Gus Herlong, owner of 28 Midas shops in Northern Florida and South Carolina, was named winner of the Mark Smith Community Involvement award, which recognizes a franchise owner who strives to build strong community involvement in the markets where they serve.
The Nate Sherman Honorary Achievement, recognizing former employees who have supported Midas for many years, was given to Michael Lewis and Mike Bukowski.
Kent Smith (15 stores in New England) and Randy Lucyk (Kalkaska, Mich., retired) were honored by the Midas Hall of Fame, an honor brought back this year. To be considered for the award, candidates must be a 20-year or more Midas franchisee or current or past corporate Midas employee or member of International Midas Dealers Association (IMDA).
Potential honorees also must be a "dedicated and hardworking ambassador of the brand, displaying an unwavering passion for their work and demonstrating a willingness to positively impact their fellow franchisees and the Midas system."
Midas, with 1,160 locations in the U,S. and Canada, kicked off the convention by celebrating its 68th anniversary.
Midas set an attendance record at the event. Representatives from 1,400 North American shops and licensed international shops attended, as well as members of the Midas support team, vendors and guests.
Midas President and COO Lenny Valentino told attendees that Midas continues to grow and evolve.
"We made the decision that, as part of our evolution, we would center our business around the customer experience," he said in his opening remarks. "That's our vision for Midas. We are going to set the gold standard in and out of our industry for customer service."
Franchisees participated on panels and discussed a variety of topics including people development, servicing hybrids and EVs, and emerging vehicle technology.