Zionsville Magazine July 2020

JULY 2020

Night on the Bricks

NEW EVENT INVITES RESIDENTS TO SAFELY DINE ON MAIN STREET THIS SUMMER

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PUBLISHER Tom Britt

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PRESIDENT Jeanne Britt

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ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Robert Turk

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JULY WRITERS

Abigail Hake / Jon Shoulders Matt Keating / Christy Heitger-Ewing

JULY PHOTOGRAPHERS

Amy Payne Eli Beaverson / Michael Durr

SHOP LOCAL!

NIGHT ON THE BRICKS: NEW EVENT INVITES RESIDENTS TO SAFELY DINE ON MAIN STREET THIS SUMMER

In late April, the Zionsville Chamber of Commerce polled their membership to gauge interest in a street dining opportunity. Seventy percent of the membership responded, “absolutely!”

They proposed offering “Night on the Bricks Al Fresco Evenings” in which each Thursday throughout June and July from 5–9 p.m. residents can order food and drinks from local restaurants, sit at a table on Main Street and relax with family and friends while safely socially distancing. They can also visit retailers lining the Brick Street.

4 Once Upon a Time: Invite Princesses to Your Party

6 Grab a Scoop! July is National Ice Cream Month

8 Back to the Bricks: Akard True

Value Goes Back to its Roots with New Main Street Store

12 Mega Bites: Freddy’s Opens New

Location Off North Michigan Road

15 Night on the Bricks: New Event

Help our local economy by shopping local.

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Invites Residents to Safely Dine on Main Street This Summer

18 Leader on the Links: Maggie

Nobbe Takes Over as Zionsville Community High School Girls Golf Coach

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION, CONTACT ROBERT TURK: 317-366-3670

20 Fueled for Success: Eagle

Automotive Offers a PeopleFocused, Hometown Auto Service Experience

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Once Upon a Time Invite Princesses to Your Party Writer / Christy Heitger-Ewing Photography Provided

Balloon business morphs into a fairytale ending.

interact with the kids,” Chelsea says. “She wanted a fairytale come to life.”

Chelsea and her family vowed to do just that.

It wasn’t a stretch given that the entire family has a theatre/singing/songwriting/artistry background.

“Initially, we thought the princesses would be a side thing to our balloon artistry and really it’s the other way around,” Chelsea says.

The highly popular Princess Package is a 1.5-hour party that includes entertainment by one character, who is accompanied by the client’s choice of balloon artist, face painter or glitter tattoo artist. The princess presents the birthday girl with a tiara and then provides a musical storytelling show, participates in the cake cutting ceremony, and and we thought it would be fun to start a family balloon art business together,” Chelsea “Children were in absolute awe to get to meet delivers a special song. If parents also want to their favorite princesses,” Chelsea says. incorporate a pinata or something else into says, noting that all three of them nurture a the party, they are more than welcome to do creative spirit. so. But for the most part, the princesses are There’s the classic princesses such as Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, and Alice the entertainment.

They came home and learned the tricks of in Wonderland. But the Little Mermaid, the the trade, then formed Balloongenuity in Frog Princess Tiana, and the Snow Princesses Unlike at a Disney theme park where kids’ 2009. Though it was a successful business time with characters is limited to a stand(Anna and Elsa) are also very popular. endeavor, they often fielded questions from in-line chance to snap a photo and grab an revelers who were in search of, say, a magician Soon after launching, parents began asking autograph, at these parties, the guests have a or a clown. Then they began to notice a trend Chelsea, “What do you offer for boys?” So, they invited select superheroes to join in the chance to chat at length with princesses. as more and more people were interested in fun, and now Batman, Spiderman, Wonder inviting a real-live princess to their party or “Kids want to know every backstory so Woman, and Captain America (among event. they’ll ask about the princess’ parents and others) visit parties. their pets, how they got here, everything!”

“A woman called and said she’d like to have Chelsea says.

The craze has definitely exploded.

Rapunzel at her daughter’s party—not just to sit and look pretty but to sing, draw, and Over a decade ago, Chelsea Couture was vacationing in Mexico with her mom (Crystal) and sister (Claire) when inspiration “If we were going to do this, we wanted to do it right,” Chelsea says, who launched Happily struck.

Ever After Productions in 2012, starting with just four princesses.

