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Williams Automotive adds dealership in fourth year
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FAIRFIELD – Williams Automotive in Fairfield is approaching its fifth anniversary, and continues to expand its offerings each year, recently adding a dealership earlier this year.
The shop is located at 407 N. Second St., which was at one time a car wash. The owners, Mark and Samantha Williams, even preserved a piece of the old car wash in the building’s office. Fairfield residents may remember that Mark ran a business called Williams Automotive before, but in a different location, near the bowling alley on North 16th Street. He ran that for seven or eight years until 2007.
Mark has worked as an ASC auto technician for 35 years, including stints at Palmer’s, Sheetz Sales & Service, and Shottenkirk in Mt. Pleasant. He built a loyal following during that time, and customers routinely drove from out of town just to have Mark work on their car.
The couple received shocking news in 2020 when Samantha was diagnosed with cancer. She began chemotherapy late that year. The couple got to talking about their careers and their future. Samantha asked Mark if he ever thought of running his own business again, and Mark said yes, he would like to do that. They began asking around and found that Ed Harvey was willing to lease his building on North Second Street just south of Everybody’s Whole Foods, where Samantha used to work.
“We asked Mr. Harvey if we could rent a bay, two bays, anything,” Samantha said. “We had $200 in our savings account.”
After working out a loan and a line of credit from Libertyville Savings Bank to buy tools and a hoist, the couple were able to open their automotive shop on Jan. 1, 2021. Within a few years, the Williamses had bought the building. They hired Mark Lemme as their first employee, and today have a total of seven, including three part-timers. Earlier this February, the business began selling cars.
“We always had people asking us if we had anything for sale or knew anybody who had a car for sale,” Samantha said. “Customers trust Mark. They know they’re going to get a good quality car from him.”
Samantha estimates they’ve sold about 20 cars so far to complement the shop-side of the business where they work on anything from engines, tires, gas tanks to you name it. Business is going so well that they’re hoping to build onto their building, perhaps adding a bay, getting a stronger hoist for heavy trucks, and hiring another employee.
“We’re not in this business to be millionaires; we’re in this business to make sure people’s cars are safe,” Samantha said. “As far as the dealership goes, if we buy it and there’s something wrong with it, we’re going to fix it. We’re not going to say, ‘Oh well, we’ll take off some money and you go have it fixed somewhere else.’”
Samantha said the couple love their location on Second Street, a highly trafficked road. Just as they did at the former shop on North 16th Street, customers continue to flock to Williams Automotive from surrounding towns like Richland, Ottumwa and Mt. Pleasant, and Samantha said some come from as far away as Pella and Missouri.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
