Our Story

With a new baby at home, Justin begins his career as a technician under Mark Agan to provide for his family.

Working at the ground level of the automotive service industry gives him firsthand experience in operations, customer service, and the business of quick-lube automotive care.

Over time, it also gives him a vision for what he might build himself.

Taking the First Step

Unable to raise enough funding, Justin leverages the only thing of value he has: his wife’s car, a graduation gift from her parents. That $8,000 loan allows Justin to purchase a gas station in Welcome, North Carolina, which he names Tater Bugs Auto Repair after his oldest son, Tate. Mark joins Justin to help launch the business. Keeping the business afloat requires doing whatever needs to be done, but Justin remains focused on a larger goal, opening a quick-lube business of his own. The experience becomes another step toward entrepreneurship, and toward the opportunity that will soon change everything.

$35,000 and a Vote of Confidence

After repeated rejection from lenders and investors, Justin’s grandfather steps in.

C.W. Strickland takes out a loan against the family home and surprises Justin with a $35,000 check to help him launch his first quick-lube business.

Where others see risk, his grandfather sees potential

One generation creates an opportunity for the next.

Tater Bugs Drive Thru Oil Change

Justin and Mark open the first quick-lube location in Greensboro, North Carolina, carrying the Tater Bugs name forward.

The gas station is sold, allowing them to focus fully on growing the new quick-lube business. Tater Bugs grows to three shops: Greensboro in October 2012, Welcome in June 2014, and High Point in March 2015. It is sold in June 2016, as Justin turns his attention toward an even bigger vision: building a national brand.

C.W. Strickland visits the store regularly. A lifelong smoker, he has a habit of trying to light a cigarette inside the shop. Justin and Mark come up with a solution: they place a bench near the entrance alongside an old-fashioned ‘smokestack’ ashtray, giving C.W. a place to sit, smoke, and spend time with them.

They add a small plaque bearing his name. It becomes known simply as ‘PawPaw’s Bench.’

Carrying His Belief Forward

C.W. Strickland passes away on July 19, 2014.

At the time, Justin is operating two Tater Bugs locations. His grandfather will never see the scale of what his initial $35,000 investment will eventually help make possible. His passing becomes a defining moment for Justin.

C.W. had believed in him when others wouldn’t, putting his own resources on the line to give his grandson an opportunity. Justin feels a deep responsibility to honor that belief, not simply by succeeding but by continuing to build something his grandfather would be proud of.

The loss lights a fire in Justin and gives him a renewed sense of purpose and determination to keep moving forward.

Strickland Brothers Is Born

The first Strickland Brothers 10 Minute Oil Change opens in Thomasville, North Carolina, where Justin was born and raised. Justin names the company after his sons, Tate and Beckett, placing family at the center of the business from its beginning.

The company also begins a tradition of placing PawPaw’s Benches outside its shops, in honor of the grandfather whose belief started it all.

What began with one generation is now carried forward by the next.

The Road to 30

In May, the second Strickland Brothers location opens in King, North Carolina.

Later that year, with a vision of building a nationwide brand, Justin introduces the ‘Road to 30’ plan to expand into 30 communities within 36 months. The ambition is getting bigger, and so is the opportunity.

From Building Businesses to Building Alongside Others

Years of entrepreneurship give Justin more than experience running his own companies. They also create an opportunity to help other entrepreneurs grow theirs.

Impact Brands is a private investment company that gives early-stage, founder-led consumer brands both capital and hands-on guidance.

It represents a natural evolution in the Strickland story, from receiving an opportunity, to building from it, to helping others build from theirs.

Recognition Along the Way

As Justin’s businesses grow, so does the recognition. His accomplishments include appearing on the 2021 Forbes Next 1000, being named an EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2022 Southeast Award winner, receiving a 2022 C-Suite Award, and being recognized among North Carolina’s Most Influential People. His journey has also been featured in Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Inc.

The recognition is meaningful, but it is never the destination.

Strickland Legacy Group

As the family’s businesses, investments, real estate, partnerships, and philanthropic efforts continue to grow, so does the need to steward them with greater intention.

In 2025, Strickland Legacy Group is formally established to bring those efforts together and help guide the family’s resources, responsibilities, and long-term priorities across generations.

The family office represents something larger than preserving what has already been built.

It provides a foundation for what comes next.

• Invest patiently.
• Build responsibly.
• Give intentionally.
• Steward thoughtfully.
• Think in generations.