Author: Buzz McClain

No Time or Place to Wash Your Car? WashMyCar Brings the Car Wash to You

When Daniel Fishman bought his first new car a few years ago he fell into a trap most new car owners fall into: A compulsion to keep that showroom gleam.

“But I found that living in a city apartment without a hose at my disposal made that difficult,” he says. “It was hard to keep my baby clean.”

That’s when it dawned on him that the car washing business was ready for a disruptor, an internet-based service that would essentially deliver a car washing service the way ride-hailing apps deliver rides.

Fishman and partner Dinko Badic launched WashMyCar, LLC, last summer. Car owners schedule their washes via a superbly friction-less web-based application or an old-fashioned phone call an hour or two before they want the service.

Car washes start at $22 for an exterior hand wash.

“We spend a minimum of 50 minutes on a hand wash,” Fishman says. “But we’ll spend up to three hours if a customer orders a full slate of the services we offer.”

That includes tire shines ($8), interior cleaning ($45) and hand waxing ($32). Customers may also sign up for a subscription for scheduling the service at regular intervals.

“We describe our service as somewhere between a machine wash–which isn’t as safe as hand washing–and a full-on detailing service, but we’re far less expensive,” he said.

WashMyCar is not the usual service you get from the soap splashing teens raising money for their high school bands at the gas station. Fishman and Badic are serious about providing a quality service that earns high praise. “We have 100 percent positive customer feedback, and we want to keep it that way,” Fishman says.

Which is why they bring their own high-quality, proprietary equipment and cleansers and a better-than-average knowledge of factory-applied clear coat, base coat and primer and what works best when cleaning them.

Like Fishman when he was inspired to start WashMyCar, any Arlington residents live in dwellings that do not make outdoor hoses available for washing cars and trucks. Fishman and Badic solved that problem with what he calls “a two-bucket method” of washing.

“We use two to three gallons of water, which is very low water consumption for a car wash,” he says. “So it’s eco-friendly, which was important to us. There’s virtually no water run-off. And we don’t need a hose. It takes a little longer than if we used a hose, but it’s worth it.”

The car doesn’t have to be outdoors, even: WashMyCar can wash your car in a garage. And the vehicle owner does not need to be present at the time of the wash, unless they want interior cleaning, and even then if arrangements are made for opening the car, they don’t have to be there for that.

For more information see the WashMyCar website or Facebook page. Contact WashMyCar at 202-810-9274 or [email protected].

The preceding was a sponsored business profile written by Buzz McClain.

Leaseably: The ‘Virtual Property Manager’ Makes It Easy to Be a Landlord

On a recent Friday, part-time landlord Steve Rose had 20 possible tenants anxious to see his newly available apartment. But instead of spending the day showing the property and taking information on the visitors, he turned to a new Arlington business to do it for him.

Leaseably, Rose said, “had everybody scheduled, gave me a summary of all the applicants, did the background checks on them all and made it well worth the money.”

For Rose, a self-employed businessman with three investment properties, Leaseably listing services saved him time, effort and possible aggravation in finding a new tenant.

Finding tenants is just one of the services Leaseably offers. Leaseably is an Internet-based virtual assistant — with a staff of property management experts and Realtors behind it — that handles the copious details of property management for landlords, from dealing with calls requesting home repairs to finding the qualified and licensed repairmen to make them.

“A lot of people don’t want to sell their homes in Arlington, they want to rent them for a profit–with a property management company that offers quality and transparent services,” said Miriam Bolanos, who founded the company with her sister Brenda.

Traditional property managers can charge anywhere from 8 percent to 15 percent of the monthly rent charged to a tenant. That’s a deep cut into a property owner’s pockets.

“That model has to change,” co-founder Brenda Bolanos said. “Leaseably helps landlords rent and manage their rental properties with ease and confidence at a reasonable price without any hidden fees.”

Property owners such as Rose have found Leaseably to be agreeably inexpensive. He pays $70 a month to Leaseably for rental property concierge services to answer the calls from his tenants, to send reminders to collect the rent on time, to coordinate repairs, to keep track of expenses and to handle the various transactions that naturally accompany a monthly money-making endeavor.

