Three years ago, Big Mike’s Automotive was in the process of moving into a building on its 5-acre campus in Barberton.
And today, the location includes four separate and growing business units under the Big Mike’s umbrella: collision repair, automotive mechanics, towing and detailing.
Mike Cowans – better known as “Big Mike” – is the owner of the expanding multimillion-dollar company and is deeply immersed in a vision he has had since his youth.
Even before the ink was dry on the sale of the former Wallace Lincoln Mercury dealership, Cowans was running a successful auto body shop there and making plans for the future.
“We had just bought it and hadn’t made any changes,” he said.
But he still had a lot up his sleeve.
Big Mike’s is expanding rapidly
Cowans recognized a market opportunity and added Big Mike’s Mechanical Service & Tire to the company. Last year, Big Mike’s Towing & Recovery was added.
“There are only so many financial opportunities you can let pass before you say, ‘I need to fill this gap,'” he said in a recent interview.
The mechanical department saw 100% growth in 2022, he said, and the towing department got off to a quick start once he acquired a tow truck.
“We added one and it was like an electric spark,” he said.
Big Mike’s Towing now has a line of tow trucks, including a 50-ton, $500,000 beast named “Birdie” that Cowans bought in Chicago.
“(We) found a bird’s nest in the back of the truck,” he said.
More: Big Mike’s owner Mike Cowans on the road to success with his automotive business in Barberton
When it arrived in Barberton, Big Mike’s mechanical and body shop restored it to like new.
“We have accomplished things in the towing business in one year that put other towing companies in the shade,” he said.
Examination of possibilities for a second location
Cowans’ company now employs 28 full-time employees and all four business units are growing, he said.
“We are the hot name in town,” he said.
That awareness, he said, has spread beyond Barberton and Cowans is considering opening more locations.
“We are currently considering second locations for the individual companies,” he said.
He goes through a list of possibilities, including the Stow and North Canton areas.
Big Mike’s even sells junk cars that have been reconditioned by the mechanical and body departments.
These vehicles were sold before work on them was completed, he said. They are considering setting up a car sales unit.
He said he has invested about $2 million in the company over the past three years.
We try to preserve the character of a family business
Despite the growth, Cowans wants to maintain the family atmosphere in his company.
“My children, we talk about what profit is,” he said. “In the summer they are here every day.”
His best friend, John Prouty, is Big Mike’s vice president.
Cowans’ wife, Felicia Cowans, is chief financial officer and Prouty’s wife, Danielle Prouty, is in charge of the company’s administration.
Two brothers work in the collision station.
Every year, Cowans hosts Halloween and Christmas parties at Big Mike’s that are the talk of the town.
“It doesn’t feel like work”
Cowans said realizing his dream has been a whirlwind of constant activity.
“(But) it doesn’t feel like work,” he said. “It feels like a strategy session where you’re putting puzzle pieces together.”
Cowans said he has enjoyed pursuing his dream, but sometimes he misses the old days when the job was more hands-on. Being a boss brings with it other responsibilities.
“For me, (sometimes) I just want to get back to fixing cars,” he said.
Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/alan.newsman.
