Carnett’s founders hope to clean up with P&G franchising unit

Bruce Arnett Sr. and Bruce Arnett Jr. came to Atlanta from the Midwest in 1987 to build a car wash empire. Their beginnings were humble.

“When we started we were living in a camper at Lake Lanier,” laughs the son. “It was a large RV,” injects the dad. “And we moved into a home very quickly.”

So it wasn’t that humble. Still, the Arnetts’ story is impressive. From one outlet in Gwinnett County, they built Carnett’s Car Washes into a 16-store chain. Their success caught the eye of Procter & Gamble which bought them out recently, then put them in charge (as CEO and COO) of building its start-up national franchising unit, Mr. Clean Car Wash.

At Carnett’s, they created an operational system, from employee training to customer service, that could be replicated by franchisees. In a fragmented industry, that stood out to P&G.

The Arnetts felt some loss giving up the Carnett’s name but are excited about their role in building the first national car wash chain.

> Why should a business invest in sustainability during a recession?

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” says Lynnette Young, adding, “It does make a difference to the bottom line.”

As executive director of Sustainable Atlanta, Young is behind the push for green building, water conservation and materials management. These days, pushing businesses, especially small ones, is a hard sell.

“They might not have the funds available” she says, and the long-term benefits can take a back seat to short-term survival measures.

“They imply it’s the soft stuff,” she says, “the stuff they can cut.”

Some opt for one-off improvements such as a lighting retrofit. They can pay off in a year. Others just pass. Young’s pitch to the reluctant: Get on board now. Sustainability is a trend without end.

> Attorneys and other business people traveling in groups of three or less now have an air option if they’re making a short-haul day trip and want to avoid Hartsfield-Jackson.

For a flat rate of about $1,000 total, Advanced Air Taxi will fly one to three passengers from small Atlanta-area airports such as Briscoe Field in Lawrenceville to cities such as Charlotte and Mobile. Pilot and plane wait at the destination until travelers finish business, then fly home.

There’s no security screening and parking’s a breeze, says Advanced CEO Vernon Lemmon, so it’s quicker and less stressful.

A former trucking executive, Lemmon launched Advanced a year ago after the FAA granted rights to air taxi services to relieve big airport congestion. Advanced flies FAA-certified, piston-powered, single-engine aircraft. There is no cabin service.

So far, business has been “slow on take-off,” Lemmon says. Maybe because “we’re all creatures of habit, and we’re used to using the major carriers.”

dmarkiewicz@ajc.com