“In my experience, a property management company takes up to 10 percent,” he said. “Why would I pay 10 percent? I would do it myself, but for $70 a month, I’ll let Leaseably do it.”

Leaseably has several sensible management plans to accommodate the property owner’s own involvement, but all of it with timely, efficient and courteous service to the tenant and the landlord.

Rose’s bottom line on the bottom line, echoed by others: “It’s been great.”

The preceding was a sponsored business profile. For information about Leaseably, visit the website here or call 1- (844) 571-EASE. The email address is [email protected].

Step Up Services Is Your Personal Home Improvement Project Consultant

By Buzz McClain
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Managing a home improvement project, no matter what size, is a daunting prospect. You may have a vivid idea of how you want the rec room to look when it’s finished, but you have little to no idea of the labor, materials, equipment and time it’s going to take to complete the job to match your vision.

But the folks behind Step Up Services Inc. do. Northern Virginia-based Step Up Services is the rare project consultancy for everyday homeowners dedicated to taking the headaches out of your home improvement project.

Step Up Services is not a design-build company. They don’t have a vested interest in the cost of the project. They’re not “up-selling” you to add square footage or more expensive fixtures. That’s the “normal” way of doing business.

Step Up Services is disrupting that routine by providing third-party peace of mind.

No matter what the estimated cost of your home improvement project is, Step Up Services will charge you a flat fee — based on the level of consultancy you choose — to look at all the elements of your project and provided educated, experienced and unbiased answers to your questions, options and choices.

Remodeling a basement? Sounds like a job a contractor can knock out pretty quickly with minimum difficulty right? Before you sign on the dotted line for that $30,000 to $50,000 estimate — or up to $50,000 on a kitchen — spend $250 with Step Up Services to double-check the deal, including showing you how to avoid a contractor disaster by doing a thorough background check.

Do you have lingering questions about committing to spend thousands on that long-awaited second-floor pop up? Rest assured after a $250 project consultation with the pros at Step Up Design that you did the right thing and that the finished project will be exactly what you are paying for.

It’s best to consult with Step Up Services before speaking to an architect or contractor.

The answers you get from Step Up Services will catch expensive problems before they arise.

But if you already have a proposal in hand, Step Up Services can review the contracts and provide advice and guidance during the construction.

Arranging an appointment with Step Up Services is fast and easy through the website.

And if you don’t like the answers Step Up Services provides, they’ll offer a refund. Not many others in the home improvement supply chain can say that.

Step Up Services Inc. can be reached at [email protected] or 443-797-7050. The website is here: stepupservicesinc.com/services.

Sponsored business profile written by Buzz McClain.

Attorney William Robinson III Likes Getting Results, Getting Hands Dirty

By Buzz McClain

“I love the work of helping a client in court.” says Arlington attorney and counselor at law William P. Robinson III.

That’s a good thing, for himself and his clients, because Robinson is very often in front of a judge, trying cases for his areas of practice, which include criminal and traffic offenses, family law and contract disputes.

“I’m in the ‘people problem’ business,” he says. “Since I’m a solo practice law firm, I’m the one who always handles the case directly — and the client deals only with me. My business number is my cell number so I’m easy to get a hold of.”

Robinson, a Ballston resident who has been practicing for almost a decade in Northern Virginia and D.C. and knows the lay of the land like the back of his hand, comes from a family of attorneys. And one major bit of wisdom he took to heart early was to be accessible, to put clients at ease with what they are going through.

When asked what he likes best about his chosen career, Robinson takes a moment to consider his answer. Finally he concludes, “On one hand I enjoy negotiation with the opposite party, and on the other I’m determined to win at trial.”

“But ultimately, I’m lucky to be able to work with people from all different backgrounds and problems in a fast-paced region, working to help them get the relief they are looking for.”

Robinson’s law practice includes criminal and traffic defense, family law, contract and lease negotiations, and civil litigation.

See William P. Robinson III’s website here. His phone number is 703-789-4800. His email address is [email protected]. 

The preceding sponsored post was written by Buzz McClain.

