Oconomowoc-based Silver Lake Auto & Tire Centers recently opened its new Grafton location, expanding its southeastern Wisconsin footprint to six locations, in Brookfield, Hartland, Muskego, New Berlin, Grafton and Oconomowoc.
Along with its 24/7 towing service headquartered in New Berlin, all locations operate under the leadership of brothers and co-owners Dan Garlock, CEO and president, and Darren Garlock, vice president.
The Garlock brothers have overseen the company since 2015. Silver Lake’s core values – family, integrity, hospitality, growth, initiative and professionalism – have allowed the Garlock brothers to operate the repair shops as a team and prioritize growth as the company eyes more expansion in the next five years.
The Silver Lake name was first brought to Wisconsin in 1973 as a gas station and repair shop, called Silver Lake Shell. Dan and Darren’s father, Walter “Wally” Garlock, a former military mechanic, opened Silver Lake Shell and named it for its place on Silver Lake Street in Oconomowoc. In 1991, the company moved to its current flagship building at 36355 E. Wisconsin Ave. in Oconomowoc.
Although Dan and Darren joined the business as employees years later while they were in high school, the two were no strangers to the company growing up.
“We’ve been around the business since we could walk,” Dan said.
The brothers worked alongside their dad until the time came for the company to transition ownership as Wally approached retirement. In 2013, two years before Wally retired, Dan and Darren decided to open Silver Lake’s second location at 30620 County Road VV in Hartland. The decision to open another location came both from a “gut feeling,” Dan said, and the need to support their three growing families, Darren added. The two decided to divide and conquer, focusing primarily on one location each.
Succession into growth
While operating Silver Lake’s two locations, Dan and Darren made plans to buy their father out of the company using a Small Business Administration loan. In doing so, the brothers took over as co-owners, with plans of expanding ahead, and Wally could retire.
Dan and Darren decided that the best way to transition the business was to formulate a family-oriented plan of operation to lay a foundation for successfully operating a multi-unit business. In a conversation between Wally, Dan and Darren, the three decided via a verbal contract that the business would operate under the principles of trust, healthy conflicts and shared autonomy.
“We needed enough oxygen for all of us to breathe inside of Silver Lake Auto,” Dan said.
Deciding to expand
After aligning their mission, vision and core values, Dan and Darren began brainstorming new locations for the company to expand into. Between 2015 and 2023, Silver Lake opened its Brookfield location at 17495 W. Capitol Drive, its New Berlin location at 15650 W. National Ave., and its Muskego location at S73 W16610 W. Janesville Road.
Silver Lake Auto opened its Oconomowoc, Hartland, Brookfield, New Berlin, and Grafton locations from scratch, and the business acquired its Muskego location, a former Bridgestone/Firestone dealership and auto repair shop known as Muskego Tire & Auto that opened for business in 2000.
Among the many things that contributed to Silver Lake’s expansion, Dan attributes much of the success to the leadership’s ability to manage the company’s balance sheets and its internal and external net promoter scores, a measurement of customer loyalty.
“We’re promoting Silver Lake Auto from the inside and out,” Dan said.
Customer service and rapport between team members has helped the shops succeed by reputation, something essential in the industry, Dan said.
“We have each taken on a role that plays to our strengths,” Darren said. “Our success comes from trust, respect and smooth communication – every decision is made with a shared vision and constant support for one another.”
Moving forward
Led by Dan’s risk tolerance and entrepreneurial spirit, the company anticipates nearly doubling its employees in the next five years. Currently, Silver Lake Auto employs roughly 70 people. By 2030, the company expects to employ close to 120 people across seven or eight locations.
While Silver Lake has not yet decided exactly where its next locations will be, its goal is to focus on the suburban Milwaukee market in which it has thrived for 52 years.
While the company continues to plan for growth, Dan has some inhibitions about the ease of expansion in the coming years.
“It’s going to be hard for business owners in the next five to six years,” Dan said. “We just have to persevere.”
Among the challenges business owners may face, Dan is most concerned with the volatility of the market as well as declining consumer confidence.
Silver Lake’s family values will remain part of its growth trajectory. Both of Dan’s sons, 16 and 18, are already involved in the business with hopes for them to take over as the third generation of Garlock ownership.
Looking forward, the Garlocks intend to remain focused on the company’s core values and recognize the importance of company culture, while navigating the emotional dynamics and conversations that often arise in a family business setting.
“Family values don’t need to go, but they will need to change,” Dan said. “Families can be messy, but it’s important not to lose love.”
