For progressive independent garage owners, business growth can be a double-edged sword. As the customer base expands and headcount increases, the systems that once kept the workshop ticking can quickly become administrative bottlenecks.

This was the exact scenario facing Mark Stewart, owner of MJS Garage Services, an independent multi-make service, repair, and sales business in Northern Ireland.

Operating across two sites with 19 ramps and 27 staff, MJS Garage Services was juggling three separate software packages for garage management, car sales, and accounting, leading to a heavy, tedious administrative load.

“Once we surpassed the £1 million sales mark, our systems and processes began to crack, which made us realise we needed a better management system,” explains Mark.

After two years of extensive research to find a system capable of matching his ambitions, Mark turned to Garage Hive to consolidate his processes into a single, cloud-based platform. The transition included an intensive on-site visit from onboarding specialists to ensure staff were fully supported every step of the way.

“The support was able to lower my anxiety levels by taking the time to go through stuff with me,” Mark recalls. “The first month, I tortured those guys. I might have asked the same question ten times, and they answered it ten times with a smile. Looking back, I couldn’t have done the changeover without them being here to help us do it.”

Data-driven growth

When MJS Garage Services integrated Garage Hive, workshop sales across the two sites sat at approximately £1.2 million. The system’s integration with Power BI gave management instant access to key metrics, including technician efficiency, job profitability, and overall workshop performance, allowing them to make decisions based on real-time information rather than guesswork.

The financial impact has been profound.

“Now, just one year later, we are on target to reach £1.7 million this year in the workshop and we would not have been able to achieve these numbers with our old systems,” said Mark. “Additionally, including our existing car sales department, our overall turnover is expected to be around £3.6 million, which would not have been possible without upgrading.”

Total accountability and customer transparency

Garage Hive inherently enforces strict operational discipline. Each job is tracked for parts, time, and approvals, removing inefficiencies from the workshop floor.

This accountability extends directly to customer communication. The digital Vehicle Inspection (VI) to Vehicle Estimate (VE) process has revolutionised how MJS Garage Services interacts with its customers, building absolute trust.

“Everything gets an inspection, gets an estimate, and the customer gets the opportunity to authorise. We add pictures and descriptions for transparency. Because of this, there’s never a surprise customer bill or dispute or argument. I’d say that’s been the biggest gain.”

The ultimate return on investment

Thanks to streamlined operations and clear targets, Mark is finally able to step off the workshop floor and reclaim his time.

“This is now nearly self-sufficient where I can take time off and I’ve been doing this since 2012… I’ve never had that before,” he reflects. “If you want a really well-run business and you want your business to grow to be a decent size, well I couldn’t find any other systems that would have given me as much information and as much systemisation.”