Episode 25: Write Your Own Check: An Immigrant Entrepreneur's Journey Through Towing, Auto, and Beyond

What does it take to build eight companies before the age of 30? In this episode of the SCORE Houston Podcast, host PV Bala sits down with Bahaa Elabbasi, SCORE Houston subject matter expert, who moved to the US from Lebanon at age 10, started washing cars at 13, and never stopped building.

Bahaa shares the story behind his automotive empire — from a single tow truck to four car dealerships, mechanic shops, an in-house insurance agency, and a marketing firm — all built on one guiding principle his father taught him early: write your own check.

In this conversation, you'll learn:

• How Bahaa scaled Texas Crown Towing to attract private equity investment
• Why owning every layer of your business (insurance, marketing, repairs) is a game changer
• How he manages eight companies without being the bottleneck
• The mindset shift from earning a paycheck to building ownership
• His next move: banking, investment, and a master's in finance

Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, an immigrant building your American dream, or a business owner looking to scale — this episode is for you.

🔔 Subscribe for more entrepreneur stories from SCORE Houston.

Give your comments at https://scorehoustonpodcast.blogspot.com or write to pv.bala@scorevolunteer.org. Let us know what you like of this episode and suggest subjects on which you wish to know more. 

Transcript

PV Bala 0:02

Welcome to Mentor Conversations at Score Houston, where we bring you insights and stories from our mentors. You'll hear from senior executives, entrepreneurs, and professionals who volunteer their time to guide small businesses. SCORE is America's largest network of volunteer business mentors and is supported by the U.S. Small Business Administration. In Houston, we provide free, confidential mentoring and education to help entrepreneurs start, grow, and succeed. Now, let's dive into today's mentor conversation.

Bahaa Elabbasi 0:45

Welcome to SCORE Houston Podcast. I'm your host, PV Bala. Our guest today is Bahaa Elabbasi, a SCORE Houston subject matter expert. He moved to United States from Lebanon at age 10, started washing cars at 13, and today oversees eight companies, including a Towing operation, expanding across Texas, four auto dealerships in Houston area, an international staffing company, and his own marketing and technology ventures. He studied electrical engineering in the University of Houston while running two mechanic shops at the same time. His story is one of relentless practical building, one business funding and feeding the other. Welcome, Baha, to the Score Houston podcast.

Speaker 1 1:41

Thank you for having me. It's always a pleasure to connect and mate with the members of the Score of Houston chapter. Great organization to have, and I'm very happy and excited to be a part of it.

Speaker 2 1:53

Excellent, Bahaa. Bahaa, let's start from the beginning. You came to US at the age of 10, and by 13, you're doing a lot many things, washing cars, earning money. Most kids at that age are just being kids. What where did that drive come from? How much of it traces back to your father's example?

Speaker 1 2:17

Yeah, you know, a lot of it traces back to how he leads and how he keeps kind of the family together. Entrepreneurship. I mean, I got that from him. I caught it very early around the age of 13 when I started washing cars. And that started out when my brother was working at that time, my dad was working, and I was home alone, and like I didn't want to be home alone. So that's when he actually suggested why don't you just go wash cars and make a little bit of money here and there? And coming to the US from Lebanon at a young age, I didn't have the luxury of thinking small. I saw businesses as a way to create like freedom and not just income, right? From that point on, I wasn't interested in working for money. I wanted to build a system for us, right, that made us money. I don't know if that makes sense.

Speaker 2 3:12

Yeah, sure. Typically, I was looking at your towing business, which your father was running in Lebanon. Yeah. And then despite several restrictions, I know you have seen him navigate those obstacles. Possibly those shaped the way you think about business and the odds that you may be facing when you started, possibly those helped you in surmount those business and difficulties.

Speaker 1 3:42

That's so he started the business in the towing, he started the towing business here in the US whenever he came. So in Lebanon, he was working more as a construction on the construction side of things. And due to political reasons, yes, they they lost a lot of their work. And that's when he decided to immigrate to the US. And he started on the towing side in the US. And basically, whenever we I was going to school at that time, graduated University of Houston, um, electrical engineering. And you know, we we had so much time on my hands after I graduated, and that's where in the idea to restart the towing company, the towing company that raised the family of six, basically, from just one truck. And that was kind of like I wanted to bring that back in the family and restart the whole business, right? And I mean, the business has been running for the past six years, five and a half to six years now, and it's doing great. It's doing a lot better than I thought I ever thought it would be doing. And it comes back down to the principle of doing what's right. Yup.

