Meet Alex Noll of ABR Houston, Your BMW Specialists in Spring

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Noll.

Alex, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
At ABR Houston, we wanted to have more of a “personal” touch than the dealership. We want to get rid of the corporate mentality. No fluff or time wasting. We provide excellent service and repair for our clients; and our reputation shows it. We’ve got over 300 5 star reviews online! At the dealership, you are a number. Here, you can discuss the situation and issue directly, without having to deal with the run-around I’m sure you’re familiar with.

Remember, we aren’t here to ‘bash’ the dealer- just deliver superior service, that’s all. We are true enthusiasts who “get it” that you’re here to make a sick car better. Let’s make vehicle repair as painless as possible. Let’s build a relationship together. Let’s talk about your son’s day at school. Pet the shop dog Bones. Get a coffee and grab a snack. The corporate world has ruined exceptional customer service; and at ABR Houston we are trying to break the misconception that “mechanics are here to rip you off”. We only have trained master technicians working on your vehicle, and want to ENSURE that you feel comfortable with our diagnosis and repair.

We’ve all worked at the dealership, and all had bad experiences as employees. With that being said, it was easy for everyone to build a procedure that eliminates the “dealer” hassle. Our entire staff’s mission is to ensure that our client’s understand we’re here for them no matter what!

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
If it was easy, anyone would do it! The automotive industry as a whole suffers from an epidemic, and it’s on both sides of the counter. The #1 thing automotive shops need are qualified and trained technicians. An example would be our technicians. We’re all BMW master technicians, all have a minimum of 5 years of experience and regularly attend training. In fact, we usually attend more training than dealer technicians. You wouldn’t believe it, but there’s a huge deficiency of suitable employees to work on vehicles. Either they don’t have the skill, lack the tools and training, (or work ethic). Don’t get me wrong- Being a technician is hard work- but you can make a very comfortable living getting dirt under your nails. I’m not sure if it’s the current generation not wanting to be “blue collar” or if they think they can’t make a 6 figure income with vehicles, but this issue is only getting worse. The industry needs trained technicians, and it’s up to the consumer to choose where (and who) works on their vehicle.

The other issue we run into is the realistic expectancy from our clients about the cost of repairs. Technology has compounded drastically in vehicles just in the last 10 years alone. Bluetooth, navigation, telemetry services (On-star, etc) Radar guided cruise control, lane departure warning, crash detection, thermal imaging- the list goes on and on. People aren’t ready for the costs associated with having these great features in their vehicle when they break. Some people just look at cost, and typically it ends up biting them. At the end of the day, you have to balance quality vs. cost. Typically those two words can’t live in the same sentence. If you think we’re expensive, try a bad mechanic!

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about ABR Houston, Your BMW Specialists – what should we know?
Plain and simple. We’re the best BMW shop in Houston, bar none. I mean, just look at our reviews! We can fix, diagnose, maintain and repair any BMW out there. We’ve started trickling in newer model Rolls Royce as well (they are owned by BMW). We have a strong following on forums and social media, from hard core DIY’ers all the way to people who just want their car fixed right. We were the first company in the world to make an N54 run outside of the car on all BMW electronics. We are the only company in the world that has increased the displacement on the N54 BMW engine. We have performance engines and specific parts we’ve made to make serious power out of the newer BMW turbo cars. We hold a few world records on our engines as well. But that’s not our main focus. Every day cars that need to stay on the road reliably is what we do the majority of the time.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
We have three things we live by as a company.

-Honest. You’ll always get the straight answer from us. We don’t beat around the bush. You may not like what we tell you about what it’s going to take to fix your BMW, but we’ll never lie.

-Transparent. If you have a question, ASK IT! If you need something explained better, just say so. The last thing we want is an uninformed client. That’s *our job* to explain something well enough that you can make an informed and educated decision.

-Correct. We fix things, and fix it right. If there’s a problem, we take care of it. If there’s an issue you feel needs to be addressed, we want to know.

Those three things are personally guaranteed as the owner, and reinforced by my employees. How do we do that? Our culture.

One thing that I swore off at the dealership, was the politics and the drama. If you know anyone that works at one, just ask them and you’ll see them roll their eyes and start to smile… get ready for some stories! We have zero politics, and no drama. Our employees have synergy together. We are a team. We work together. We high five after work and congratulate each other about the work we’ve got done. Fist bumps happen. A lot of that is from self-empowerment that I give them. Everyone has their own key to the shop and can come and go as they please. I love making a sandwich for my guys and eating lunch with them. It feels like family, honestly. Who wouldn’t want to work in an environment like that? Happy employees mean a successful business. Without them, there wouldn’t be ABR Houston.

Contact Info:

• Address: 17545 Kuykendahl Rd Ste B
  Spring Tx 77379
• Website: abrhouston.com
• Phone: 8327979114
• Email: info@abrhouston.com
• Instagram: @abrhouston
• Facebook: facebook.com/bmwdoctor
• Twitter: @abrhouston
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/abr-houston-spring

Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.