Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Nachtegaele.
Jessica, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Our humble beginnings started as a project in the garage and grew exponentially thanks to a surprise article in Forbes. We were unaware that one of our customers was a journalist for Forbes.com until he sent me a link to his article about a week after his Prius battery installation. The day after it published I was getting calls from all over the world asking if we could ship our batteries. It was a little overwhelming to say the least!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
If a small business has a day without a challenge it’s probably Sunday and the store is closed! There’s always going to be bumps in the road, but we adapt. We love finding solutions to “Prius problems,” so to speak and no challenge has been too great. The biggest ongoing struggle we face is the rise in cost of hybrid battery parts. Prices and demand of our raw materials have over doubled in the last four years, but we still strive to keep our batteries affordable.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Hometown Hybrids – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
We are mobile hybrid battery replacement service specializing in affordable refurbished options…far less expensive than your local dealership. Our refurbished batteries help keep our beloved hybrids on the road longer and out of junkyards.
Our home base is Houston, but we travel to Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, New Orleans and many places in between! Our customers love the convenience of having their car repaired in the driveway in under an hour. People are surprised by how quick and clean the installation process is and thrilled at not being nickel and dimed.
How are we different? Our team is obsessed with quality in every aspect of this business and it shows. We pay our mobile technicians (currently all veterans I might add) twice as much as our competitors pay, because they are worth it and we want them to love their job. Our technicians drive hundreds of miles a day to do installs at homes, offices, schools and pretty much anywhere you can think of. They are the face of Hometown Hybrids and they set us apart.
I’m proud of how small we’ve managed to stay despite all of the attention and demand over the last few years. There’s just a handful of us, but we work REALLY hard and we love what we do.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
We’ve been answering the call of Texans over the last four years and our current focus is to make affordable hybrid batteries accessible and hassle free across the US. Our team is moving into a larger facility, doubling our production capacity and making lots and lots of shipping crates! Another goal that I’m working towards (you can’t have too many) is to open a full-service hybrid repair facility. I want to help hybrid owners get the total car care they need from the shop that was built just for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.hometownhybrids.com
- Phone: 1-844-447-7487
- Email: sales@hometownhybrids.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hometownhybrids/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hometown-hybrids-houston
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.