“We saw people making crazy balloon hats

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Happily Ever After will accommodate parties and events within a one-hour driving radius of the Geist area. Though they have traveled as far away as Cincinnati, Louisville, and Chicago, they stay plenty busy just in the Indy area. For instance, in May Aladdin and Jasmine attended Chick-fil-A night. And earlier this spring Moana, Snow White and friends went to an Indianapolis Indians game where they mingled with fans of all ages. Each year the princesses also go to the Whitestown Parks & Rec’s Christmas Ball in Whitestown where princesses engage in a meet-n-greet with attendees.

Several of their princesses have moved on to engage in other communities, booking jobs on cruise ships and even living in the promised land—Disney World. It’s not surprising given that these princesses and superheroes love what they do.

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“They all really do enjoy interacting with the children,” Chelsea says, noting that they have a really loyal fan base.

“Some families will book four or five years in a row, choosing a different princess each time,” Chelsea says. “We feel blessed to be able to do this full-time. We have the best jobs ever!”

For more information, call 317-498-3473, email indyprincessparties@aol.com or visit happilyeverafterproductions.com.

Grab a Scoop!

July Is National Ice Cream Month it’s said that as far back as 618-697AD in China, an ice cream-like food was enjoyed.

I remember going out every Sunday with The first dish is said to be made of flour, my grandparents for dinner and afterward buffalo milk and camphor. Not quite the enjoying a special treat. We’d head over to ice cream we know today, but it’s fun to Baskin Robbins and pick one (or two) of the think that even way back when, people were 32 flavors to enjoy as a family. Ice cream is looking for a refreshing frozen treat! Even an American tradition and something that is Alexander the Great is said to have enjoyed always in our freezers. It’s a national staple, snow flavored with honey and nectar. especially during those summer months, Culinary folks though do point to Naples as which is why July is the perfect time to the birthplace of the first ice cream. celebrate National Ice Cream Month.

Americans have a rich history with ice In 1984, a Senator from Kentucky cream. The first mention of ice cream in the introduced a resolution to proclaim the US was in a letter in 1744. Then, it’s said, month of July 1984 National Ice Cream that George Washington spent $200 for Month. President Ronald Reagan signed ice cream in the summer of 1790. That’s the bill into law that same year and the rest something like $5,500 today - Can you is history! While the bill only specified July imagine? Even Thomas Jefferson made his 1984 as National Ice Cream Month, the own ice cream recipe which is said to be the tradition carries on all these years later. oldest known ice cream recipe here in the states.

Ice cream itself has no known inventor, but Writer / Abigail Hake

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Here are a few fun facts about Ice Cream: • First Lady Dolley Madison served ice cream at the 1813 Inaugural Ball • Vanilla is the most popular flavor • It takes about 50 licks to finish one ice cream cone • The U.S. is the largest producer of ice cream • A Dreyer’s Ice Cream tester actually insured his tongue for $1M • In 1920, Harry Burt put the first ice cream truck on the streets.

So how can you celebrate?

With ice cream of course! Enjoy this cold, delicious treat with friends and family. Head to your local ice cream shop and grab a scoop! Maybe even try a few different and unique flavors before you settle on your tried and true favorite!

You could also host a fun ice cream themed party. Have an “I Scream for Ice Cream” bar where everyone can make their own amazing concoction!. Make sure to have plenty of toppings including things like pretzels, M&M’S, fruits, sprinkles and nuts!

You can also provide all different types of cones and even cute little bowls for your guests to create in. Maybe even offer fun decorations like wands, cupcake toppers and mini umbrellas. Think outside the box and take photos of everyone’s custom treats.

Then have prizes for most creative, best looking and most daring. Your guests are sure to enjoy this fun event!

Handel’s Owner Greg Glaros

Or, if you are feeling ambitious, try your hand at making your own ice cream. Here’s a really easy recipe you can make at home in a bag. All you need is half & half (1 cup), sugar (2 tbsp), vanilla extract (½ tsp), ice (3 cups), salt (⅓ cup), and two plastic bags (one large and one small). Put the cream, sugar, and flavor inside the smaller bag and push out all the extra air. Put the ice and salt in the bigger bag and then add the small bag with ingredients. Lock well and shake for 7-10 minutes until the ingredients have hardened. Once it’s done, you can let it set a little more in the freezer while you make homemade chocolate chip cookies to create your own homemade ice cream sandwiches!

There are lots of fun ways to celebrate this month, but, if in the end, you’d rather just try a different kind of ice cream each day of the month of July, we get it. Because remember, we all scream for ice cream!

