More than just a car wash

Our family’s roots in the car wash business go back to December 1951, when our father, Danny DiMonte, immigrated to Canada from Abruzzo, Italy, on his own at just 17 years of age.

Within days of arriving in Toronto, he began working at Crosstown Car Wash at St. Clair Avenue and Bathurst Street. He quickly became well liked and respected by the owner and within a few years, he was managing the location.

After spending decades learning every aspect of the industry, Danny was given the opportunity to purchase the business in 1977 from the original owner, Art Bennett. From that point forward, he never looked back. He continued to grow the business whenever opportunities presented themselves, with many of those purchases completed simply on a handshake and a promise.

My brother Domenic joined the business in 1982 and I followed in 1986. Growing up as the boss’s sons was not always easy and certainly came with its challenges. It could be difficult for a father to praise or discipline his children in front of other employees while still maintaining the professionalism required in the workplace.

Our dad always tried to keep work and family separate. His philosophy was simple: “Once you clock in, you’re my employee and I’m your boss.” But once the workday was over, we went home as a family, sat around the table and broke bread together.

Those early years working alongside our father gave us the opportunity to learn the business firsthand. As the years passed, we also had a front-row seat to the many changes taking place within the car wash industry.

Over the years, we have operated as many as six locations. As the industry and the GTA have evolved, some locations were expropriated, while others were sold when their leases expired. Through those changes, Crosstown continued to evolve along with the communities we served.

The car wash industry itself has changed dramatically since our beginnings in 1951. In the 1970s and 1980s, the industry was primarily made up of full-service locations, with very few exterior express operations. Today, we operate five locations, primarily as exterior express car washes, with one location continuing to offer full-service interior cleaning.

While the way we wash cars has changed, Crosstown remains very much a family business. Today, the third generation of our family is carrying that tradition forward. Domenic and Sergio’s sons Andrew and Adam, are now actively involved in the business and help manage our locations.

We are extremely proud to remain a family-run car wash business serving the GTA. What started with a 17-year-old immigrant arriving in Canada with very little has grown into a three-generation family business built on hard work, relationships, trust and a genuine passion for the industry.

We have also always believed in supporting the car wash industry as a whole. Throughout our journey, we have been fortunate to learn from many people and we are happy to share our own experience and help other operators and competitors whenever they have questions or concerns. We believe in giving back to the industry that has given our family so much.

For our family, Crosstown has always been about more than washing cars. It is a business that has grown alongside our family and alongside an industry that has changed tremendously over the past 75 years. We are proud of where we came from, grateful for the relationships we have built along the way and pleased to see the next generation carrying that legacy forward.