
What's your advice for growth for a small business owner who wants to scale?
Ebert: Scaling comes down to the systems and processes that work and the quantity and quality of people. The advice that I would give is to keep the process as simple as you can. Don't overcomplicate it. If it's a service business, then the quality and quantity of people matter because robots can't fix cars today; it has to be people-driven. Make yourself an acquirer of choice, which means you treat a seller like you want to be treated.
Matt, what would you tell people who want to start their first business but are hesitant?
Ebert: Nothing worthwhile comes about without risk. I had no fear of the risk because when you don't have anything when you're starting, there's not much to lose. So don't be afraid of the risk if you've got a good plan.
With 650 locations, how do you maintain a consistent level of service?
Ebert: What differentiates us is the customer experience. The average consumer gets in an accident maybe once every 10 to 15 years, so it's our responsibility to build trust as quickly as we can by being transparent, talking them through the process, and telling them what to expect and how long it's going to take to fix their car.
Daymond, what do you look for when investing in companies?
John: I look for places I can relate to and understand the business. From the consumer standpoint, my first business was buying cars from auctions, fixing them, selling them, and making a profit. When I was coming up doing it, I had this perfect plan. I was going to be a gazillionaire by age 20. The problem was that I didn't have a reputable place to get the service and the parts that I needed.
So thank God I got ripped off a couple of times and decided to start FUBU.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and concision.
Related: Daymond John Says This Is How Entrepreneurs 'Should Be Working' — And It Isn't From Home