Speaker 2 4:51

So did you start from scratch, the towing business?

Speaker 1 4:54

Yes. I mean, the towing business did start from scratch. So we had in 2020, in the heart of COVID, I had, like I said, I had so much time on my hands. I was graduating college. You know, keep in mind, like when I was in college, I was driving back and forth from school. I finished my class, I would go back to the shop, finish the shop, go back to class, back and forth. And so when I was getting closer to graduate, I was like, okay, I need something else to do. So we started up the Towing company, and we got one truck, and uh it's been going great since then with a lot of problems, a lot of loopholes in the business, things that I did not know, that I learned as I went. But thankfully, I was very lucky to have obviously my dad on my side, but other industry leaders on my side that have educated me and uh taught me some of the things I needed to do. And I just kept on knowing, you know, excelling or adding on to the knowledge and excelling at it in a completely different direction. Now we have about 12 trucks in the Houston area alone, and like I said, we're we're looking to grow, we have been growing, and uh, there's a huge future ahead of us for Texas.

Speaker 2 6:10

Tell me uh from what I know a little about this towing business and what I read about it, it's a highly regulated, very intense business, 24-7 business. It's not an easy business to be in. Tell me how competitive the industry is and what is the scope for somebody who wants to get in. Is there an opportunity for a new entrepreneur into this?

Speaker 1 6:35

There's always an opportunity, right? If there is a will and anyone that wants to get it done, they can get it done no matter what. But as far as the company, it is. I mean, I don't mean there's alone, right? That's why we've we've built systems in place and people that can run. That's how you become successful. The company starts running on its own without you being there, right? We focus heavily on accountability, communication, and clear processes in place, and everyone knows the role, everyone is is tracked, but I'm a little bit toxic. I like to know everything about everything. So late in the night, I'll just sit down, I'll look at everyone's reports, I'll look at everyone, all the dispatch, all the calls that came in. Just I like to be involved in every way possible because this is it's kind of my hard work. The legacy that we're building, I don't want to have a bad reputation with my clients. And keep in mind that we all of our clients are high enterprise clients. One small breakdown on the side of the road. No, we deal a lot with that, yes. But a lot of our clients are enterprise clients and we have to keep the relationships. Everything is relationship-based, right? We're now we try to scale across Texas, we're doing a lot of testing with our marketing material and seeing what markets are kind of call for or attract my kind of appetite and see what's what kind of makes sense, where it expands to, who has the call volume in their area, and they can't secure those jobs because they're they're just don't know about business or marketing or or structures and systems and pricing. So the whole industry is very lucrative at this time, right now. You get into towing, you can get into mechanic shops from there, you can get into car dealerships from there, you can get into so many different businesses that tie into the automotive business, right? There's so many doors to be opened just from that one business. Keep expanding and keep growing. Like I said, the sky is the limit, and and when you set a limit to yourself, that's when you start failing, right?

Speaker 2 8:39

That's interesting. Made a note that you have a strong auto dealership, also, yes, a good used car business. I have some clients, two clients I had who specifically wanted to get into used car business, but I know it is not an easy one because there are many, and you will be able to better explain how this business works, what an entrepreneur needs to have his hands on. What is the hook? How do the money actually come in and go? Where do you make the money? So, what are the critical factors of a used car business?

Speaker 1 9:17

Used car dealer is the main factor you have to understand the market. Where are the cars going for today? You have to understand do I buy today or do I buy tomorrow? When do I buy? When do I sell? You have to understand.

Speaker 2 9:31

But isn't it? Sorry, isn't the buying always on auction?