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Owner Leigh Ann Akard

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Back to the Bricks AKARD TRUE VALUE GOES BACK TO ITS ROOTS WITH NEW MAIN STREET STORE Writer / Christy Heitger-Ewing Photographer / Michael Durr

In February, it dawned on Leigh Ann Akard, owner of Akard True Value Hardware, that in May the company would be celebrating 65 years in Zionsville. She decided that they should do something big to commemorate the occasion. After chatting with a merchant on Main Street who mentioned that it would be great if someone would rent the vacant store across from hers, a light bulb went off.

“You know,” Akard told her friend. “That’s our store’s original location.”

Akard True Value Hardware, a staple in the Zionsville community, relocated to their current location in the Boone Village Shopping Center in the late 1970s. Akard thought about how cool it would be to go

back to the exact same spot where they started, especially given how much Zionsville had grown over the years. Within 10 days, she had signed a one-year contract so that they could open a store on Main Street called Back to the Bricks: Akard Village Hardware.

They chose the name as sort of a “back to our roots” type of thing. Akard sees it as an opportunity to let people know who they are and how long they’ve been around.

Originally, as they were prepping the space to open in the spring, they had hoped to put a sign in the store window on April 1 that read, “No fooling! Look where we popped up!”

Of course, they, along with the entire world, felt like they got pranked on April Fool’s Day when the coronavirus foiled their plans.

“We got our keys on March 15, but March atZionsville.com / JULY 2020 / ZIONSVILLE MAGAZINE / 9

12 is when everything slowly and painfully began shutting down,” Akard says.

Deemed an essential business, the store was allowed to stay open, and the masses flocked to hardware stores to preserve their mental health by diving into home improvement projects.

“We helped people keep their lives as normal as possible,” Akard says.

For some, that meant painting a bedroom.

For others, it meant building a birdfeeder or erecting a deck. As America slowed to a crawl during shutdowns, life amped up for Akard and her staff.

“It was like being on a treadmill and every day the incline kept getting higher and the

speed kept getting faster,” she says. “Then when we opened up Back to the Bricks, it was like having one foot on an elliptical while the other foot was still on the treadmill.”

Despite the craziness, Akard couldn’t be happier.

“We say all the time that we are so much more than hardware here,” she says.

Much of that “so much more” has to do with community-service involvement. For instance, this spring they hosted two blood drives at the hardware store. In addition, they are a drop-off location for Sew and Serve and a collection spot for the Caring Centers. Plus, they collect eyeglasses and hearing aids for the Lyons Club and books for Indy Reads.

“I just love this community and the way people come together,” Akard adds. “Not being a big box store, when we hear of a need, we can immediately jump in and help fill it.”

Back to the Bricks celebrated a soft opening in mid-May, but Akard isn’t sure when they’ll schedule their grand opening.

“We want to do it when the community is ready to celebrate because, while some are, many are not yet in that place,” Akard says.

They have learned to keep a stash of dog treats inside Back to the Bricks because pooches often will walk their people inside,

which they welcome. Not only do they cater to canines but kids and kitchen fanatics, as well. They have a kids’ section since there is no longer a toy store on Main Street. They also sell kitchen gadgets and trinkets to fill the void of the kitchen store that vacated the area.

“We want to blend in with everything going on down here,” Akard says. “We hope to complement Main Street and give one more reason why you want to shop all these stores.”

Given that this spring and summer have been so strange, Akard is looking forward to getting back to celebrating the little things.

“I agree with the phrase, ‘One day we’ll look back and realize that all of the little things were the big things,’” she says. “It’s all of the little things over the past 65 years that have built us to where we are now. I’m excited to see how these pieces fit together and also eager to introduce people to our history.”

Akard notes that much like the COVID-19 crisis, they have scaled back and realized what their priorities are. The 1,300 square feet on Main Street is in stark contrast to the 25,000 square foot building in Boone Village.

“Going back to 1,300 square feet represents what matters most — the relationships, the involvement in the community,” Akard says. “People want to get out and visit their neighbors.”

Back to the Bricks is located on 120 S. Main Street in Zionsville. For more information, call 317-733-2501 or find them on Facebook.

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Co-Owner Blake Epperson

Mega Bites Freddy’s Opens New Location Off North Michigan Road 12 / ZIONSVILLE MAGAZINE / JULY 2020 / atZionsville.com

GM Jordan Baumgartner Writer / Matt Keating Photographer / Eli Beaverson

Blake Epperson, franchise owner for Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers in Carmel, says he and his staff have received a warm welcome from the Carmel and Zionsville communities.

