Las Vegas residents Todd Bender and Scott Wainwright saw a need in the community to revolutionize the car wash experience.
In 2017, they introduced their Express Model by opening the first WOW Carwash location on the corner of Lake Mead and Torrey Pines.
Since 2017, the brothers-in-law have expanded and opened 17 locations, with the 18th soon to open in August. The goal is to open 30 locations, so they plan to open 13 additional sites over the next 24 to 36 months.
Dedicated to the community, WOW Carwash CEO Heath Pomerantz and the WOW management team pride themselves on supporting local causes that make a difference in our area.
WOW Carwash is the official car wash of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, Vegas Knight Hawks and UNLV Athletics. It has participated in several community events and partnered with St. Jude, Three Square and Spread the Word Nevada to create a better community.
Starting this week, WOW Carwash and its team will highlight some of our local unsung heroes.
Q. Can you tell me about the WOW Carwash Local Heroes Initiative for teachers and first responders?
A.To celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week and First Responders Appreciation Week, we are donating 20,000 WOW MAX premium car washes.
This year, our team nominated individuals, schools or community first responders who significantly impacted their lives.
Teacher Appreciation Week began on May 5. Teams from every WOW Carwash location visited the nominated schools, presented the car wash vouchers to the selected teachers and thanked them in person. We provided about 10,000 WOW MAX premium car washes during the week.
On May 19, our teams will again be out in the community. This time, hand-delivering 10,000 WOW MAX car wash coupons to nominated first responders.
We believe personally delivering the car wash coupons and shaking hands with the individuals they nominated adds a meaningful touch of appreciation.
In the past, teachers and first responders would simply show their identification at our WOW locations to receive a free car wash during the Appreciation Weeks, which felt a little impersonal. We wanted to create a more personal experience by allowing our team members to interact directly with the individuals they nominated.
Q. What is the Local Heroes Initiative?
A. We didn’t start the Local Heroes concept, but we adopted it as an opportunity to identify those who may not walk around with a cape all day but whose impact is significant. Teachers and first responders have challenging jobs and don’t always receive the appreciation they deserve. They are our everyday local heroes, and we wanted to show them our appreciation.
Q. What is the donation equivalent to in monetary value?
A. It’s well over $40,000, which is a significant donation. But it was an easy decision to support our local heroes.
At first, we thought 10,000 car washes, but as nominations poured in, we doubled that amount. We didn’t want to limit our support, so we based our donation on the nominations we received.
Q. What other philanthropic causes do you support?
A. Community engagement is one of our business pillars, so we’re always looking for organizations we can support. We aim to be known as the Las Vegas Community Car Wash because we live here and are part of this community.
Last year we donated $40,000 to St. Jude Hospital, which is our largest donation to date. We’ve also participated in Three Square packing meals and Spread the Word Nevada, promoting literacy. These are organizations we believe have made a tangible impact on the community and that we can support meaningfully.
Community engagement is not just about showing appreciation for our local causes; it’s also about allowing our team members to give back. We want our team members to nominate organizations or causes that are important to them. We just did the five-day San Gennaro Feast because of a team member’s suggestion. It was a great experience.
Q. What inspired WOW Carwash?
A. Todd Bender and Scott Wainwright founded the company in 2016. They live in Las Vegas and saw an opportunity to introduce the Express Car Wash concept. Most car washes are associated with gas stations or are full-service only.
With an extensive real estate background, Scott discovered a premier site in North Las Vegas. They opened their first location in 2017 on the corner of Lake Mead and Torrey Pines, and the company has grown significantly since then.
Q. What is Express Concept?
A. There are three different styles of car washes. The self-serve concept involves pulling in and washing your car in a self-serve bay. The full-service concept consists of dropping your car off, and they wash the entire vehicle for you, inside and out.
The WOW Carwash Express Concept involves easily pulling up to our gate, staying in your car, and washing your car in less than two minutes. Vacuums are free and part of the car wash experience.
Q. What is the story behind the name?
A. We wanted to set the bar higher with our guest service. We went with WOW to provide an expectation to live up to. You can’t give a low-quality experience and be called WOW Carwash. Every day, our team arrives at work, sees the sign on the building and knows the goal is to WOW our guests.
Q. How many locations are there in the Vegas Valley?
A. Over the last eight years, we’ve expanded and opened 17 locations, with No. 18 opening in August at the corner of Desert Inn and Durango.
We have several more in various stages of development. Locations 19 and 20 are not too far behind and will open soon.
We’re on our way to 30 locations throughout the valley and plan to open 13 more within 24 to 36 months.
We’ve chosen locations that are convenient, accessible and near where people are already going. Our goal is that no one needs to drive more than 10 minutes to get to a WOW Carwash.
Q. Is WOW Car Wash eco-friendly?
A. One of the big misconceptions about the car wash business is that we are water abusers. We average 45 gallons of water per wash, reclaiming 80 percent of the water used in the tunnel. The water goes through a high-tech reclamation system, and we recycle it in four 1,500-gallon tanks.
If you wash the car in the driveway, you’re using 80 to 140 gallons of water, and the soaps don’t run through a reclamation system and get filtered like ours do. The water enters the storm drains, eventually emerging into our waterways, adversely affecting aquatic life.
We also use biodegradable cleaning products to help protect our planet for future generations. So, we are far better for the environment.