Speaker 1 9:35

Yeah, we buy our vehicles from auctions, correct. But we're talking about business to consumer now, right? Even with auctions, sometimes the prices of the vehicles are overpriced, right? You can't sell it retail and make money off of it because it's already inflated at the auction. So that's what I mean. Like right now, it's tax season. Uh, the prices of vehicles are over what you would usually pay for around October, November, December time, right? So a lot of it you have to understand and learn when do you stock up on vehicles and when do you actually stop buying vehicles, right? In order to be successful. But I mean, a lot of it also relies on relationships. Again, banks, investors, floor plans, credit lines in order to supply, otherwise, you're gonna need a lot of cash to be in that business.

Speaker 2 10:30

But yeah, in fact, that's one of the points the client also had. So are there people financing used car business? Supposing somebody wants, you know, borrow money. Is there funding available for there is?

Speaker 1 10:46

Yes, but you gotta have money to to get the funding, right? So, I mean, whenever we started, we did not have the money, but we started small. We started one car, then two cars, and three cars, and now they have four car dealerships, right? And I mean, we're just excelling at what we do because we do the right thing, and so it just a lot of people they want to get into business and they go in, they open up their first company and they say, Okay, now I'm rich. Like they they expect to be rich right away. No, it doesn't work like that.

Speaker 2 11:17

A lot of time why do you have four car dealership? And what is the point in having separate segments?

Speaker 1 11:23

Okay, yeah, so so a couple of different dealerships focus on different markets, right? So different cities, different markets, and different. So, like for example, here in the Sugarland area, we have a lot of the trucks. We have trucks, we focus on trucks and luxury vehicles, right? You have one dealership that's further down in the Houston market, they focus a lot a little bit more on the cash vehicles, anywhere from five to about fifteen thousand dollars range, and then you have the one closer to the gallery area. This one is more luxury/slash heavy-duty trucks, diesel trucks, because that's you you basically different vehicles that attract your different audiences, right? You we don't you can't limit your market, you gotta cater for everyone, everyone is a client. If they have ten dollars or they have a hundred dollars, everyone is a client, right? Cater for everyone.

Speaker 2 12:18

Market segments basically, so hence the dealership are also segmented accordingly. Tell me, is it kind of a necessity to have a garage repair shop if you are going to be in the used car business?

Speaker 1 12:32

Well, 100%. I mean, so we first started with a mechanic shop in 2016. We found an opportunity, we bought a mechanic shop, that was the first thing we ever bought, and that's how it all started. So we needed a way. So, whenever we bought the shop, we were very slow, we had no customers, no one knew us, and it's it was very tough. We were losing a lot of money initially, but one way to keep everyone employed was we needed to get the work in. How do you get the work in? Well, now we went out, we got our auction license. After we get our auction license, we started buying vehicles and repairing our own vehicles. So we kept the guys at the shop employed repairing our own vehicles, and that's kind of where the idea of dealership started. And now until today, we still have that mechanic shop and it's working. We repair the vehicles, we bought the shop and everything. So, yeah, I mean, that's kind of how we started. Yes. I mean, like I said earlier, a lot of the one one door opens up another door, and that's how you kind of expand, and you gotta have that vision and that that motivation and the hustle that you want more, you can't settle for what you had.

Speaker 2 13:47

Like you said, one business leads to another, and you shot at the inhouse insurance brokerage, also. Yes, yeah, and so I can see that one leading to the other. So, what are the logic here? What are the advantages?

Speaker 1 14:02

Okay, so I had a lot of issues with previous insurance agents in the past, and I've always wanted to be an insurance, but I started having a lot of issues with agents telling me things that they think that I would actually believe, and it's I wouldn't believe it because I've studied insurance in the past, but just never pulled the trigger. And so in 2023, I was I went uninsured for like two, three months, which was a big risk for me. And this is when I kind of called it off that I'm gonna go do this myself. So I went out, got my insurance license, and this year I was actually able to insure our toy company and make obviously less premium and make a little bit more money off of the commission that it comes with it as well, like taking money from one pocket, putting it back into another pocket. So that's kind of how the insurance company started, but now we actually have producers that are riding insurance for all the car dealerships, for car dealerships, right? So all of our businesses are running through me now. Well, not specifically through me. I have somebody else that kind of runs the show, and uh and all the dealerships they use them to our own insurance. Like customers come in, they buy vehicles, they have to have an insurance before they pull out. So we write their insurance policy right away. And I mean, it's perfect because the producer that we have now will cater for if the if the dealer is open until 12 a.m. in the morning trying to close the deal, they're open, they're closing the deal with insurance at 12 a.m. in the morning, right? Yeah, and that's kind of the uh the uh the good thing about it, right?

