Founder

Discipline yourself. For example, if he knows a tough day is in the offing, Art won't let friends or parties interfere with his getting a good night's sleep.
    Don't be afraid to copy or improve on a good idea. That's exactly what he did with Oil Express. Art says he still would travel 10,000 miles and spend $2,000 on plane fare just to see a better quick lube operation.
    Constantly research the competition. You can get many ideas this way and always stay a leg up.
    Never substitute cheap products for quality; the savings are illusory. Oil Express has declined to use less expensive oil and air filters, for instance, although it may mean additional profits initially. The customer deserves the very best, not only in service, but in products used. Don't cut corners when it comes to customer satisfaction.
    Never become content with the present state of the business even if it is making a nice profit. Put money back into the business on a regular basis to keep it upgraded and updated. The present profit structure won't last forever if you don't do anything to improve the business.
    Keep precise daily records-don't guess-of how the business is doing. One should know upon what monetary grounds the business stands at any given time. It took Art's Hamburgers about a year to make it, says Lukowski, but noting the small but steady daily increases in volume, he was confident that success was imminent.

Arthur Lukowski was born in Kiev, Ukraine. When he was a boy, his father was executed under Stalin’s regime and parenting fell solely on his mother. In 1941, Russian schools were closed and turned into hospitals, so at the age of 12, it would be Art’s last year of schooling.
    From 1942 to 1945 Art worked in a German labor camp after he and his mother were captured. At war's end they were placed in a postwar camp and then in 1949 they were sent to Scotland. While in Scotland Art realized his first business opportunity when he talked the officers of a failing Serviceman's Club into letting him run it. He and his mother had the club flourishing and the attached 24-room dormitory fully rented. His first business venture had proved a success. 
    In 1955, after locating a long lost aunt in Boston, Art came to America. The words of the Scottish Club President rang in his ears: "When you get to America, go into some kind of business." It was not long before Art, while learning English, was working as a laborer in Chicago but always looking for an opportunity in the restaurant business. One day a restaurant owner, too busy to talk, asked Art to come back the next day. Instead, the Russian immigrant offered to work for free. His determination and hard work so impressed the owner, that he hired him that night. Three months later, Art became the manager, and by year's end, the restaurant was the second highest grossing unit in a chain of 120.
    Art worked in restaurants until 1961 when he opened his own establishment, "Art's Drive-In", which would prove to be very profitable until 1979 when he decided to make a change. A newspaper article led him to investigate the 10-minute oil and lube business. He knew he could improve upon the idea after seeing a few chains in other parts of the county. The rest is history.
    Oil Express has grown rapidly and now has dozens of units in four states. It has become a dominant force in the automotive market. Because of its focus on quality service, all units enjoy an 80 percent rate of repeat business from loyal patrons.
    Among his many other honors, OIL AND LUBE NEWS named Mr. Lukowski the "Fast Lube Operator of the Year" and he was inducted into the Chicago Area Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame. In 1987 Art was named Entrepreneur of the Year in Indiana and in 1996 Art was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award by University of Illinois's Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies.