Summit Wash Holdings hires Todd Trewhella as chief development officer

Summit Wash Holdings has named Todd Trewhella as its chief development officer, placing a veteran retail real estate executive in charge of the company's growth strategy. The membership-focused operator runs washes across Connecticut, New York, Nebraska, Missouri, and Florida.

In the new role, Trewhella will oversee real estate strategy, site acquisition, new construction, and portfolio expansion, according to reporting from Car Wash Business Center. The hire signals that the company intends to keep pushing on both new builds and acquisitions as it scales.

A retail development background

Trewhella brings more than 20 years of development and market strategy experience from Fortune 500 companies including Starbucks, McDonald's, and BP. He spent 19 years at Starbucks, where he managed store development across real estate, construction, and facilities for a portfolio of more than 5,000 retail assets in the eastern half of the United States. He holds an MBA in finance from Seton Hall University.

CEO Dan Pittman tied the appointment to the company's expansion goals, citing Trewhella's record in portfolio management and optimization. Pittman said he is excited to work alongside him as the company positions for continued growth. Trewhella, for his part, pointed to the company's existing footprint and ongoing search for new markets, saying Summit continues to identify opportunities to serve new communities.

Summit's growth track

Established in 2022, Summit Wash Holdings was formed through a partnership with Russell Speeder's Car Wash, a family-owned platform founded in 1963 by the Shullman family with 21 locations across the Northeast, Nebraska, and Florida. Summit later expanded in Florida through the 2022 acquisition of Waters Carwash. The company has recently reported exceeding its planned growth initiatives for 2025, underscoring why a dedicated development executive fits its trajectory.

Why it matters for operators

The appointment is a reminder of how larger car wash groups are professionalizing the development side of the business. Hiring a senior executive whose entire background is in site selection, construction, and facilities management for thousands of retail locations reflects a view that disciplined real estate strategy is a competitive advantage, not an afterthought.

For independent and midsize operators, the move highlights the talent that consolidators are pulling in from outside the industry. Retail development skills from brands like Starbucks and McDonald's translate directly to car wash site selection: reading traffic patterns, negotiating real estate, controlling construction costs, and managing a growing portfolio of physical assets. Operators competing for the same corners should expect well-capitalized groups to approach new builds with increasingly sophisticated analysis.

It also underscores the value of treating development as a distinct function. Smaller operators may not need a C-level hire, but the principles apply: careful site vetting, disciplined construction oversight, and a clear plan for how each new location fits the broader portfolio. As membership-focused models mature, the operators who win new markets will often be the ones who built the strongest development process, not just the best wash tunnel.