Independent Collision Repair Body Shop, 51-Year D.C. Metro Operation

$6.1M

Revenue

$2.7M

SDE

2.0x

Multiple

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Full Editorial Writeup

This is a 51-year-old independent collision repair shop operating in the Washington, D.C. metro area out of Prince George's County, Maryland. The facility spans roughly 16,000 square feet with 12 bays and runs a high-volume collision operation supported by 15 full-time employees. The business does about $6M in annual revenue with reported EBITDA of $2.74M, which is a heavy 45% margin that will demand scrutiny in diligence but signals a lean, well-run shop if it holds up.

The standout marketing point is a genuine local moat: 700+ five-star Google reviews built over five decades of continuous operation. That kind of reputation is hard to replicate and is what drives walk-in and referral volume in a business where consumers rarely comparison-shop for body work. Books are kept on CCC One, the industry-standard estimating and management platform, which should make diligence cleaner than a typical owner-operator shop.

What makes this interesting to a strategic buyer is what the shop does NOT have: zero Direct Repair Program (DRP) agreements with insurers. In collision repair, DRP relationships are the volume flywheel, insurers steer claims to preferred shops. Running $6M with no DRP means the existing revenue is essentially organic, and an MSO or consolidator with insurance relationships could layer in referral volume on top of an already-profitable base. The building is leased at $16,500/month, so this is a pure operations sale.

Why we like it

Reported EBITDA of $2.74M on $6.1M revenue at a 2.01x multiple is a very cheap headline price for a shop this size, and even if the margin is overstated the entry multiple leaves real room for error. A 45% EBITDA margin on a body shop is unusually high, so the number to underwrite is the true owner-adjusted earnings, but the asking price is not demanding relative to the cash flow claimed.
Fifty-one years of continuous operation plus 700+ five-star Google reviews is a durable local moat in a business where consumers pick the nearest reputable shop and rarely switch. Collision repair is defensible because trust and location matter more than price, and this reputation cannot be bought or rebuilt quickly by a new entrant.
Collision repair is genuinely recession-resistant because accidents happen regardless of the economy and most repairs are funded by insurance rather than discretionary consumer spending. Volume tends to be stable through downturns, which supports steady cash flow and lender comfort on any acquisition debt.
The absence of any DRP agreements is the clearest upside lever in the deal: the shop hits $6M organically with no insurer-steered volume. An MSO or consolidator with existing carrier relationships could add DRP referral volume on top of the current base, effectively buying an under-optimized asset at a low multiple.
The business runs on CCC One, the industry-standard estimating and shop-management platform, which means financials and job-level data should be well structured for diligence and for a new operator to step in without rebuilding systems from scratch.

How to improve it

Pursue DRP agreements with major carriers (State Farm, GEICO, Progressive, Allstate) in the first 90 days. This is the single biggest volume lever given the shop currently operates with zero insurer relationships, and steered claims could meaningfully raise bay utilization on the existing 12-bay footprint.
Analyze cycle time and bay throughput to find capacity headroom. At $6M across 12 bays there may be room to lift volume without capital expenditure by tightening scheduling, parts procurement, and technician workflow, which drops incremental revenue straight to margin.
Lock in the lease or negotiate a longer term with renewal options before close. At $16,500/month the rent is a fixed cost the whole business depends on, and a buyer needs a long runway to protect the goodwill tied to this specific 51-year location.
Address the technician bench and any key-person risk on the 15-person team. Body shops live and die on skilled I-CAR certified techs, so retention agreements and a hiring pipeline should be in place to avoid production disruption during ownership transition.
Build a light structured sales and B2B channel targeting fleets, dealerships, and local municipalities for repeat repair volume. This adds a semi-recurring revenue layer on top of one-off retail collision work and diversifies away from pure walk-in dependency.
Formalize online lead capture and reputation management to convert the 700+ review advantage into measurable digital intake. Adding online estimate requests, response tracking, and paid local search could grow organic volume that already exists but is not being systematically harvested.
As an MSO play, use this as a hub location and evaluate bolt-on acquisitions of smaller D.C. metro shops. The clean CCC One systems and strong brand make this a credible platform anchor for a regional consolidation strategy.

Diligence notes

Interrogate the 45% EBITDA margin hard. A $2.74M EBITDA on $6.1M revenue is far above typical independent body shop margins (usually 10-20%), so confirm whether the figure includes owner add-backs, excludes market-rate management compensation, or reflects unusually favorable parts and labor economics. This is the entire deal.
Verify revenue composition and the true absence of DRP volume. Confirm the $6M is genuinely organic retail and out-of-network insurance pay, and understand whether recent revenue is stable, growing, or dependent on a few referral sources that could leave.
Assess seller and key-person dependency given the retirement-driven sale. Determine how much volume flows through the owner's personal relationships and reputation, and whether the 700+ review brand transfers cleanly or is tied to the departing owner.
Confirm lease terms, remaining duration, renewal options, and landlord relationship. Since no real estate is included and the whole operation depends on this leased 16,000 SF location, a short or non-renewable lease is a material risk to the goodwill being purchased.
Review the technician roster, I-CAR certifications, and wage structure. Skilled labor availability drives capacity, so evaluate turnover history, non-compete coverage, and whether current staffing can support both existing volume and any DRP-driven growth.
Validate the CCC One financials against tax returns and bank statements. Clean reporting software is only as good as the underlying data, so reconcile job-level revenue, parts markups, and comeback/warranty rework costs to confirm the reported profitability.

Source

Originally listed on BizBuySell. View original listing →