Todd Lyle, a Louisiana State University graduate who founded the company in 1981, recognized the need for a fast and convenient automobile car care center. Customers of Kleen Kar could receive an oil change, wash, and wax in less than 30 minutes. Kleen Kar expanded rapidly from its base in New Orleans, first by opening company-owned stores in large cities in the South such as Miami, Orlando, Atlanta, and New Orleans, and then by franchising into other southern cities and towns. Todd was a firm believer in the virtues of equity financing. Although the company had used debt financing in the early years to finance the company-owned store expansion, Todd always used Kleen Kar’s cash flows to retire the debt as soon as possible. Recent growth has occurred from franchising, where the franchisee puts up the required capital. Thus, the company has not required outside capital in several years.