Car wash manager still driven to keep local customers happy

It's car wash weather on this fine Saturday morning -- cloudless skies, about 70 degrees -- and Perry Capers is holding court at the In & Out, as he has for 50 years.

"Clean that up a little better, Ricky," Capers says, as he muses on the changes he's see in the car wash business and the world during the past half- century.

When Capers started as a scrubber, schools were segregated and corn grew near where today is the busy intersection of St. Andrews Boulevard and Wesley Drive. "We did everything by hand then," he said.

But as the country grew more prosperous after World War II, automated car washes became the rage.

"I grew up on a farm on Johns Island, and I knew what hard work was like," Capers said. "I got the job when I was 17. The owner was Mr. (Patrick) McGinnis, and we hit it off. In about '66 or '67, I became assistant manager, and a few years later, I took over as manager. And I've been manager ever since."

McGinnis installed an automated system in 1960 that used a system of chains and hooks to pull cars through.

"You had to get under the car and hook them up, and sometimes you had to hook them within four feet of each other," Capers recalled.

Over time, technology improved. Cloth bristles replaced plastic ones; a new conveyor system was installed. Detroit boomed, and so did the car wash business. "We would do 120 cars an hour," Capers said.

"When we started, car washes were so cheap -- $1.60 in 1960, and then it went to $2 and then $3.75. Some people washed their cars two or three times a week."

But at $18 a pop these days, he sees customers less frequently. The recession reduced volume a tad, "but we still have people bring them in once a week, and those are the customers that keep us in business."

The car wash business has been growing steadily over the years, said Eric P. Wulf, executive director of the International Carwash Association. During the past year or so, customers have been getting cheaper basic car washes instead of the more expensive deluxe treatments.

Still, when it comes to the business, some forces are more powerful than a recession. "Weather trumps everything," Wulf said.

Wulf said he has a brick on his desk that has the name of one of the first automated car washes. "They go back to the 1940s," he said, adding that Capers' 50-year career is extraordinary. "This fellow would absolutely be considered first generation for our industry."

On this balmy Saturday, Capers is part host -- the maitre d' who knows all of his customers' names and their preferences -- and part quality-control expert.

"Somebody clean that front end," he said, adding, "I've seen a lot of famous people come here. The first famous celebrity I saw was James Brown. He came in a black Cadillac -- I think it was a '65 -- and he had a chauffeur and four ladies in the back. I remember him stepping out in a blue pin-striped suit, combing his hair."

Nearby, Carlos Butler, 52, vacuums an SUV. He's been working at the car wash for only 38 years. "Perry has a strong personality, but he takes care of his people. He raised me like a son. And so did Mr. McGinnis."

McGinnis died a few years ago, but the McGinnis family still owns the car wash.

Capers ticks off one employee after another who's been there for more than 20 years.

"You've got to be like a father and a boss," he said. "I don't like to lay people off or fire them. When people have problems, you work with them, and things usually work out."

Treating people well breeds loyalty and quality. "I first got into this because I loved cars, and I loved seeing them come out perfect. Now I love to make the customers happy."

He pauses at a car about to leave. He sees a smudge. "Stanley, double-check that side before she leaves."

Reach Tony Bartelme at 937-5554 or tbartelme@postandcourier.com.