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Mick Cipolla is quick to tell you that he’s not all that smart. That’s just before he paraphrases Albert Einstein, explaining that part of what led to his business success is his total disdain for authority, and the fact that he has “ADD, ADHD, HBO and all that stuff.” This is not a guy who professes to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. This is a guy who learned early in life to embrace challenges and to find a way around every brick wall that he might encounter. And, he insists that there is always a way to get around every obstacle.

Cipolla, 49, is the owner of Courteous Car Care of Largo LLC, which he purchased in February of 2003 by way of an ad on the Internet. The previous owner was asking $160,000 for the business and though Cipolla wanted to relocate to Florida from upstate New York, he knew that the asking price was way out of line.

So he walked away, which is a key to his success and problem-solving ability. “Sometimes you just have to walk away,” Cipolla said. “Come back to it later. Don’t ever give up.”

The shop owner eventually contacted Cipolla and told him to make him an offer of anything over $1 and the place was his. This savvy guy (the one who insists he isn’t all that smart) did the necessary due diligence and wound up offering $65,000 with $5,000 down. The offer was accepted.

An uncanny twist of fate secured the $5,000 Cipolla needed for the down payment. The night before he left to fly down to Florida from New York to make the deal, Cipolla was notified that he had won the first place prize in a fundraising drawing at Union Endicott High School, where he had graduated years before. The prize was $5,000. By the way, he also won the school drawing the previous year. Clearly, when opportunity knocks, Mick Cipolla is the one answering the door.

So, at age 40, with his two children grown and now ready for a life change, Cipolla began his bold adventure in Florida. “I packed up everything I owned in my truck. I didn’t know where I wanted to live, so I hooked up my travel trailer and moved to a city where I knew one person who I hadn’t seen in 13 years … no customers, no nothing,”he said.

Cipolla had been told the shop did about $20,000 a month in business. Not even close. For the first 10 days he owned it, the phone never rang - not once. He was beginning to second guess his business decision, but he also knew it wasn’t all bad. The heavily traveled location on Ulmerton Road had high visibility and he could see potential.

“I saw the forest through the trees when I bought the place,” he said. “I knew the guy (previous owner) had a lousy reputation, but I knew I was in the most populated county in the state. I did all my demographics.” Step one was to change the name from Courteous Car Care Inc. to Courteous Car Care of Largo LLC, thereby allowing Cipolla to retain the good relationships that had been previously established, while separating himself from the bad. The shop was a mess, so Cipolla launched an extensive cleaning and remodeling. He was off and running.

Mick Cipolla learned about cars, self-sufficiency and to embrace challenges as a boy growing up in Endicott, N.Y. His father, Mike, who had a huge influence on Mick’s life, taught him that car repairs are all based on logic and engineering. Mike would take a broken part out of a car and tell his son to rebuild it. It was a terrific, hands-on lesson. Later, as a teenager working in an auto parts store, Cipolla started his first business, installing car stereos and alarm systems for customers who had bought the equipment, but had no idea how to install it.

Eventually he accepted a job from a corporate-owned Goodyear store in Binghamton, N.Y., where he quickly ascended to management. “That’s where I learned I never want to work for a corporation again,” he said. Recalling those nightmarish years in corporate life, it becomes clear that total honesty is another aspect of Cipolla’s character that is without compromise. During Monday morning management conference calls he would be reprimanded and cursed out by his Goodyear district manager for not selling customers enough wiper blades or headlights. That was something Cipolla refused to do if they weren’t needed.

“My core values were violated,” he said. He gave his two-week notice, and walked away.

Cipolla’s next boss had a powerfully positive impact on his life. Jon Ludwig at Precision Automotive Service in Endicott taught Cipolla to appreciate customers and to treat them with respect. A kind, gentle and smart man, Ludwig is Cipolla’s longtime mentor and friend.

Cipolla steadfastly believes that every entrepreneur must have a mentor and a professional business coach, someone to “bounce things off of.” For Cipolla, that coach is Loren Murfield, with whom he meets every two weeks. Murfield keeps him grounded and makes him accountable, ensuring that his business goals remain intact.

Cipolla is devoted to networking groups and actively participates in four of them. He estimates that 86 percent of his new customer referrals are due to networking. He gauges his own success by the number of referrals he gives. While Cipolla greatly admires the people he has gotten to know through networking, don’t expect to see him at a weekend business meeting. “That is my time for my family and friends. I work to live, not live to work,” he said.

With close to 4,000 customers, Courteous Car Care has grown considerably over the past eight years. In December Cipolla relocated to a 4,000-square-foot building at 1255 Starkey Road. He is extremely proud of the new shop, but he does not intend to open any more shops. One location with the best technicians is all he needs.

This entrepreneur promises his customers honesty, integrity and quality. They will also get a healthy dose of humor. “We stand behind everything we do,” he said. “And in the case of brakes, we stand in front, too.”

Cipolla considers his employees to be family. He hires for attitude and trains for excellence. “Never lie to me, and I’ll never lie to you”, could be his mantra.

On a personal level, this big-hearted, self-deprecating guy unabashedly tells you he loves his family; his girlfriend, Marcy Yauchler, the owner of Why Fry? Mobile Airbrush Tanning; her family; his Harley and sports teams from Pittsburgh – the Pirates, Penguins and Steelers. A lifelong hockey player, he participates in two hockey leagues in Oldsmar. Fishing and boating are among his passions.

His soft side is revealed when Cipolla talks about the loss in August of Lacey, his 16-year-old beloved hound/shepherd mix. Weeks before her passing, Cipolla was going through some personal pain when Lacey sat beside him and looked him straight in the eye. Her eyes communicated more than words ever could and he knew what to do. He describes Lacey’s passing as one of few low points in his otherwise upbeat life.

“I am truly, truly, truly blessed,” Cipolla said. “I’m where I want to live, doing what I want to do. My friends are awesome people. I never forget where I was and how I got there. I’ve never forgotten to thank the people who got me where I am.”