•Product: Auto repair and oil change service.
•Background: For Philip Porter, opening a family business in Oklahoma City has been good for his family — and his business.
Oklahoma City's family-friendly atmosphere enticed him to purchase an auto repair shop in 2004 and move from Los Angeles with his wife and five children.
"I love it here. People are warm, friendly. Los Angeles is a big city and people for the most part don't care,” he said.
Porter's two oldest sons now work with him at the business, Sandy Auto Service and Speedy Lube: an auto repair shop, convenience store and gas station.
The boys, ages 16 and 19, attend school and are training to become auto mechanics.
Sandy Auto Service specializes in European and import cars, and Porter gets most of his business through referrals, he said.
For Porter, who emigrated to the United States from the Philippines in 1992, owning his own business is a dream come true.
He began working on cars after high school, first for friends and family, and then at other repair shops in Tulsa and in Los Angeles.
When the opportunity arose to buy an existing auto repair shop in Oklahoma City, he jumped on it.
"It's my passion,” he said. "I love cars.”
Porter is always at his shop during business hours, personally inspecting and supervising the repair work that is done.
Business Writer Jennifer Palmer