NOLN @ twenty-five years ~ special commemorative feature
Setting the Pace
A Quarter Century
of NOLN Firsts
by Kara Bishop ~ NOLN Staff Writer ~ kara.bishop@noln.net
W
e’re rightfully proud of the work we’ve done here at
National Oil & Lube News (which started out as The
National Oil & Lube News, incidentally) during the
past quarter-century, and even though I’m the greenest mem-
ber on staff, it was enlightening to discover all the interesting
ways this publication has grown and changed.
One thing has remained constant through the years: we’ve
never stopped serving the fast lube industry by supplying the
news and information that will benefit and improve business
for fast lube owners. NOLN has always had the industry’s best
interest in mind, something that will continue to be a priority
for the next 25 years and beyond.
Let’s look at some of the “firsts” in NOLN history:
First Issue
The first issue was a mere four pages published in July/Au-
gust 1986. It was a non-bound newspaper/tabloid-style pub-
lication (though printed on better-than-newsprint paper) that
featured a profile on Hugo Bustamante, a fast lube owner in El
Paso, Texas. Other items included in the issue were a discus-
sion on the makeup of crude oil, as well as a classifieds sec-
tion (that was largely fictional!). There was also a letter from
the publishers, Steve Hurt and David Arrington, announcing
NOLN’s arrival.
First Advertisement
The second issue (September/October 1986) included (thank-
fully) the first advertiser to grace the pages of NOLN: Castrol.
It was a full-page advertisement that described why lube op-
erators should “change your oil.” Castrol wouldn’t be the last
advertiser to grace our pages, and without the lasting relation-
ship we’ve had with literally hundreds of industry vendors, we
wouldn’t be where we are today.
First Letter to the Editor
A letter, or I guess I should say letters, to the editor was first
published in the November/December 1986 issue. Praises
came from fast lube presidents, operators and owners who
were all excited to see a publication directly related to their
industry.
We like the praises and a pleased audience; however, we ac-
cept the complaints, too. We’re not shy about accepting criti-
cism; indeed, it is the pointers and suggestions we’ve received
from our many readers that has made us the magazine we are
today, and we hope you’ll keep those suggestions and criti-
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cisms coming. (Although we’d still love to see some praises,
too!) They help us better serve our readers.
First Survey
The first “Top 10” (aka Tops in
the Industry) list made its debut
in the May 1987 issue. At the
time, we listed both the top 10
independent lube chains as well
as the top 10 franchised chains.
Jiffy Lube was the leading fran-
chise company with 550 stores, a
far cry from the more than 2,000
franchised facilities the company
had in our 2011 Tops in the In-
dustry Rankings!
First Products & Services
What was then called the “New Products” feature (it later be-
came the “Products & Services” feature you know today) first
appeared in the April 1987 issue and featured a whopping two
products (from the same company): SAF-T-Bay and SAF-T-
COVER to reduce the risks of uncovered service bays.
First Staff Box
The first staff box appeared in the January 1988 issue, finally
allowing readers to put names to the people responsible for
putting NOLN together every month. The first staff list pub-
lished included Steve Hurt (publisher) and Barbara Tinsley
(editor).
First “Around the Industry” Feature
Our first ATI feature hit the scenes in the December 1988 is-
sue. That inaugural article consisted of five items on the ex-
pansion of fast lube operations, something we noted time and
again in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s as the fast
lube industry grew rapidly.
First “Operators Survey”
As a chronicler of the industry, it only made sense that we
would begin tracking the operational data important to lube
operators. Thus was born our first “Fast Lube Operators Sur-
vey” in the August 1989 issue, a report that shared data on
such industry metrics as average car count (43.5), LOF price
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 NOLN @ twenty-five years ~ special commemorative feature
($20.82) and ticket average ($24.71). That simple survey has now
evolved into what is annually the most entailed analysis of the fast
lube industry readers will find anywhere.
