Community Highlights: Meet Daniel Okoniewski of Triangle Detail Pros

Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Okoniewski

Hi Daniel, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Prior to starting Triangle Detail Pros, I spent most of my professional career in elementary education and the nonprofit sector as an employee and as a founder. After five years in education I was burnt out, and after a few years as a nonprofit employee, I wanted to do more. In June of 2023 I started the Better Blood Project – a nonprofit organization that focuses on supporting (primarily) bone marrow transplant patients at Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, NC, and UNC – Chapel Hill Children’s Hospital, but also throughout the state of North Carolina. As rewarding and enjoyable as that work is, it is emotionally exhausting and I really needed to do something that I not only enjoy doing, but something that is much less emotionally draining.

After some personal reflection and brainstorming, I came up with Triangle Detail Pros – a mobile auto detailing business that comes to you when you need your vehicle washed, cleaned, and detailed. Detailing cars has always been something I’ve enjoyed, and is something I’m very good at. My experience starting the Better Blood Project helped and I was able to take what I learned in starting a nonprofit and apply it to starting a business. Starting a business certainly isn’t easy, but instead of working a normal 9 to 5, I get to work what feels like all day (haha). At the end of those “all days,” at least I get to work for myself, doing something I genuinely enjoy, all while surprising clients when they think their car can’t be saved, I make sure to save it.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I think every business owner and entrepreneur hopes their road to success is as straight and flat as possible, however I think most experiences are quite the opposite…I know mine has been. It’s been full of ups and downs, curves, bends, and false flats. There are so many obstacles and things that get in the way, but life has taught me to enjoy the process more than anything. The process is where the learning and the personal growth takes place, not to mention the development of satisfaction for yourself and for clients.

The hardest part for me has been the marketing and letting people know Triangle Detail Pros exists. I think many business owners think they’ll hand out a few business cards, make some social media posts, and next thing they know they’re off to the races. For me, it’s been the opposite. I post on social media a few times a week, hand out business cards every day, and strategically leave yard signs out at jobs and throughout the community. All that marketing certainly yields clients, but not nearly to the extent that I would have expected.

As you know, we’re big fans of Triangle Detail Pros. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Triangle Detail Pros is a mobile auto detailing business that comes to you when you need your vehicle washed, cleaned, and detailed. We have a number of detailing packages and add-on services to fit the need of every client and their vehicle. We are most known for our attention to detail and our desire to get every vehicle’s interior and/or exterior to as close to a “just out of the factory” condition as possible.

Something that sets us apart is the idea that we don’t work for the client, we work with them, and I feel we do this on many levels. We work with the client’s schedule – coming to their home or office. We make sure our work reflects what they had in mind, and we do everything we can to get their vehicle to that desired or envisioned state.

Band wise, I’m most proud of our website. It took me a few weeks to create, and as frustrating and exhausting of a process it was, I couldn’t be happier with the result. I love our logo, our colors, and just the overall look and design of not only our website, but our entire brand.

We have three interior, three exterior, and three complete detailing options. They range from a (maybe not so) basic wash to a total interior and exterior detailing where we do paint correction to remove minor scratches and swirl marks, and totally revitalize the interior with steam cleaning, carpet and seat dirt extraction, and plastic shine and protection. We also have our add-on services such as pet hair removal, car seat cleaning, and headlight restoration for cloudy headlights.

We currently have two promotions going on. Our first is our new customer discount which is 10% off any service, and the second is our two vehicle discount. For this one, we offer the same service for two vehicles (a spouse, friend, neighbor, etc) but the second vehicle is 50% off. It has to be the same service at the same location.

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
My wife deserves the most credit. She’s been with me through all the ups and down, good times and bad, has put up with me when I’m frustrated and celebrated with me when there’s reason to celebrate. As a business owner herself – CoKo Health Services – testing and diagnostic evaluation for Autism and other developmental needs, she understands how hard it can be to start and operate your own business. We really do work well together and knowing what the other has gone through or is going through has not only helped our professional journeys, but has strengthened our relationship as partners and parents.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.triangledetailpros.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/triangledetailpros