From the team at Donovan’s Auto & Tire Center | Cincinnati’s Trusted Auto Repair & Service Shop Since 1958
At Donovan’s Auto & Tire Center, we like to say we’ve built relationships that have lasted generations. Sometimes, those relationships grow into something even bigger. That’s exactly what happened with Tonya Darr, who started as a Donovan’s customer, joined our team, and today serves as our President and CEO.
Tonya’s connection to Donovan’s actually began years before she ever worked here. She was employed by a firm that counted Donovan’s as a client, and working closely with our team gave her a front row seat to how we operate.
“Because I worked closely with the Donovan’s team, I had the opportunity to see firsthand how they operated and cared for their customers,” Tonya recalls. Whenever she personally needed repairs, the experience matched what she’d seen from the outside. “They were easy to work with, communicated well, and took exceptional care of both me and my vehicle,” she says. “That experience stayed with me.”
For a while, Tonya’s career took her in a different direction. She returned to healthcare, a field she had always been passionate about, and became the Executive Director of a long-term care facility. She loved that work, but as her four boys grew older and more involved in sports, particularly baseball, she began looking for a role that would let her spend more time with her family.
That search led her back to Donovan’s. She reached out to her previous employer, who mentioned that our bookkeeper was preparing to retire. Since Tonya had already worked closely with our team, and had even helped with Excel and business projects along the way, the opportunity felt like a natural fit. She joined Donovan’s in May 2019 as our bookkeeper.
“My journey has definitely been one I could not have planned,” Tonya says. From that first role, her responsibilities steadily grew. She took on more of the business’s day to day operations and was eventually asked to step into the role of Director of Operations, a position that gave her a much broader view of the company. “I became involved in the people, processes, customer experience, financials and overall operations of the company,” she explains. “Every new responsibility gave me an opportunity to learn something else and contribute in a different way.”
Today, we’re proud to have Tonya serving as President and CEO of Donovan’s. Looking back on her path, Tonya offers a lesson worth sharing with anyone considering a change of their own: “You don’t always have to know exactly where you’re going. Sometimes you just need to be willing to work hard, learn, take on new challenges and recognize opportunities when they come your way.”
WHAT “THE HONEST CHOICE” MEANS TO US
Donovan’s has been known as the Honest Choice for Auto Repair since 1958, and Tonya says that title carries real weight for her, especially having experienced it from the customer’s side first. “’The Honest Choice for Auto Repair’ means doing what is right for the customer, even when they may not know enough about their vehicle to know whether they are being treated fairly,” she says. “Honesty isn’t just something you say in a slogan. It has to be part of how you operate every day, from how you communicate with customers to how you diagnose vehicles and explain necessary repairs.”
A NEW APPRECIATION FOR THE TEAM BEHIND THE WORK
Tonya says one of the biggest surprises of moving from customer to CEO has been seeing everything that happens behind the scenes. “As a customer, you bring your vehicle in, someone takes care of it, and you get it back,” she says. “From the inside, there are so many moving pieces: technicians, service advisors, parts, scheduling, equipment, training, technology, communication and countless decisions that have to happen throughout the day.” That perspective has only deepened her appreciation for the people who make Donovan’s run, and for what it takes to deliver honest, dependable auto repair Cincinnati drivers can count on, day in and day out.
WHERE WE’RE HEADED
As Donovan’s continues to grow, our goal remains the one that has guided us for more than 60 years: to be the mechanic near me that Cincinnati families trust. Whether that means a routine oil change near me, everyday car maintenance, tire shop Cincinnati drivers rely on, or the kind of car repair Cincinnati families have counted on for generations, we want every visit to reflect that same commitment to honesty.
“I want Donovan’s to be the number one place people think of when they need automotive repair,” Tonya says. “I want our customers to feel welcomed, know they are being treated honestly, and leave knowing their vehicle was taken care of by people who genuinely care.”
From Tonya’s first visit as a customer to her role leading our company today, her story reflects what we hope every customer experiences at Donovan’s Auto & Tire Center: honesty, care, and a team that treats you like family. If you haven’t experienced the Donovan’s difference yet, stop by one of our Cincinnati locations and let us show you what generations of customers already know.
Stop by one of our locations and meet Tonya and the rest of the Donovan’s Crew: