"Gearhead Workspace is a do-it-yourself auto shop where urban car and motorcycle enthusiasts can come and do their own maintenance and fix their cars themselves," said Tim Heyen, the owner of Gearhead Workspace in Bridgeport on Chicago's South Side.
Heyen said he opened Gearhead Workspace after moving here.
"I grew up in Central Illinois, where it was easy to work on cars. By moving to the city I had nowhere to do the work, and so that's where I came up with the idea," said Heyen.
His wife Molly and he opened the first Gearhead Workspace on 31st Street in the Bridgeport neighborhood. It was so popular, it moved to a bigger location on 35th Street.
He said Gearhead developed into something more than just a space for people to work on their own vehicles.
"It's a place for them to be able to pursue their automotive passions and meet with like-minded people, hang out, have a good time," said Heyen.
Heyen said he's now looking beyond Chicago.
"A lot of cities have a similar need to Chicago where there are enthusiasts who just don't have the space or the means to set up the garage the way that they would like to, and we think we can provide help to people in other cities who want to open a shop like this," said Heyen.
