Few people know that the all-powerful French Muillez family, owner of a vast distribution empire led by Alcampo, Decathlon, Kiabi and Leroy Merlin, is also behind the network of Midas workshops (and the Norauto or Carter Cash automobile centers). In the automotive branch alone, the French group’s companies employ 24,000 people around the world. But Midas is, in Spain, a still modest network of workshops: it has a market share of 1%, 202 establishments, and employs about 800 people. With American origin, it passed through the hands of Fiat until the Mulliez bought the rights to exploit the brand for Europe and several African countries in 2004 through its subsidiary Mobivian: «Midas is a local workshop. We are a little different with respect to the group’s distribution model,» explains Vicente Pascual, general director in the country. He says this because their growth is based on franchises (96% of their network is in the hands of franchisees) and they only have seven own workshops. Most of its partners (they have 125, since some have more than one workshop) are small businessmen who have worked at Midas and have become independent. He calls it the “social elevator model”: many mechanics become entrepreneurs under this umbrella. In other cases, these are people outside the business, but interested in cars, who prefer to risk less and stick to the brand because it gives them brand coverage and advice. There are also those who have related businesses and want to diversify. And to a lesser extent there are even pure investors who are only looking for shelter for their money. The Midas manager also started as a brake mechanic in 1992 when, after completing an automotive vocational training, he went to work in a workshop in Aluche (Madrid). Little by little he rose through the ranks in the company until he reached the management committee and since October 2024 he has been at the reins of the group. Their job consists, among other things, of serving franchisees, offering them support and training plans. In its last fiscal year (2025), which ends in September, the turnover amounted to 92.4 million euros. «We have had historic results, we grew 12% with an EBITDA on sales of 11% and we continue in the same dynamic. It is a reflection of the sector, which is working very well,» he explains. This advance is due to inflation and organic growth. The aging of the car fleet is multiplying visits to the mechanic: the Anfac employer’s association estimates that it is already 14.5 years when in 2008, for example, the average age was 8.4 years. The associates pay Midas 5% of the turnover, which on average amounts to 520,000 euros per workshop, as royalties. «Our intention is for the franchisee to sell as much as possible and, in the future, when the investment has been amortized, think about opening a second or third center, think about growing. We go hand in hand, if they do well, so will we, and vice versa.» Each workshop, between 300 and 400 square meters, employs an average of 4.2 people. «When we propose any type of strategy, we work on it with them. If the business is not profitable you have very short legs, the franchisee will terminate the contract and will not renew.» Far from it, they boast that they have a 95% renewal rate. Last year they closed seven centers and opened 15. The Midas workshops offer fast mechanics, friendly service and prices, they say, that are up to 40% lower than the competition. Maintenance (filter changes, oil, tires) are the heart of your business. They can inspect virtually all models and brands, including hybrids and electrics, but they also perform comprehensive maintenance and any type of repair, mechanical or electronic. Where they do not enter is in the increasingly popular second-hand sale, a complement that does represent a good business avenue in the sector. The situation favors them, but Pascual regrets that the uncertainty about the transition to cleaner vehicles and the prices of new cars are slowing down the renewal of the fleet. «We have 23 million cars, more or less a million are sold every year. We would need 20 years to rotate the entire fleet. That is assuming that the million sold are hybrids or electric.» The good news is that more and more women are deciding to open a workshop. In your case they are close to 20%.
Training
The manager is obsessed by the lack of personnel. The worker turnover rate has gone from 10% to around 20% in its centers. «It’s outrageous. There are franchisees who would open one more workshop, or two, but they have problems with the equipment.» However, the solution is not easy nor will it be immediate. They have created a common employment portal to encourage the entry of workers. At the same time, Pascual talks about the need for an effort in public policies to recover the figure of the apprentice in the workshops. «An officer costs the same as hiring an untrained internship boy. The figure of the apprentice must be regulated, their cost has to be lower.» He also calls for eliminating bureaucracy to hire immigrants. «We are tired of saying it: there is a market outside, people who are willing to work in Spain, prepared and skilled mechanics, who with a little training in European vehicles can do a good job. The State has to help expedite procedures.» And, of course, more FP cycles. “Without a doubt it is the workhorse of the coming years.” The future, in any case, looks bright. Midas, he believes, should reach the same market share (2%) that it has in France in 10 years, with between 350 and 400 workshops. «It assumes a growth rate of between 15-20 centers per year, and we are making between 10 and 15 openings. We have to press the accelerator.» Mechanic’s word.