“The number of positive responses we’ve received from guests in the area has been very encouraging,” says Epperson, adding that the 146th Street Carmel Freddy’s location opened in 2016, and the North Michigan Road Carmel store opened last year. “Guests have been thrilled we’ve expanded in Carmel, giving residents in the community another convenient location to visit.”

The Freddy’s franchise was founded in 2002 in Wichita, Kansas.

Epperson says Carmel is an ideal location.

franchise of our own.”

“The Michigan Road retail corridor has a steady flow of traffic through the area, and is home to a wide variety of retail businesses and restaurants that makes it a great next stop for Freddy’s,” he says.

Epperson believes Freddy’s has been successful because it is unique.

Epperson has a rich history with Freddy’s.

“I’ve had an interest and passion for the Freddy’s brand since I started as a team member with the opening of the second Freddy’s location in Wichita as a teenager in 2003,” he says. “My partners Alex King and Alex Kent, and the general manager of the Michigan Road location, Jordan Baumgartner, also share the same story – starting with Freddy’s really young and growing through the ranks, to eventually getting the opportunity to develop plans for a atZionsville.com / JULY 2020 / ZIONSVILLE MAGAZINE / 13

“We think Freddy’s differentiates itself in several areas starting with our freshly churned, frozen custard treats, cooked-toorder, 100-percent ground beef steakburgers, and Vienna Beef hot dogs,” he says. “We strive to bring more than just another place to eat in the community, by making an effort to become familiar with our guests and their stories.”

The delicious food has been a big hit locally.

“We have two popular specialty orders, the Freddy’s Original Double and the Signature Turtle Sundae,” Epperson says.

“The Signature Turtle Sundae is a fan favorite

Co-Owner Alex Kent

that combines hot fudge and hot caramel, atop vanilla custard with salted pecans and, of course, whipped cream and a cherry. The Freddy’s Original Double is made with two thinly pressed steakburger patties topped with cheese, mustard, pickle planks and onion slices.”

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Epperson says he can’t wait to meet new friends at the new Carmel location.

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“We’ve truly enjoyed being a part of the Carmel community, serving fantastic food and custard, and also hosting fundraising nights for local schools and other nonprofit organizations,” he says. “With the opening of a second restaurant, we’re prepared to serve guests in the southwest part of town with the same friendly service and great taste they’ve come to love at our 146th Street location.”

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers is located at 9703 North Michigan Road in Carmel. Call 317-982-7512 and visit freddysusa.com for more information. Hours of operation are Sunday through Thursday 10:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

Owner Michele Isenhower

Night on the Bricks

New Event Invites Residents to Safely Dine on Main Street This Summer

Writer / Christy Heitger-Ewing Photographer / Michael Durr

In late April, the Zionsville Chamber of Commerce polled their membership to gauge interest in a street dining opportunity.

Seventy percent of the membership responded, “absolutely!”

They proposed offering “Night on the Bricks Al Fresco Evenings” in which each Thursday throughout June and July from 5–9 p.m. residents can order food and drinks from local restaurants, sit at a table on Main Street and relax with family and friends while safely socially distancing. They can also visit retailers lining the Brick Street.

“We had seen it done in Italy in their attempt to reopen restaurants,” says Allyson Gutwein, Zionsville Chamber Executive Director. She

talked to Mayor Emily Styron. The Town of Zionsville was on board as everyone had the same goal in mind — to do something that benefited the restauranteurs and retailers given that everyone has been hit hard economically this year.

patronizing local businesses.

“The idea of this event is to provide a bright spot during a challenging time for local restaurants,” Mayor Styron says. “This is a chance for the community to come together socially, let our restaurants spill onto the Brick Street and support our local restaurants and retailers.”

The event, which is sponsored by CENTURY 21 Scheetz – Laura Heigl, runs through July 30, with a chance it could be extended if the budget allows.

Gutwein, who was in small business for a number of years, knows firsthand how tough it is. That is why this is not meant to be a block party where people bring their own coolers but rather a chance to socialize while atZionsville.com / JULY 2020 / ZIONSVILLE MAGAZINE / 15

“We want people to get outside and shop and dine so we get as much influx of financing into our businesses as possible to keep them strong and solid,” Gutwein says.

“We would have to figure out how to get it done,” Gutwein says. “But if we can figure out how to put this event together in two-weeks’ time, I’m sure we can find a way to extend it.

People have already asked us about next year.”

The Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Zionsville is also doing all they can to host

to other events in August — the Brick Street Market and the Street Dance.

