Judy Curry, co-founder and vice president of marketing for Curry's Auto Service in Sterling, Va., has been named one of the "Influential Women of Virginia" by Virginia Lawyers Weekly.
The awards recognize outstanding efforts of women in numerous fields, including law, business, heath care, education and the arts. The honors are given to individuals who are making notable contributions to their professions, their communities and society at large. Fifty women from across the Commonwealth of Virginia were selected for this honor.
Curry was recognized last year as one of the 2009 Women Who Mean Business by the Washington Business Journal. Curry and her husband Matt incorporated Curry’s Auto Service in 1997 and opened their first facility in Chantilly, Va., in March 1998. In 11 years, they have expanded operations to five facilities throughout Northern Virginia.
Today, Curry's Auto Service is one of the largest and most successful independent automotive service and repair companies in the Washington, D.C., area with locations in Arlington, Chantilly, Falls Church, Gainesville and Great Falls/Reston. In June 2010, Curry's was chosen by the readers of Northern Virginia Magazine as "Top Auto Shop" in Northern Virginia.
“We’ve come a long way,” says Curry. “We started with $25,000 in personal savings, a family loan of $35,000 and maxed out 13 credit cards to get our first facility off the ground. Every time we got another credit card offer, it went towards a new piece of equipment. We were young and felt we could take the risk. When we opened, I wore many hats – from managing the back office operations to bookkeeping to marketing. Today, I champion our marketing and community relations, which is work I love to do.”
Over the past year, Curry has taken on a more visible leadership role, spearheading an innovation program to attract more women patrons. With 60 percentof car maintenance decisions made by women, she recognizes the value in addressing the unique needs of women drivers and providing a higher standard of service. She was instrumental in Curry’s Auto Service becoming the first auto service facility in Virginia to receive the AskPatty "female friendly facility" certification. As part of this program, Curry’s customers have access to an online community providing impartial advice to women on auto purchases, repairs and maintenance.
Curry serves on the national AskPatty Board of Advisors, where she donates time providing car advice to women across the country. All of the company’s managers completed an AskPatty training program and Curry’s Auto Service revamped their customer waiting areas to make them more ‘family friendly’ with books, toys and PlayStation2 to entertain kids of all ages.
For more information, visit www.currysauto.com.
