Believing stereotypes are accurate is for people who lack the ability to think for themselves. Thankfully, Elizabeth “Lizzy” Schutte, who was born and raised in Cherokee County, never listened to folks like that and instead has followed her own path.
For Labor Day this year, I set out to find a local business that’s a bit different from the usual, with something you don’t necessarily see everyday. That led me to Lizzy’s Garage in Peachtree, where Schutte is in business for herself as owner of an automobile repair shop, something not too many young woman have on their list of dreams for the future.
At first, it wasn’t her dream, either. While growing up she worked on automobiles with her father and uncle, showing a strong inclination for mechanics. And her favorite Barbie accessory was a red convertible Mustang GT, so “maybe I should have seen this coming,” she said with a smile.
Lizzy attended the automotive program for a year at Tri-County Community College and “hated it,” so she worked toward an associate’s degree in science instead. However, after attending a year at Western Carolina University, she wasn’t so sure about a career in veterinary medicine, either.
“Me and college didn’t mix,” she said with a laugh.
After coming back home and working a bit at Zaxby’s, she ended up chatting with Alan Pipes, a longtime family friend – they are not related – and the mechanic on the family’s vehicles for many years. (He even has a cat named after Lizzy.) Since Pipes was looking to retire, he asked if she would be interested in coming to work with him to think about taking over his shop one day.
That was in November 2019. On Aug. 2, Pipe’s Garage became Lizzy’s Garage. Happily, Alan agreed to stay on with her for another year to help show the ropes of running your own place.
“It feels great!” she said about being a business owner at such a young age. “It’s nice not to have anyone else as a boss.”
Lizzy is already moving the garage is a more modern, technologically accessible direction. For example, she accepts credit cards, something Pipes was loathe to do, and has finally fixed the garage’s address on Google. One day, she would like to be able to hire enough mechanics where she can solely focus on expanding her business.
“I want to be able to take the toolbox out of the garage,” she said with enthusiasm.
Pipes’ old customers may still be getting used to hearing “Lizzy’s” when she picks up the phone – the number is the same – but they have continued to receive the same kind of first-class service. I’ve witnessed this firsthand; my wife’s SUV had a severe shaking problem in the front end for years, with several other local shops taking a shot at spending hundreds of dollars trying to fix it, but it was Lizzy who found the proper long-term solution. (It was replacing the engine mounts, by the way.)
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Pipes has worked on every vehicle owned by my family since 2004. He always demonstrated the highest level of ethics and integrity, never attempting to sell us something we didn’t need and even recommending when we shouldn’t replace an engine part. We will miss him, as he’s one of the good guys, but it’s nice to know that same positive approach is part of Lizzy’s makeup, too.
David Brown is publisher & editor of the Cherokee Scout. You can reach him by phone, 837-5122; email, dbrown@cherokeescout.com; or Twitter @daviddBstroh.