Olive Oil Gallery, maintains that 80% of their customers live within the community.

“We’ll see how this goes first, but believe me, we have our heads full of ideas,” Gutwein says. “Now we just have to be able to execute in the year of COVID-19.”

“We couldn’t survive without their support,” she says. “The shops and restaurants are the heartbeat to our community, and the community is the fuel that keeps us going.”

She notes that every time things get changed, they change with them, and that’s okay.

In the spring during the time they were closed, loyal customers continued to order their products, which were delivered free — a service they plan to continue.

“Things may look a little different than what we are used to, like only being able to have ‘x’ number of people at these events, then enlarging it as time goes on, but if that’s what we do to pull something off, we do it,” Gutwein adds. “At the end of the day, people have to know that this is ultimately what we are doing to keep our restaurants and retail establishments alive and if this is what we can do and this is all we can do, then we are going to do all we can to the best of our ability until we can do more.”

Angie McCloskey, Co-Owner of Zionsville

“Currently, we all use the slogan, ‘We’re all in this together,’” McCloskey says. “Now [with Night on the Bricks], we get an opportunity to show it in a fun way.”

Kent and Liz Esra, owners of Cobblestone, are grateful to the town and the chamber, not only for creating this event but also for the outstanding job they’ve done banding together during the pandemic to help businesses.

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“We support anything we can do to get people back feeling good about coming out,” Kent says. “We absolutely have to get our economy going again so people can make some money.”

They enjoy seeing familiar faces they hadn’t seen in several months because they truly do love their customers. During the coronavirus crisis, they had people who didn’t feel comfortable shopping at grocery stores so Cobblestone sold groceries and filled orders for them curbside.

“People would spend $100 a week and tip another $100 for the staff,” Kent says.

“Zionsville has always supported local, and the people have been great to me and Liz for 20 years. We absolutely love Zionsville.”

Gutwein agrees.

“It’s this community of neighbors helping neighbors that makes Zionsville so fantastic,” she says.

Things to Know About Night on the Bricks • Tables are first-come, first-serve.

• Bring your own hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes.

• Use the public restrooms and handwashing stations instead of those inside the restaurants.

• Order carryout from restaurants in advance.

• When possible, walk or bike to Main Street as parking will be limited.

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Maggie Nobbe Takes Over as Zionsville Community High School Girls Golf Coach Writer / Matt Keating Photographer / Amy Payne

Maggie Nobbe, the new Zionsville Community High School (ZCHS) head girls golf coach, says she couldn’t be happier about her new job.

won a state championship for Zionsville. All the girls I played with meant so much to me, and we have become like family. I’m now fortunate to be going to Butler University with two of them.”

“I wanted to stay active in the sport in some form,” Nobbe says. “Sure enough, it started

Nobbe has several goals for the upcoming season.

“I’m very excited and honored to have this opportunity,” Nobbe says. “As a proud alum, “My goal is to encourage the players into a I’ve experienced firsthand ZCHS’s history of mindset where they can overcome hurdles, success, and know the strong foundation they and push their limits to see what’s possible if have in place.” they set their minds to something,” she says.

Nobbe also plans to get ZCHS alumni involved in the school’s golf program.

“As the high school coach, I’ll also make sure to watch over the middle school golf programs, as those girls will be headed to my program soon after,” she adds.

Until practices begin, Nobbe will be keeping up with tournament scores, and meeting with players via Zoom calls to start putting names to faces and developing relationships.

Nobbe, who graduated from ZCHS in 2018, is excited to start the next golf season.

“The girls have already started to submit scores, which is very encouraging,” she says.

“We have Lauren Kaltenmark back, who has been a key performer, placing in the top ten at the state tournament. Otherwise, we’ll have a lot of first-time varsity players, which can be a steep learning curve, but also provides a tremendous opportunity for newer players.”

“Our official practice is scheduled to begin July 31, as we watch closely and hope everything continues to safely open back up,” she says. “In the interim, I started communicating with players and parents, I worked with vendors, and I’ve even been able Upon graduating from ZCHS, Nobbe, who to work with seniors on uniform selections, is now 20 years old and will be a junior in the which has been getting me excited for the fall at Butler, knew that although her high season.” school golf career was over, her time spent with the sport wasn’t finished.

When Nobbe attended ZCHS, she played on a team that won a state championship.

“I played varsity for four years, and was on the 2017 state championship team,” she says.

“Each year was special, but placing first was our ultimate goal, as up to that point no female team had

I played varsity for four years, and was on the 2017 state championship team.