Speaker 2 15:42

So that completes the loop starting with towing and then auto dealership, mechanic, garage, then insurance. I think you are covered the whole gamut of let's say automotive business, yeah.

Speaker 1 15:57

Now the good thing about it is a lot of the things that I really want to do, I don't have to wait on anyone, I just get it done, right? If I need a certificate of insurance, I'm licensed. I can do my own certificate of insurance. I don't need to wait on anyone, and that's kind of luxury what comes out with it. It is stressful, it's something that's not easy, and like I said earlier, when you have the will to do something, just you just do it, right? You know, it doesn't become work anymore, it just feels natural. You just stay busy.

Speaker 2 16:25

I also noticed that in 2026, you have the dieselshopmarketing.com. What is it actually? I'm trying to understand how does it help? What does it do?

Speaker 1 16:38

So diesel shop marketing came in play beginning of 2026 because we have a marketing agency as well that I started about a year and a half ago, two years ago. And the marketing agency basically for it obviously advertises for all of our business. Like I said earlier, I don't like to rely on anyone else anymore. I like to take things into my own hands. So I went, I kind of learned marketing, the basics of marketing here and there, and then I hired an expert. And now we took the marketing for our toying company in-house, and we do it in-house that saves us a lot of money doing it in-house. Not only do I do the marketing in-house for my own companies, like the body shop, the auto repair shops, the dealerships, the towing company, but also uh now we are offering it on referral base only for other mechanic shops and fleet roadside assistance companies along with toying companies, because we have tested the systems that we have in place, and I've seen a huge amount of success. And the only reason why we're offering it on a referral base only is because I don't want to, we're not gonna go out and approach our competitors and say, hey, let me do the marketing for you, but it'll be more on a referral base only. It's it's a really good system. I've never seen results the way that I do today than I did ever before. And I used to pay these companies like four or five, six thousand dollars on a retainer monthly. And uh yeah, it kind of one business opens up the other, you start looking for how do you save money, how do you become more cost efficient, right? And how do you become more profitable but have better quality, and that's what I'm after. Being more profitable and better quality at the same time.

Speaker 2 18:23

See, and fortunately with AI now, a lot of this marketing and advertisement becomes a lot more simple, also. Yes, limit. So you save as such a lot of money by using these tools yourself. Yes, 100%. Tell me you have eight companies, many entrepreneurs that SCORE is handling would be just starting with one and struggling with one. Then how do you manage to distribute your time over eight oversee these eight companies effectively without you being a bottleneck?

Speaker 1 19:01

Now I'm at the point where I don't even check in on all the companies at all. Obviously, like my brother, who he handles the uh the car business, right? The uh used car dealers, that's his section, his domain, along with the body shops. I handle the mechanic shops, the toy company, the insurance and the marketing. And even with that, like I don't even check in on a daily basis anymore. This is when you have really good operators with you working that actually care about your business, and they they get excited about the initiative that what you're building and how their life is progressing. I think that that's what it's all about is that excitement and the obsession that they end up getting. I'd rather, for example, I'd rather partner up with a someone that's obsessed with my vision and my criteria and my business and access their own business than anyone that would come in and just wants to work, right? And that's kind of the key factor finding that person that you and him see eye to eye in the right time. I've been lucky to find a lot of those guys, a lot of people that care. Believe it or not, even if if people leave me and quit and go work for somebody else, they always come back. And I love when that happens because I get to rub it in. Like I just you guys always come back. We have a different environment here, you'll never find it somewhere else, right? And I'm 28, yes, I'm financially stable. My ego doesn't get to me. I act as a normal human being. I am a normal human being, right? And that's kind of like that that does speak volume to to the kind of the environment that we have for everyone here, and everyone that knows me. I mean, it's it's it's been going great, I can tell you. Right?

Speaker 2 20:49

Beautiful, beautiful. Tell me, I also heard that that your Texas Crown Towing, as this is your primary company, I would say, most profitable. It has attracted interest from a private equity firm, and that will be of great interest where you continue to be the CEO. How is that shaping up and what is going to happen there?

