Trio of Silverstar Car Washes tabbed for Fargo area, several more to come

Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Silverstar Car Wash is slated to open their first Fargo-Moorhead area location in February of next year at 4475 Calico Drive S. in southwest Fargo, Silverstar co-owner Bryan Slama confirmed to The Forum. City building permit records tabbed the project costs at $1.138 million. “One of the things that we’re excited about is our expansion to Fargo. The main reason for our move to Fargo is that it has similar demographics as Sioux Falls,” he said.

Silverstar, which Slama said is an “exterior express car wash,” offers free prep towels, vacuums and mat cleaning rooms in addition to its washes, which range in price from $8 to $18. Unlimited wash memberships are available starting at $14.95.

The Calico Drive wash is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Silverstar’s metro area aspirations, Slama said. A second car wash with the same price tag is in the works at 2900 52nd Ave. S.and expected to open in the spring of 2022. A third, located near Sheyenne St. and Interstate 94, is also planned.

Beyond that, Slama is optimistic that Silverstar Car Wash will make a major splash in a city which he acknowledged has several other competitors in the car wash industry. Silverstar, which launched in 2010, operates 10 car washes in Sioux Falls and six in the Sioux City, Iowa area.

He is imagining a similar total for Fargo. “We have 10 locations in Sioux Falls and we expect that we’ll have a similar commitment to Fargo over the next couple of years,” Slama said.

The Fargo-Moorhead area has seen something of a boom in the car wash industry in recent years.

In 2018, the first Custom Express Car Wash opened along 32nd Ave. S., a short distance from the future site of Fargo’s first Silverstar Car Wash. At the time, Custom Express owner Jason Gehrig told The Forum his goal was to “take over the Fargo-Moorhead area.”

Since then a second Custom Express opened at 1702 40th St. S. and a third is in progress in Moorhead. Gehrig has designs on opening more locations as well.

Another debutant, Tidal Wave Auto Spa, is under construction at 4207 13th Ave. S. on the site of the former Kelly Inn.

In addition to those affiliated with gas stations, Fargo has a standalone car wash market that’s hotter than the wax finishes they offer. Whale of a Wash has four self-service washes in the Fargo-Moorhead area, Don’s Car Wash has two in Fargo and Four Seasons Car Wash has one in Moorhead.

Still, Slama, a University of North Dakota graduate, said he wanted to bring Silverstar to North Dakota and thought Fargo was the best place to start. “We understand there are many great competitors in the Fargo market and we look forward to being a great corporate citizen that gives back to the community,” he said.

Silverstar is also eyeing other North Dakota cities for its car washes. “We expect in the next couple of years, we’ll make other announcements of other markets we’d like to enter,” Slama continued. “We really like Bismarck. Being from UND, we’ll definitely take a look at (Grand Forks).”

With Silverstar steaming up a number of other Fargo locations beyond the three which have been announced, Slama feels the city will be a good fit for the brand. “We love the community and we have a lot of connections in Fargo,” he concluded. We feel that with similar demographics we’re going to have similar results as we have in Sioux City and Sioux Falls.”