Owner: Ramiro Olazabal
Shop: Taylormade Automotive
Location: San Francisco, CA
In 2001, San Francisco’s Taylormade Automotive owner Ramiro Olazabal purchased the first piece of his Matco toolbox setup. His setup has only grown since then.
The 17' long by 7' tall structure consists of three toolboxes, a hutch, two side lockers, and three top lockers, as well as two custom-made boxes to fill the dead space above his side lockers.
When Olazabal bought the side lockers for his setup, he asked his Matco tool distributor if they made a storage box that would fit on top of the locker. His tool distributor told him it was a great idea, but no, Matco didn’t have anything like that, so Olazabal took matters into his own hands.
“One of our customers does sheet metal work and custom metalwork, so I designed it [and] gave him the specs…and between [him] and me, we built these [boxes],” Olazabal says.
Olazabal also had the custom boxes powder coated the same color as the rest of his setup and even added the same trim to them to create a uniform look.
Before beginning the construction of his current setup, Olazabal did his research to find the toolbox best suited for his needs.
He talked with technicians who had been in the game for years and used his own experience with previous toolboxes before finally settling on Matco.
“It was literally almost a no brainer at the time,” Olazabal says.
Organization is important to Olazabal. He uses his drawers to keep similar tools grouped together, such as his drawers for metric wrenches, standard wrenches, and so on. He also keeps everything in its place with organizers.
“I’m pretty type A, so everything in my toolboxes is organized,” he says.
Olazabal’s favorite part of his toolbox setup is the stainless-steel worktop. It’s large enough to allow him to disassemble and reassemble parts while keeping them clean and organized.
Not only does Olazabal have his dream setup for tool storage, but he made his dream of owning his own automotive shop come true.
When Olazabal was young, his father would take him to his shop to help out during the summertime. He enjoyed taking things apart and putting them back together again, and though his father sold his shop before Olazabal was old enough to work there, Olazabal knew he would follow in his father’s footsteps.
“I just always had the drive to own my own shop and run things my way,” he says.
Taylormade Automotive opened as an independent repair shop in 2003. At the shop, Olazabal and his crew of five technicians, two service writers, and two porters work on everything automotive and light truck other than body work.
Having been a technician for 26 years, Olazabal has accumulated quite the collection of tools and equipment. In the future – if he can find the space for it – he hopes to be able to add another toolbox and hutch to make his setup even larger, so he can fit the overflow of tools he has stored in another room.
