Four Ill. Merlin franchises change hands

ST. CHARLES, Ill. (March 2, 2016) —  Four franchised Merlin 200,000 Mile Shops outlets in Illinois have new owners, according to Driven Brands Inc., the franchisor of the auto repair business.

• Donnie Crittenden, owner of DC Motors L.L.C., has purchased the franchise for the Merlin location in East Peoria, Ill., from Frank Smola of Merlin Corp.

Mr. Crittenden is a 25-year veteran State Farm Insurance agent.

He will be working with Kenny Reese, general manager of the Merlin Shop in East Peoria, to learn the operation, according to Driven Brands Inc., which owns and franchises the Merlin 200,000 Mile Shops business.

Driven Brands acquired the Merlin automotive aftermarket franchise business in February 2014 from Mr. Smola, allowing Driven Brands to strengthen its presence in the Chicago metropolitan area.

Mr. Smola maintained the franchise in East Peoria after the deal with Driven Brands.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

• Steve Golz of SLG Automotive Inc. purchased the franchise license for the Merlin shop in Montgomery, Ill., from Dolph Young of H & H Performance Inc.

Mr. Golz had a 21-year career with Equipto Electronics, a provider of electronic packaging solutions. He joined Merlin after meeting General Manager Bryan Burress through a local car club.

“I was captivated by my visits to Merlin 200,000 Miles and looked into owning a Merlin franchise as my next endeavor. I look forward to providing the same level of service that Young and his team have offered the customers since opening in 2013,” Mr. Golz said.

•  Luis Olmos acquired the Merlin shop in Carpentersville, Ill., from Tim Williams, franchisee of Merlin shops in both Elgin and DeKalb, Ill.

“Becoming a Merlin franchisee has been the realization of a long time goal I had when I returned to Merlin as general manager,” Mr. Olmos said.

 He started his automotive career with Merlin in 1992 as an entry level technician. He became an ASE-certified technician and later general manager at Midas. In 2009, Mr. Olmos rejoined Merlin as general manager of the shop in Elgin and later at the shop in Carpentersville.

• Mr. Williams of LAUR Corp., in turn, purchased the franchise for the Merlin shop in Loves Park, Ill., from Thomas Corso.  The location opened in 2000 as a newly built six bay facility.

Mr. Williams began his career with Merlin in 1984 when he joined the corporate staff as senior manager and progressed through middle management to franchising director.

 He left the Merlin corporate team in 2013 to become a Merlin franchisee, acquiring the franchise rights for the Merlin shops in Elgin East, Carpentersville and DeKalb.

There are now 34 Merlin outlets in Illinois, along with two in Wisconsin and one in Georgia, according to the brand's website.

Parent company Driven Brands also operates the Meineke Car Care Centers franchise.