Name of Business: Prime Shine Car Wash
Type of Business: Car wash and vacuum services
Location: 980 West Monte Vista Avenue
Hours: Monday through Saturday 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sundays 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Contact Information: 549-9274
History of Business:
The governor may have declared California in a state of drought emergency earlier this year but that is no reason to avoid the car wash. In fact, it’s more eco-friendly to take one’s car to the drive-through a car wash than it is to wash it at home and now locals can save water and money by taking their car to Prime Shine’s second Turlock location.
Owner Evan Porges’ father founded Prime Shine in 1991 with the intent of revolutionizing the local car wash industry. Prior to the advent of Prime Shine residents often either took their vehicle to a full service car wash or completed the laborious task at home. Prime Shine was the first of its kind in the state to offer a full service car wash experience in as little as three minutes.
“My father wanted to change the way people thought about washing their cars,” said Porges. “This concept had not been introduced in California yet.”
Fast forward 23 years and Prime Shines can be found across the Central Valley in Modesto, Ceres, Riverbank, Lodi, Merced, Atwater, Manteca, Tracy, Oakdale and Turlock.
“It’s not so much that you need to let people know what Prime Shine is at this point, you just need to let them know it’s there. We have to make it more convenient and people will use it,” said Porges, noting the strategic location of Monte Vista Avenue for Turlock’s second location due to its accessibility as a main thoroughfare.
Prime Shine is also advantageous for water conservation efforts as the facility is hooked up to the City’s sewer system which in turn creates recycled water through the wastewater treatment plant. Sixty percent of the water used to wash the cars at Prime shine is recycled with the additional 40 percent fresh water to rinse the vehicles. One added bonus? The friendly staff.
“You can’t force people to be happy and we hire genuinely nice folks,” said Porges. “We’re saving you time, we’re saving you money, we’re saving you water and it’s also a nice experience.”
Business Specialty: Eco-friendly car wash.