Crime Solvers Honor ‘Law Enforcement Officers of the Year’ During Annual Lunch

The “mystery” of who will be honored as the Arlington County law enforcement officer of the year will be solved Thursday, May 4, during the annual award presentation luncheon sponsored Arlington County Crime Solvers.

The public is invited to attend the ceremony at the Salsa Room, 2619 Columbia Pike, from noon to 1:30 p.m. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) will deliver the keynote speech. Arlington Sheriff Chief Deputy Paul Larson, Police Chief Jay Farr and other county officials will speak on community-police relations and the effort to join forces in fighting crime.

Chief Deputy Larson and Chief Farr will present the two Law Enforcement Recognition Awards to the Arlington County law enforcement officers chosen by the Crime Solvers as those who have made significant contributions to making Arlingtonians safe.

“I believe the ACCS can foster a strong relationship with the local community and law enforcement by bringing us together each year and saying ‘thank you’ to those who risk their lives everyday to protect our safety,” said Andres Tobar, ACCS president and executive director of the Shirlington Employment & Education Center.

This is the fifth time the Crime Solvers have honored Arlington’s law enforcement with a ceremony and lunch. This year is the first time for the presentation of a new award, given to the Arlington Chamber of Commerce, to a community organization that best represents community-law enforcement relations.

In addition, Richard V. Doud, Jr., the founding president of the Arlington County Crime Solvers chapter, will also be recognized with a special award.

Arlington County Crime Solvers maintains a volunteer-operated, 24-hour tips line for anonymous callers to report crimes and wanted persons. Cash rewards of up to $1,000 are offered to those who provide information leading to arrest or the recovery of drugs or stolen property. The number is 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). 

For more information or to RSVP, please see this website, or contact Andres Tobar at [email protected].

Join the Contest! Fitness Trainer Wants You to Guess How Long He Took to Get in Shape

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As far as contests go, this is a unique one: All Arlington personal in-home fitness trainer Joe Tryon wants is for you to guess how long it was between the taking of the “before” photo and the “after” picture.

The photos are of him.

“This is something I wanted to do since before I started the business,” says Tryon.

His company is called Kinematics; the former Army captain offers in-home and mobile personal training and nutrition services, and he’s offering up his own body as proof that he’s on to something with his methods.

Your fitness goals are met using his personalized exercise plans designed to meet those goals. Your experience with fitness training and schedule are all taken into account to insure success at your own pace.

Tryon knows what you’re going through: Once he left the Army and began working a desk job his discipline and fitness routines that got him through Airborne and Ranger schools took a beating, as did his body when he attempted to get back in shape. A skilled physical therapist put him back together and that’s when he gained the motivation to acquire the certifications needed to help others.

And now he’s having a contest.

In each photo he’s holding a copy of that day’s newspaper. The person who comes closest to guessing how many days elapsed between the photos wins a nifty TRX GO Suspension Trainer system, a $129.95 value, and if you don’t know what it is, you might want to sign up for a free assessment from Kinematics.

Here’s the link to the details of the contest.

Ouli Adds Nonprofit, Community Engagement Features

When we checked in on Ouli a year ago, the new mobile personal concierge app, developed in North Arlington, impressed early adopters with its groundbreaking two-way engagement abilities and it’s ability to learn your likes.

Now meet Ouli 2.0, released in March. Not only does it deliver consumer-choices for you based on your location and previous interaction–and the more you use it, the more it learns about you–the new home page brings you “the best thing to do right now” when you open the app, says Pierre Malko, CEO of Dante Inc., the Arlington-based software company that’s been building technological innovation since 1998.

“It could be where to have happy hour or what show is available at a local theater,” he says. “Ouli comes to you with recommendations for experiences that are pertinent at that point in time based on where you are.”

Other added enhancements include an integration with Uber — you can book your ride through the app — and OpenTable, to make reservations based on Ouli’s recommendation. One of the benefits of Ouli is that it only suggests viable selections, so sold-out restaurants and performances won’t be recommended.

A year ago there were about 100 merchants in the Ouli database, mostly in Arlington because that’s where the app launched. But now, Malko says, Ouli’s reach goes beyond Northern Virginia into Washington and Maryland and the programming has expanded into the arts, nonprofits, farmer’s markets and volunteer opportunities.

