The Blend Podcast

Scaling your independent garage from a couple of ramps to a double-digit team sounds like the ultimate growth milestone, but rapid expansion has a habit of exposing every single crack in your business. If you are still...

In our industry, men have traditionally been told to just 'get on with it' and that they certainly should not show weakness. But as we all know, today's workshops require a very different kind of leadership. Today...

Are you running a garage business, or just a very stressful job? In this episode of The Blend Podcast, host Mike Ruff sits down with Barry Lawson of Lawson Autotech for a candid look at the "isolation trap" that many...

This week’s episode of The Blend Podcast is a special one. Released just before The Blend 2025, it’s all about community, connection, and why this event means so much to independent garage owners across the UK and...

If you’ve ever thought about taking on fleet work but aren’t quite sure where to start, or maybe you’re already doing it and want to take it further, then Tim Guidotti’s session at The Blend later this month is one you...

In this episode of The Blend Podcast, host Mike Ruff welcomes on Tim Benson of Oldfields Garage in Herefordshire, a multi-award-winning independent garage and respected voice in the industry. Together, they explore the...

In this episode of The Blend Podcast, host Mike Ruff sits down with returning guest Dean Lomas to dive deep into the 'rollercoaster' of running, and rapidly expanding, an independent garage business. It comes ahead of...

As independent garage owners look ahead to The Blend conference this October, Emma Lindley of Lindleys Autocentres features in the latest episode of The Blend Podcast to discuss how front-of-house teams can transform a...

As excitement builds for The Blend 2025, we’re pleased to welcome on a group of inspiring women who are leading the way. We're joined by Tina Drayson of CCM Garages, Kirsty Watson from Autocentre, Claire Cleevely of...

In this episode of The Blend Podcast, host Mike Ruff is joined by fellow Blend Awards judges Hayley Pells, Policy and Public Affairs Lead at the IMI, and Andy Crook of Atomic Success. Together, they lift the lid on the...

In this episode of The Blend Podcast, we’re diving into the MOT slowdown and how, five years on, the COVID ‘hangover’ is still hitting independent garages. And it might be around for longer than you think. We’re joined...

With National Insurance and apprentice pay increases coming in April, it’s a time when many garage owners will be thinking about how to best manage these changes while keeping their teams motivated and their businesses...

In this episode of The Blend Podcast, host Mike Ruff welcomes some members of the Garage Hive team to dive into some truly game-changing features that are revolutionising independent garage businesses. Join Garage...

Diagnostic legend and a industry forward-thinker, James Dillon joins us for the final episode of the year to get into a topic that genuinely has the potential to transform how workshops operate and approach vehicle...

Our latest guest is Dave Massey. He's a man whose journey has taken him from his family’s roots in the trade, to running a booming business, and facing some of the toughest mental challenges along the way. It’s an...