My Road to AAPEX Ep. 2: A Technician Turned CEO Returns to the Garage

My Road to AAPEX returns, as we continue our travels around the country, putting executives in the aftermarket to the test. In every episode, they go from the boardroom to the garage to fix up cars, using the same parts their company sells every day. 

Next up on the proverbial hot seat is Matt Buchholz, CEO of MotoRad, and for him, this is less of a fish out of water situation and more a return to his roots: Buchholz started his career as a service advisor and a master technician before becoming an executive.

“Before I started turning wrenches and working on cars, I was a service advisor, and I realized that technicians knew a lot more than I did about cars,” Buchholz says. “And I felt like in order to lead well, I needed to know exactly how to do the work—get your hands dirty, roll up your sleeves and do the work. I did that for years and years and became a master technician. I feel like I have a unique position where, leading a parts manufacturer, I’ve installed the parts.”

Speaking of installing the parts, in this episode, Buchholz joins Mark Waggaman at the Medina Auto Mall in Akron, Ohio. Together, they fix a leak in a car that has fallen victim to Northeast Ohio’s pervasive rust, and chat about their histories in the automotive service industry as they go.

Find out how the repair goes, learn more about MotoRad’s products, and more in this episode of My Road to AAPEX. And keep tuning in to the show throughout this fall, as we bring you more stories like this and continue heading down the road to the aftermarket’s biggest show in November.