Speaker 1 21:12

So there's there's still a lot of talks on it. I believe the deal is gonna be funded and closed soon. We're still in the process of of finishing negotiation and things like that. There's also negotiation about the CEO or the COO title. There's not been changed changes since last time we discussed. Okay. And there's there's a lot of a lot of things, a lot of moving pieces right now for the business. But the main good part about the partnership with these guys is they're younger guys, they match the same attitude as me, right? They're a group of three guys, they they've had experience in the auto field through mechanic shops currently. And I just see a hustle mindset. With them, right? And uh there's they just they're out there trying to prove themselves as well and make money, and uh, this is this is gonna be their second project is the towing platform, yeah. I think it's gonna go out, it's it's gonna be smooth, it's gonna be good, and uh a lot to happen. But one thing that I'm thankful for is they definitely introduced me to a world I never thought I could be actually be part of banking and investments.

Speaker 2 22:26

That's great. Tell me, you also mentioned, which was pretty impressive. Your father told you to write your own check rather than wait for someone to pay you. That's a very powerful line. Tell me you also coming as an Arab immigrant entrepreneur to Houston. What is it that you can advise the others similar like you, immigrant entrepreneurs? Yes, so coming in.

Speaker 1 22:51

Writing somebody else's paycheck, that advice, like it did change everything for me. Most people like they get they wait to get paid. Like my father taught me to think the opposite. Like, I put myself in a position where I'm the one creating the opportunities for paying people and building something bigger than myself or anyone, it's really more about ownership, right? Once you shift your mindset from like earning to creating, it changes your whole life perspective, right? I do like to be in in control of that, and I think that's kind of what shapes my motivation and that shapes my personality, to be honest with you, is having the final say on things that needs to be done is is something that's big for me. I've always had the final say and it just it just who I am. Having ownership is something like I said earlier, like once you shift your mindset from earning to creating changes your whole perspective because it's not about money anymore, it's about the value that you're bringing into your life and someone else's life is about.

Speaker 2 24:07

Tell me the last question what is the future for you as a person and for the company that you are running now?

Speaker 1 24:14

Future for me, I'm really thinking about going back to school and getting a master's in finance to accelerate possible my future career in banking and investment.

Speaker 2 24:31

Okay.

Speaker 1 24:37

And I don't like limitation. If I don't have something and somebody else has it, I'm gonna go and get it. I don't care how old I am. Yeah, so most definitely I'm thinking about schooling, depending on how my work goes or the deals goes in the next month or so. Banking and finance, that's for sure. That's the first step into a new career, I guess. Because I already know the operational side. I would like to know the finance side of it, which is big. I really never cared for it as much as I care about it now. And then business-wise, partner up with a great great group of guys for Texas Crown Touring, and just continue building a platform that we have been talking about for over the next couple of years and C C where life takes us, really. But banking and investment is is both sides, banking and investment. Texas Crown touring will be involved one way or another in with investment companies and with equity firms, and uh personally banking and investment. I think that's where I need to.

Speaker 2 25:43

Certainly, I see the passion when you talk about that.

Speaker 1 25:46

Yeah, I'm telling you, my life is light up and just it the excitement kicks in, and uh, it's just I don't know. It's I'm telling you, it's a whole new world that I never even considered, even but it's something that I'm will not let go easily, that's for sure.

Speaker 2 26:04

Okay, wish you good luck and thanks for coming to the podcast. Really grateful to you for that. It is very just quite impressive. I'm sure listeners will have a lot to takeaway from you. I appreciate you guys having me. Thank you.

Speaker 26:23

Thanks for listening to Mentor Conversations at Score Houston. If you're an entrepreneur or small business owner, we'd love to support your journey. You can reach us at 713-487-6565, or visit us at 8701-South Gestner, suite 1200, Houston, Texas 77074. Our office is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., except for federal holidays. Walk-ins are always welcome. To learn more, to request free mentoring, or to register for workshops, visit us online at score.org slash Tuesday. Until next time, keep learning, keep growing, and remember, at Score, we're here to help you thrive.