“Ouli is all about connecting you with the local community,” says Malko. “Usually we gravitate to well-known places like the Shakespeare Theatre and the Kennedy Center, and that’s fine, but there are tons of local performers and artists who are doing great shows in nearby establishments that you would not have heard of otherwise.”

Malko is proud of the improvement to add nonprofit organizations and volunteer opportunities to the mix, which he hopes will enrich not just the Ouli user but the community at large.

“As a person with a family in Arlington who is also very involved in the community, I always like to know about the things that are going on,” he says. “But it’s not always easy to find. You have to search a million different places.”

Community engagement with Ouli, he says, “is helping us all enjoy and support local causes that are important to us, or local establishments that we love to have around. And the more we engage, the higher the chances that they’ll stick around for a long time.”

The new Ouli release offers an improvement on the personalization and two-way engagement attributes of the app. In short, they’ve made it less intrusive, and thus more welcome, all the while still giving you notifications of sales, events and other specials in the neighborhood you happen to be in, “but only if there’s a high likelihood that you’ll care about it,” he says.

“We didn’t want this to be one other thing that bothers our users, so we spend a lot of time and energy on taming it,” Malko says. “Honing those personalization skills was not easy, but we’re giving the user what they want and also not bothering them with things they don’t care about…We want to make this a service that helps them enjoy their life and do so economically.”

Yes, there’s an app for that. It’s called Ouli.

Ouli can be downloaded here for immediate use. See what the best thing going on around you is right now.

The preceding post was written by Buzz McClain and sponsored by Ouli.

After 26 Years, Store Owner Still Passionate About Connecting Neighbors with Nature

By Buzz McClain
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Every Thursday morning, rain or shine, the folks enjoying breakfast and coffee at the tables outside the Lee Harrison Shopping Center Starbucks get to see the delivery of two to three tons of birdseed hauled into the Wild Birds Unlimited store next door.

That’s two to three TONS of bags of wild birdseed.

“That’s how fresh it is,” says owner Michael Zuiker. “And we go through that mountain every week.”

During special promotions that mountain has been known to grow to seven tons, and it flies off the shelves as if on eagle wings.

Wild Birds Unlimited has been at the same perch at Lee Harrison for 26 years, ever since Zuiker gave up designing Roy Rogers restaurants for Marriott in the 1980s and decided to do something that connected him as well as others with the outdoors.

“I’ve always loved outdoors, always loved nature,” Zuiker says. “I always loved the concept of doing something all natural. So for 26 years we’ve been bringing people and nature together.”

Over the years Zuiker has established a loyal clientele of bird lovers in Arlington, Falls Church and McLean, and he’s heartened by the growing number of new customers who come to the store perhaps for the first time. But some of them aren’t clear on the concept when they first come in.

“Maybe twice a week people come in looking to buy birds,” he says. “I tell them, I have no clue how to sell a bird. And the other misconception they have is when they ask, Can you make a living doing this? That’s when I politely tell them feeding wild birds is the second-most popular hobby in America, next to gardening.”

Zuiker says some 60 million Americans actively feed birds all four seasons. “It’s a beautiful hobby,” he says.

Zuiker is careful not to run down the competition, but those inexpensive bags of birdseed at grocery and hardware stores are not the stock he’s carrying.

“They sell it so cheaply, I don’t see how they can make a profit on it,” he says. “But it won’t be fresh, it won’t be good quality seed. A 20-pound bag might have 70 percent cereal grain in it which the birds don’t actually eat. They’ll kick it to the ground.

“And it’s very possible it’s been sitting on the shelf for months, which, because there is larvae in it, it could produce bugs.

“Or it could have very few seeds that only a few species will eat and not the kind people are trying to attract to their backyards.”

In Arlington, that would be cardinals, chickadees, titmice, winter wrens, English sparrows, goldfinches, blue jays, doves — “a lot of color, a lot of songs in your backyard,” he says–or any of the six species of woodpeckers that inhabit the area.

A different bag of bird food, when used strategically, will bring in the migrating birds. Zuiker says there are some 10 to 20 species of those who swoop in for a snack before headed home.