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small by giving golf lessons to younger kids, which led to an assistant coaching position at Brebeuf Jesuit High School, and now as ZCHS girls golf head coach.”

Nobbe is enjoying her time attending Butler University.

“I love everything about Butler, and I could not think of a better place to further my academics,” Nobbe says. “My advisor and professors have been great with helping to make this coaching position possible, as have my former high school coach Jeff Anderson, Coach Steve Simmons and Assistant Director

Greg Schellhase. As it’s only been a couple of years, I also know the stress of being an athlete and a student, and will lean on these experiences when working with the team.”

Owners Nicole & Matt Baker

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Fueled For Success

Eagle Automotive Offers a People-Focused, Hometown Auto Service Experience Writer / Jon Shoulders Photographer / Michael Durr

One could say the engine that keeps Eagle Automotive running is its owners’ mutual passion for people.

It’s certainly what Nicole and Matt Baker describe as the driving force behind their success as owners of the Zionsville-based business for the past six years.

Back in 2013, with 18 years of experience as an auto mechanic at the time, Matt began to see a need for a customer-oriented automotive shop in the Zionsville area, and he and Nicole began discussing the Eagle Auto concept in detail.

“I really saw a void as far as high-level automotive service in the area,” Matt says.

“There were a couple hometown auto shops in the area at the time, and I knew they couldn’t serve everyone, especially with the growth of Zionsville.”

Matt had been working as general manager at an auto shop in Indy, and Nicole had a background in communications and public relations, having completed an internship at Walt Disney World during her years at Purdue University. They realized their respective skill sets would pair nicely in the context of an automotive business.

“When we moved here 14 years ago, people would tell Matt what a great mechanic he

was,” Nicole says. “As we were getting to know people in the community and with our kids here, they would tell him they wish he was in Zionsville. I think we gradually came to know that we could make it happen here.”

The couple was raising four young kids - A.J., Gracie, Brendan and Kellen - and although they felt nervous about building a new business from the ground up, they knew the customer demand would be there if they kept a strong focus on each client’s needs from day one.

Eagle Automotive to include 14 total employees, and they relocated their business to Northwestern Drive in October of 2018.

The shop now offers a range of services for nearly any automobile make and model, from brake repairs and transmission replacements to oil changes and heating and air solutions.

“Basically the only thing we don’t do is bodywork or tires,” Matt explains.

“Bodywork is kind of a different animal, and it’s hard to beat the prices of some of the discount tire places, so we focus on pretty much everything else. We offer dealer-level service and repairs, and we can handle almost any type of car you can drive in here.”

With no additional employees and not much more equipment than Matt’s trusty toolbox, the couple opened Eagle Automotive in 2013 on West 106th Street.

Eagle Auto also offers hybrid and electric vehicle service, which Nicole says has “It was all hands on deck. Matt wasn’t become an increasingly larger percentage of sleeping at all with working on getting things the shop’s daily workload. ready at our first location, and we had our kids helping with cleaning and prepping,” “The technicians, mechanics and I do Nicole remembers with a laugh. “Thinking monthly technical training,” Matt says. about it now, it’s kind of hard to believe that “What’s interesting is that seven out of 10 we got the place going with the small amount vehicle owners that are out of warranty of manpower we had.” choose an after-market shop like ours. So we do our after-market training and education to Since then, Matt and Nicole have grown really stay up on the technology.” atZionsville.com / JULY 2020 / ZIONSVILLE MAGAZINE / 21

Matt adds that handling the shop’s volume is a challenge at times, but he and Nicole remain committed to the same idea that prompted the couple to open the shop in the first place — a high level of customer service will attract both new and repeat customers and leave each and every one satisfied.

“The biggest challenge is blending all the people, customers and employees, making sure we’re able to serve both groups with excellence through our leadership as the owners,” Matt says. “It’s a people business.

It’s not just fixing cars.”

Born and raised in Lafayette, Nicole started dating Matt in the eighth grade while the two were attending Klondike Middle School. They’ve come to appreciate Zionsville as an ideal setting to raise a family, as well as operate a family-owned business.

“There are a lot of options out there for getting your car serviced, and we’re trying to cater to the folks who want a relationship and a one-on-one focus,” Matt says. “It’s really more of a people business than ever before, and we try to keep that in mind.”

Eagle Automotive is located at 4642 Northwestern Drive in Zionsville.

For more information and to schedule an appointment, call 317-755-6818 or visit eagleautozionsville.com.

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