Autism and Family-Supported Business

Rising Tide Car Wash

Source: Courtesy of Thomas D'Eri

In 2011, Thomas D'Eri and his family were on the hunt for the best employer for Thomas's brother, Andrew. Andrew is autistic and was nearing the end of his high-school career at the time. The D'Eri family hoped for a place where Andrew could thrive through community and meaningful employment. That's when they decided to buy a car wash.

Rising Tide Carwash

Today, the family leads Rising Tide Car Wash, an auto spa with three locations and an employer for more than 90 people diagnosed with autism. I met with Thomas to learn more about their business model and his insights into neurodivergent employment.

Thomas shares that at the time of founding Rising Tide, "The conventional wisdom is that people with autism do well with process-oriented, structured tasks." With this in mind, the family envisioned a car wash as having a framework that could be adapted to these strengths. The family sought consultation and "Began recruiting people with autism, including my brother."

Possibilities Unlimited

Over time, Thomas's understanding of neurodiversity and the capabilities of autistic people expanded. He says, "What we've learned over the years is that a lot of those early ideas about what people with autism can do were way too narrow. If you can structure a role in a way that is clear, objective, and focused on results, with training and support around it, really design the role well, there will be a meaningful portion of people with autism who can do that job."

The family realized that it would be vital to integrate autistic individuals throughout the company to create a space that would be truly welcoming and empowering. In Thomas's words, "Now, every single role we have from entry-level, interior cleaning crew, all the way into management, sales, and maintenance, we have people with autism and neurodivergent people in those roles."

Among the roles the D'Eri family has most developed is that of sales associate. This position involves selling club memberships, a major source of revenue for a car wash. The family has structured support for this particular job in a way that provides scripts, extensive training, and nuanced coaching. The success has been significant.

Creative Solutions to a Common Difficulty

Rising Tide Car Wash is one of several examples of what researcher Christianna Danguilan calls "family-supported entrepreneurship (2023)." Like the D'Eri family's venture, family-supported businesses are creative paths that families carve to facilitate their loved ones' strengths. Another example of a family-supported entrepreneurship venture would be Made by Abbey, a small family company that provides hats that both sparkle and raise awareness of autism. Be Kind to Everyone is a similar example. It was created as a summer shirt project by a young woman who lives with autism to learn job skills.

D'Eri Family

Source: Courtesy of Thomas D'Eri

When it comes to autism, unemployment and underemployment are tragically high, even when individuals have positive qualifications and abilities to offer.

In one study, participants were shown either videos or transcripts of interviews with autistic and neurotypical candidates. Respondents consistently "hired" the neurotypical candidates over autistic candidates when shown the videos, even when they would have hired the autistic candidate based on the transcript alone (Whelpley et al., 2023). These realities demonstrate the persistent bias many traditional employers have against autistic interviewees, which contributes to higher-than-expected unemployment rates.

Family-supported businesses circumvent this problem by inviting loved ones to a space where they can be their best. Through individualized accommodations and an escape from the ableism often experienced in the traditional workforce, these alternative pathways have been revolutionary for many.

At the Rising Tide Car Wash, interested candidates are given an adapted interview. Along with a traditional talk component, the meeting provides interviewees with a chance to "try out" aspects of the job with a work sample. This allows candidates to estimate what it might be like to work at the car wash and determine if it is a workplace they would be interested in. According to Thomas, his brother Andrew is "doing great" while continuing to enjoy his work with Rising Tide Car Wash.

Words of Wisdom

Thomas shares the following words for autistic young adults seeking to enter the workforce: "I think it's a reasonable request to ask, 'What does this interview process look like,' so that I can prepare myself properly. It's very unlikely that you will know the answer to every question you are going to get, but practicing to the best of your ability can help you prepare." Having such a plan can help autistic candidates to have structured responses available to gain an edge in the interview.

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Andrew working at Rising Tide

Source: Courtesy of Thomas D'Eri

In addition, he says, "Don't get discouraged if you get denied a lot. Many of us, neurodivergent or not, have. Just keep trying until we get a job." Finding the most fitting opportunity can take time.

For parents, Thomas says, "Let's not pigeonhole people early in their career." It can be easy for someone to get locked into one potential job opportunity. Rather than this, Thomas heartens an attitude of flexible expectations, stating, "It's important to get early career experience. Most of the time, we find that our loved ones and employees with autism thrive and can meet the challenges and persevere through the obstacles that employment brings." He says parents can "Play the role of translator and coach" to their loved ones on their career journeys.

Conclusions

If we could create accommodating workspaces for individuals with all kinds of minds to be the norm, we would all benefit. Rising Tide Car Wash and other family-support businesses' success demonstrates that such arrangements are possible, and with the right environment, individuals can flourish.