Zuiker and his staff make sure customers have the seed and the feeders they need to accomplish their goals, and in Arlington and Falls Church, which are famously leafy neighborhoods, it’s not hard to do. But it has to be done right.

“You can put a feeder out and have birds on it within an hour,” he says. “But we tell our customers to give it a couple of weeks to really get going because the birds don’t recognize it as a food source right off the bat.”

Then there’s the squirrel challenge. “Everybody has a squirrel challenge,” he says, “but we can make any feeder in our store 100 percent squirrel-proof if you set it up correctly.”

Unsure about squirrels, feeders, seeds and the difference between a tufted titmouse and a white-breasted nuthatch? Just ask.

“I train my staff really hard to be real educators,” says Zuiker. “We want people to walk out the door with their solution for what they want in their backyards, and we try to educate them on the different ways they can do that. And it’s fun!”

Still fun, after 26 years?

“I never get tired of listening to the birds, I never get tired of feeding the birds and I never get tired of going out into the woods and exploring,” Zuiker says.

“But what really motivates me is, I don’t think I’ve maxed out [the customer base]. I don’t think it’s reached its potential. And I’m not interested in growing just to grow, but to help the staff and help other people–I’m still motivated by that.”

And not to mention helping the wild birds.

Wild Birds Unlimited is in the Lee Harrison Shopping Center at 2437 N. Harrison Street, Arlington. Call 703-241-3988 or email at [email protected].

The preceding business profile was written by Buzz McClain for our sponsor, Wild Birds Unlimited.

Bistro 360: Adventurous, Creative Dining from Around the World

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There is a lot going on in and around Bistro 360. It’s a restaurant, yes, but it’s also an elegant wine bar, a neighborhood wine and food market, and a source of fresh-made prepared entrees and sides to go.

The theme? A little of everything, from everywhere.

The name of the restaurant, Art Hauptman explains, reflects the global intentions of the offerings. “We have food and drink from around the world,” he said. “We want to give people a sense of what’s possible, but right here in Arlington.”

So you don’t have to go to Armenia to get Armenian string cheese. It’s right there in the case, next to the peanuts and garlic chips from the Philippines. Not far from the trio of tasty dips from New Zealand. Near the Asian-inspired lemongrass pork chops with kimchi puree.

“We’re trying to do interesting things you don’t see all the time,” says Hauptman, a well-traveled and long-time Arlingtonian who has owned the restaurant since it opened in 2014.

Located on a corner between Rosslyn and Courthouse, convenient to both neighborhoods, Bistro 360’s dining room boasts a menu ranging from lamb ragu with Thai basil to pan-roasted Asian duck breast to murg makhani, an original take on Indian butter chicken.

The daring menu lives up to its name: It’s not every restaurant that has shrimp and grits, potato gnocchi and Indonesian nasi goring with shrimp and chicken side by side.

In the wine bar, which also serves cocktails and beer, a menu of exotic nibbles and fresh house-made bread, along with a wide assortment of wines by the glass, keep the international conversation going during happy hour (daily from 4:30 to 7). Free wine tastings take place each Thursday from 6:30 to 8:30. (Many wines are half-price on Wednesdays in the bar and the dining room.)

Small plates available in the bar or dining room include deviled eggs with candied bacon, tuna tempura, Spanish garlic lemon chili shrimp, lamb sliders and PEI mussels, among other savory offerings.

Bistro 360’s chef, Travis Obertach, came to Arlington from North Carolina (which explains the shrimp and grits, we imagine). He says he enjoys the diversity of the clientele in Arlington and the challenge of keeping things seasonal and surprising. Surprising? How about a wonderfully complex fried green tomato with caraway tomato jam, goat cheese, and a morsel of house-cured pork belly?

Obertach also helps with the menu and operation at Hauptman’s other Arlington restaurant, the New Zealand-themed Cassatt’s Kiwi Café and Gallery. Cassatt’s is a casual dining bistro that opened in 2002 for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and brunch in Lee Heights remains the home of the best flat white in Arlington.

In addition to preparing cuisines of the world for two restaurants, Obertach is overseeing the cooking for Hauptman’s newest venture, an events catering service called World’s Fare Catering. For information call 703-577-4124 or email [email protected].

