Levi McClendon's journey reminds us that true achievement isn’t overnight — it’s built one day, one choice and one value-driven step at a time.
When Levi McClendon started OptSpot in 2013, even he can admit, "It was pretty crazy." He and his wife Jenny were raising nine children, including a set of five-year old sextuplets. Their youngest, Cash, was just three days old.
An ideal foundation for starting a progressive new business — or finding the finances and time to support its growth? Definitely questionable.
But, McClendon’s contract as a senior vice president with a large marketing company — which previously had acquired an SMS marketing business that McClendon had co-founded — unexpectedly had not been renewed. And, while he had the concept for OptSpot in place, he hadn’t raised any money yet to launch it.
Fortunately, the couple was fully committed to each other and their belief in the promise of the business. So, during the day, Levi would make door-to-door sales calls in search of clients for OptSpot, while Jenny remained at home to care for the children.
A few weeks after their ninth child was born, they figured out a system so Jenny could go back to work to help support them as well. She would work the swing shift at the local emergency room as a physician’s assistant, and Levi would fix dinner, tell the kids stories, play games with them, bathe them and marshal all nine of them to bed. Once the children were securely headed for dream land, Levi would settle at his computer and work on his business until 2 or 3 in the morning, when Jenny would return home from her job.
The couple would catch up with each other in the quiet wee hours and then go to bed. After some precious, all-too-brief sleep, they would wake up to their bustling family and do it all over again.
“We started with nothing, but we just kept going and doing,” Levi said.
Today, OptSpot is a thriving a digital marketing company with almost 40 employees that services more than 1,500 car wash locations, and its more modest beginnings remain a critical part of the company’s DNA.
“Nobody really sees what it takes to build a successful business,” McClendon said. “But if you work hard and show up every day putting one foot in front of the other, then there’s hope.”
McClendon remained OptSpot’s only team member, continuing to work his demanding schedule, for about a year before he had secured enough clients to hire his first employee, Jeremy Renken, who today is his partner in the business. Together, McClendon and Renken worked long hours in the coming years to strengthen OptSpot’s foothold, “grinding it out day after day,” McClendon said. At times, they thought a big break was imminent, but it repeatedly eluded them. When the big break did finally arrive, one that would propel the business to new heights, it came from a decidedly unexpected direction.
From left to right: Jeremy Renken, Jenny McClendon & Levi McClendon
A SURPRISING FOOTHOLD
In those early days, one of OptSpot’s most effective tools was placing iPads on restaurant counters to allow customers to enter their phone number and track their loyalty points rather than use paper punch cards. When someone from Cobblestone Car Wash in Arizona noticed one of the firm’s iPads, they contacted OptSpot about applying their technology to the car wash space. McClendon made it work, and word of mouth soon led other washes to come calling.
Tyler Slaughter from Camel Express Car Wash in Tennessee eventually approached Renken with a problem. Too many of the wash’s customers were letting their memberships lapse because their credit cards on file had expired. Slaughter asked Renken if OptSpot could send a text message to customers simply prompting them to update their credit card. OptSpot created a system to solve the issue, and it was a game-changer for Camel, sharply reducing a preventable cause of churn.
Slaughter recognized the rich possibilities in his industry and convinced McClendon and Renken to attend The Car Wash Show in Nashville in May 2019.
“We were busy the entire time,” McClendon said. “It was crazy. Our booth was just packed.”
McClendon was captivated by the event’s lively atmosphere. “There was a lot of energy,” he said. “A lot of buzz.” He also recognized a gap that OptSpot could fill.
This is an excerpt of an article from CAR WASH Magazine.
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