• AAA projects at least 73 million Americans will travel by car over the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday period (Tuesday, Nov. 25 to Monday, Dec. 1). That’s 1.30 million more people on the road compared to last Thanksgiving.
• Over the 2024 Thanksgiving holiday period, AAA responded to nearly 600,000 emergency roadside assistance calls to help stranded drivers with issues like dead batteries, flat tires and empty fuel tanks.
• Chris Chesney has announced his retirement from Repairify, adding that he will continue to be involved in the industry “in advisory and opportunities that are meaningful.” At Repairify, Chesney served as vice president of industry relations and, before that, vice president of training and organizational development. Notably, he is the former senior director of customer training for the Carquest Technical Institute.
• Frank Petrane has announced that, after 20 years, his career with Maaco and Driven Brands has come to an end. Petrane had been brand president for Maaco Franchising and, before that, senior vice president of Driven Fleet, North America. His background also includes time as vice president of Maaco Fleet Solutions, North America.
• Take 5 Oil Change has retained Dagger and Dentsu X as its creative and media agencies of record, respectively, according to Adweek.
• Anyline has announced upgrades to its TireBuddy app, including an AI assistant that auto-fills inspection notes with tire condition insights, flags potential damage and improves technician-to-customer communication. The revamped app also includes tips and walkthroughs for new users as well as a new odometer scanner.
• OpenRoad Collision has added Frank’s Collision Repair, a nine-location multi-shop operator (MSO) serving the Houston area. The move brings OpenRoad’s network to 37 shops across Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona.
