The 2024- 2025 Board of Directors was approved at the Canadian Carwash Association Annual General Meeting on April 25, 2024
PRESIDENT - CANADIAN CARWASH ASSOCIATION
KAREN SMITH,Valet Car Wash [Car Wash Member]
Karen
began her career in the industry in 1993 as a retailer, operating gas
bars, convenience and carwash at Shell Canada. She also served on the
Shell training team. Karen joined the Valet team in 2012 in a management
capacity Karen’s role quickly developed into Training and Compliance
Manager. With the ever-changing and additional rules and regulations on
labour laws, health and safety and compliance, it became a full-time job
keeping up with new information, developing policies and procedures and
enhancing the health and safety program. Karen had previously served on
the CCA Board of Directors from 2002-2004.
Travis began his car wash career in 2017. Since then, Travis has been consulting with operators such as Great White Car Wash (Alberta), Waterfly Car Wash (California), ClearWater CarWash (Alberta) and other private investor groups (US and Canada). Travis has been in management consulting since 2007, and his client list includes Enbridge, Direct Energy, Clark Builders, etc. Travis has a Master of Business Administration and an Institute of Corporate Directors designation.
JASON HANDS,Parkland Corporation [Oil Company Member]
Jason has more than 5 years of experience in the convenience and gas industry, with roles that span across merchandising, digital, and loyalty. Jason was introduced to the car wash business as part of the digital team that developed Parkland's mobile car wash feature through the Journie Rewards app. Since then his passion for car wash has grown, and is currently the Car Wash Category Manager at Parkland. Jason has a unique blend of technical and customer knowledge and is eager to leverage it to support the association and grow the industry.
KARLA HEWITT,Suncor Energy Inc. [Oil Company Member]
Karla has over 15 years in the energy industry, with a career that has seen her embrace progressive marketing and category management roles in both the retail and wholesale channels. From launching new products, to leading a variety of projects, Karla is seen as a great collaborator. Most recently Karla was appointed the role of Car Wash Category Manager within the Petro-Canada team in 2023. Always expanding her knowledge, Karla continues to seek ways to drive the business forward and deliver a positive impact to both the customer and the business bottom line.
PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE VICE CHAIR
MICHAEL HOWE,WashLinks[Associate Member]
Michael
started out originally as a licensed electrician prior to becoming a
seasoned overhead door mechanic almost 30 years ago. During his
professional career he has occupied many senior executive roles spanning
a wide variety of industries including credit, call center management
and renewable energy. In March of 2019 he was tasked with establishing
the Canada Division of BayWatch Enterprises, a car wash door solutions
manufacturer and servicer. After three strong years of growth in Canada,
in December 2021 BayWatch and by default BayWatch Canada was acquired.
Michael recognized his passion for the car wash industry and has since
moved to the equipment side of the business as General Manager for
WashLinks bringing with him his service and customer driven focus.
WashLinks is a Canadian owned equipment provider offering comprehensive
car wash solutions for operators entering and operating car wash
businesses.
MIKE JACQUES, National Car Wash Solutions (NCS)[Associate Member]
With
over 30 years on the tunnel side of the car wash industry, Mike possesses a solid understanding of the business as well as having
exceptional technical knowledge. Mike has been an integral part of many
projects including, site selection, ground-up design, and tunnel
retrofit projects. Focusing on customer education, he helps guide
existing operators and New To Industry investors to make informed
decisions to ensure success in this exciting industry.
PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE CHAIR
MICHAEL SAUNDERS,MarkVIIEquipment[Associate Member]
A strong leader, Michael has a proven talent for connecting and engaging all levels of stakeholders, for analysis and streamlining of processes and procedures to actualize value from business models and systems. His strength is delivering the highest ROI by championing, energizing and encouraging all toward the common goal.
Dynamic take charge agent with a track record of bringing efficiencies and cost-savings to operations for enhanced performance. Broad experience derived from organizations of varying sizes and industries provides an understanding for driving change and maximizing the benefits of process improvements.
RUDY VAN WOERKOM, Belvedere Technical Services Ltd. [Associate Member]
Rudy's
introduction to the carwash industry was in the mid-1980s, providing
vehicle access control equipment in Calgary. He then went on to spend
seven years servicing industrial laundry equipment. In 2000, Rudy
started Belvedere Technical Service to get back into access control,
which led him into servicing carwash equipment. While Belvedere
Technical Service Ltd. is a distributor for D&S Carwash Equipment as
well as Airlift Doors, they service all makes of equipment. After many
years servicing and installing equipment, Rudy acquired Big City Auto N
Truck Wash. Operating this 12-bay with automatic carwash allows for two
perspectives of the industry. By becoming a CCA Director, Rudy hopes to
put this "double-edged" experience to help industry members see the
benefits of the association.
MATT VERITY, Matt Verity Consulting [Associate Member]
After a successful 15-year career as a Real Estate
professional in Calgary, AB, Matt has spent the last 10 years as an
accomplished founder and entrepreneur in the self-storage and car wash
industries.
Matt has been intimately involved in every aspect of
acquisition, development, and operations of numerous projects across Canada.
From site assessment and facility design, development management, operations
and marketing, his diverse experience gained over the past 20+ years has made
him a sought-after consultant within the car wash industry.
TIM WALKER, President/Founding Partner - Soapy Brushy [Associate Member]
Always creative and innovative, Tim has spent 20 years in the car wash industry advising and supporting great operators on every aspect of their business.
Coming from a marketing background, he can grasp the "big picture" and has the experience and network to help any car wash operator find success.
CCA Headquarters:
Canadian Carwash Association 3228 South Service Road Suite 109, Burlington, ON L7N 3H8