As a convenient neighborhood market, Bistro 360 has some 200 wines, most of them imported, about two dozen cheeses and a refrigerator case that requires some asking for information, for example, do those sweet chili drops (plump berries, actually) go well with miso-glazed salmon?

In any case, it will be an adventure, just the way Art Hauptman intended.

Bistro 360 is located at 1800 Wilson Boulevard; call 703-522-3600 or use OpenTable to make a reservation. Cassatt’s Kiwi Café is at 4536 Lee Highway; call 703-527-3330.

The preceding was a business profile written by Buzz McClain and sponsored by Bistro 360.

After 30 Years and More Than 1,000 Transactions, Kevin Love Still Loves What He’s Doing

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The FBI’s loss is Arlington real estate’s gain. Arlington’s award-winning Realtor Kevin Love could have followed in his father’s footsteps in the Bureau — “I know he would have liked one of his six children to join the bureau,” Love says–but Warren Love also encouraged his children to follow their passions and create their own path.

In 1985, as an economics major at George Mason University, Kevin Love started a career selling Arlington real estate. Along the way Love, a Top 1% of Realtors nationally, has collected accolades including Top 20 in Virginia for Re/max, induction to the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors’ Pioneer Club and Re/max’s Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement Award. He’s also one of the region’s first Realtors to earn the Senior Real Estate Specialist designation.

bright redBut accolades are secondary to Love, he says.

“The one thing I want my clients to know is that I care,” he says. “The happiness and well-being of my clients is my top priority.”

Key to that frictionless relationship is an “efficient and positive selling experience,” he says. With a wealth of experience preparing homes for sale and negotiating favorable transactions, he’s also upfront, reputable and honest, not to mention enthusiastic, still, after all these years.

These qualities show up in the statistics accumulated over three decades and more than 1,000 transactions:

  • His average list-price-to-sold-price ratio is 103%.
  • His average days on market, 7.

His familiarity with Arlington had guided him to help in the community in various ways over the years. He says he derives “a unique satisfaction” in participation and commitment to community, particularly the “Feet on the Streets” community outreach program offered by the St. Augustine Catholic Church, where he also serves as an usher. He also supports the Children’s Miracle network of Re/max and he volunteers for various fundraisers offered by the American Heart Association and the ALS Association and the Foundation for Life.

“If you like what you do, the job is half done,” FBI agent Warren Love told his children. Kevin Love clearly took that advice to heart.

To reach Kevin Love, call 703-969-6776 or email [email protected].

The preceding was a business profile written by Buzz McClain and sponsored by Kevin Love.

Lafayette Federal Credit Union: Banking with a Difference

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Buying your first car or home? Refinancing or retiring? Lafayette Federal Credit Union will be your financial partner for all of these milestones.

Since 1935, Lafayette Federal has been catering to families and businesses worldwide, offering a wide range of financial products and services that prove the difference between a community-oriented credit union and a traditional multi-branch bank.

“We are member-owned, not-for-profit and community minded,” said Marilyn Wagner, Vice President, Marketing for Lafayette Federal. “Every decision made, every new product and every service introduced is based on what is best for our community. Being a not-for-profit organization allows us to pass savings along to you, which in turn is good for your wallet.”

Those new to the credit union concept are welcome to talk to a Lafayette Federal representative at any time to discuss the benefits of membership. One major benefit is lower rates on residential mortgages, credit cards, and auto and boat loans. There are other advantages, as well as free cutting-edge mobile banking, free rewards credit cards and eight locations, including three in Northern Virginia.

For those living and working in Arlington, the road to achieving your financial goals begins with a visit to the new Crystal City branch, located on the ground floor of the 2231 Crystal Drive building.

The Crystal City location is a full-service branch and can assist members with all of Lafayette Federal’s products and services. The branch also has an ATM on-site and across the street.

Start your Lafayette Credit relationship by visiting the Crystal City branch or by contacting Branch Manager, Veronika Memetova at 240-485-9312 or [email protected].

The preceding post was sponsored by Lafayette Federal Credit Union and written by Buzz McClain. 

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