First Operator of the Year
Despite its singular title, there were two men honored with what we
call our Operator of the Year award, first featured in the February
1990 issue. Joe Haggard, operator of Pro Lube in Florida (and since
retired), and Art Lukowski, operator of Oil Express in Illinois (and
since deceased), were chosen for the contributions they had made
to a fledgling industry.
In addition, we honored W.J. Hindman, one of the founders of
Jiffy Lube International, for his work in making Jiffy Lube the in-
dustry’s biggest company. According to that 1990 article, each of
the men, “maintained an exemplary image, having achieved many
successes personally as well as those benefitting the entire industry.”
First TechSpec
The first “Tech Spec” feature was published in October 1990, in
what was then called the Chek-Chart Tech Column. That inaugural
feature detailed factory-recommended service intervals and lubri-
cants for the brand-new 1990 Range Rover, something the modern
TechSpec features continue to do.
First Advertisers Index
The first advertisers index was
published in December 1992,
and included 43 advertisers,
among them companies like Co-
lonial Label, Devon, ISI, Mighty,
Sage, Service Champ and Quak-
er State (Shell) that continue to
advertise to this day.
First Bound Issue
We actually achieved two firsts
with our January 1998 issue:
first “bound” magazine-style is-
sue (though still in tabloid size)
and first use of full color on our
cover and a few interior pages. We would continue as a full-color
tabloid-size magazine for five more years, until the modern NOLN
was born. More on that later.
First Best-Looking Lube
The first “beauty contest” for fast lubes was published in our No-
vember 1999 issue. The winner of that inaugural contest was Fas-
Trak Oil & Lube Supercenter in Middletown, New Jersey.
First Website
www.noln.net is born! The year 2000 was kicked off with a bang as
NOLN announced its foray into the World Wide Web in the Janu-
ary issue. Our goal was to create a website that would allow readers
access to the same great content featured in our print magazine,
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plus article archives and other great tidbits only found online.
Our digital side has grown by leaps and bounds in the decade-
plus since, as we now feature an electronic “ePub” version of NOLN,
email newsletters featuring breaking news stories, a blog, social me-
dia and more.
First Automotive Recalls Feature
A helpful tool, the Automotive Recalls feature, was first published
in the January 2001 issue. This article included information on ve-
hicles recalled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administra-
tion, why those vehicles were recalled and how lube operators could
help their customers take care of the problem.
First Briefcase-Friendly Issue
Like I mentioned before, we became the magazine we are today
with the introduction of the January 2003 issue. Gone was the tab-
loid size, replaced by a smaller, more briefcase-friendly publication
that was a big hit with readers, eliciting months of appreciative let-
ters to the editor from readers.
First “Buyers Guide”
Our separate “Buyers Guide” made its debut in 2003. This special
publication was created so fast lube operators searching for a par-
ticular product or service could easily find and contact representa-
tives of industry vendors that provided those products or services.
That inaugural issue consisted of four sections: “Manufacturer &
Distributor Listings,” “Index of Products,” “Article Index” (a listing
of articles published in NOLN during the preceding year) and “Fast
Lube Start-up Plans”, a listing of branded, turnkey and franchised
programs available to current and prospective lube operators. Now
in its eighth year, the Buyers Guide has evolved into the Fast Lube
Industry Source Book & Technical Guide, and is published each year
in June. (Coincidentally, you should have received yours with this
issue of NOLN!)
First Editorial
It was eventually decided that NOLN,
like all magazines, needed a face, and so
Garrett McKinnon (as the editor) began
penning an editorial that first started
with the January 2005 issue. He titled
that first feature “Confessions of a Re-
formed DIYer” and chronicled his tra-
vails as a person who grew up changing
his own oil (with the scars to prove it)
but changed to the installed market for
the sheer convenience of it.
It’s hard to believe so much time has
passed since NOLN was founded (es-
pecially for me, since I wasn’t born yet),
but we look forward to achieving many
more “firsts” in the decades to come. S
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