ST. CHARLES – Minor Mobley’s experience as a U.S. Marine prepared him in many ways for life.

“It taught me patience, the ability to take a beating and never quit, to overcome and adapt,” said Mobley, riffing on a popular, though unofficial motto among Marines: “Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.”

In the past three years, Mobley said he has learned that experience also helped prepare him for the challenges of running his own business – and succeeding.

Since 2014, Mobley has owned and operated Excel Automotive Repair, an auto repair shop on North 17th Street, just north of Dean Street near Randall Road, on St. Charles’ west side.

He runs the shop with the help of many, including his wife, Jennifer.

In the years since, Mobley and the team at Excel have not only kept the doors open, but also have built a loyal and growing clientele.

Mobley said the key to the shop’s success was forged in his commitment to helping disinvest auto repair of what he called its “nasty reputation,” arising over decades from customers who felt they had been mistreated, taken for granted or even swindled.

He pointed to a large vinyl decal he has placed in his office, inscribed with the words, “Trust is earned, never given.”

“In this business, in everything, integrity is everything,” Mobley said.

He said he has designed his shop to be different, offering an area for kids, and televisions, free Wi-Fi and desks with charging stations for more grown-up customers who find themselves needing a place to keep up with the demands of the day while their car is in the shop, all amid a “warm, inviting” atmosphere.

“People see the difference from the moment they walk in the front door,” he said.

All that is worth little, though, Mobley said, if the work on the car isn’t performed well and for a fair price. Mobley said his customers can expect just that at Excel from him and his four ASE certified technicians.

“We will do everything we can to make sure your work is done correctly the first time,” Mobley said.

If the unexpected happens after the car leaves the shop, Mobley said Excel’s work is backed by a three-year, 36,000-mile warranty.

“It’s about how you take care of your customers up front, and then how you take care of them when something goes wrong,” he said.

Charles Murphy of St. Charles said that level of service is why he and his children all have chosen to have their cars serviced at Excel since shortly after the shop opened in November 2014.

“When it’s been fixed, whatever it’s been, they stand behind it,” Murphy said. “I always felt it was honest work, from an honest evaluation of the problem, at a fair price, with no upselling, from what I could tell.”

While the work and customer service has earned Excel clients, Mobley and his team also have drawn plaudits from the community for their charity work on behalf of fellow veterans and the greater St. Charles community as a whole.

Honoring and helping veterans of the U.S. armed forces have stood at the center of Mobley’s business since it first opened. The shop boasts a wall lined with photos and other remembrances of local veterans. And the shop has sponsored fundraising concerts for Operation Warrior Wishes, helped Project Mobility deliver adaptive bicycles to wounded veterans, and even fixed and donated cars to needy veterans.

“And there’s other things we do we prefer to just keep in-house,” he said.

In the greater community, Mobley and the Excel team have sponsored charity car shows and spearheaded a Christmas sponsorship program for needy students in St. Charles School District 303.

Last year, the shop hosted more than 200 volunteers who helped wrap and deliver more than 2,000 gifts for the sponsored students.

This year, he said, Excel is opening the program to middle school and high school students, as well.

“We try to give back to the community as we can, as often as we can,” he said.

Mobley credits that commitment to service, in part, to the same commitment to service that led him to enlist in the Marine Corps, where he served from 1995 to 2001. He ended his time with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit at Camp Pendleton, Calif., with an E-5 sergeant rank.

That commitment to service, both in business and in the community, is a major factor why the shop’s business has grown so strongly and quickly that Mobley said he may expand the shop beyond its 6,900 square feet and 10 service bays. It also has allowed him to invest in training his team for the coming changes in the automotive industry, including electric vehicles and autonomous cars.

“We’re going to be prepared and ready to take care of your car, whatever it is, whenever it’s ready to be serviced,” Mobley said.

Learn more

Excel Automotive Repair is located at 720 N. 17th St., Unit 2, St. Charles. For more information, call 630-945-3421 or visit www.excelautostc.com.