When the late George Gardner, original owner of Gardner Complete Automotive Service and Body Shop in Corpus Christi, envisioned his auto repair business, he imagined having not just a place for fixing the insides of vehicles but their outsides as well. 
As a result, he designed two shops, housed in two separate buildings facing each other on Wow Street. The main building is designed for mechanical repairs, while the additional building across the street takes on body and collision repairs. Services at the body shop range from framework and hail damage repair to rust-proofing. 
“We have a frame machine, a spray paint booth, we do it all,” technician Mark Trevino said. “You can say Gardner Automotive is a one-stop-shop, from mechanical to body work. We have everything right here.” 
Trevino has managed the body shop portion of Gardner’s Automotive since it opened. 
“In 1996, I was 18 years old and studying auto body repair at Texas State Technical College in Harlingen,” Trevino said. “That’s when I met George Gardner.” 
Trevino was attending a training for I-CAR (the inter-industry conference on auto collision repair) when Gardner introduced himself. 
“He told me he already had a mechanic shop going in Corpus Christi but needed someone to manage the body shop,” Trevino continued. “So I came with him and have worked at the body shop ever since.” 
Upon arrival, Trevino met Daniel Garcia, who was managing the mechanic portion of the business. Garcia, too, has stayed with the company all these years. 
“Daniel was one of the first people I met in Corpus Christi, so we’re like family,” Trevino said. “If we have a problem with a car that can’t be figured out, we’ll both sit there and figure it out by ourselves. We have a good relationship.” 
Before owner George Gardner died in 2013, he told Garcia and Trevino they would always have a job at Gardner. His prophecy came true, as Garcia and Trevino are now the current owners of the business. 
“We worked for him from 1996 until he passed away on May 17, 2013,” Trevino said. “Later, we decided to buy the company from his children. We felt that since we’ve been taking care of the operations all this time, we would do our best to continue his legacy of quality work.” 
Both were nervous about taking over the shop.
“It was a lot harder than we thought,” Trevino said, “but in the end, it paid off.”
Gardner always kept his employees up-to-date with the latest training in collision repair, sending them to school to upgrade and maintain their certifications. 
“What I’m most proud of is that most of the repair technicians here have been around since George has been around,” Trevino said. “They do good work because the work they do is tied in with their reputations. The customers know us all by name.” 
Manuel J. Alvarez, a combination technician, loves the feeling of camaraderie among the team. 
“I enjoy working here to the point I love coming to work every day.” Alvarez said. 
For Trini Hernandez, another combination technician, the close-knit relationship among the staff also benefits the work being done.
“We all work together as a team to troubleshoot a repair,” Hernandez said. “And seeing the vehicle roll off the lot good as new as a result of our teamwork makes us feel proud.” 
According to Trevino, there is never a dull moment working in the body shop. 
“What I love about my job is variety — no two cars are alike, every car is different,” he said. “So when you come into work, you have a different challenge waiting for you.” 
Some of the more unique repairs Trevino and his team have done include RV roofs. 
“We’ve done all kinds of repairs, but the most challenging ones we’ve experienced is replacing the whole roof on recreational vehicles because they are so big,” he said. “We have to tear them apart and put them back together. We do an average of four to five of those a year.”
When asked if Corpus Christi was a good market for the body shop industry, Trevino admitted to a constant influx of work. 
“When I glance at other body shops, they all seem to be really busy, including ours,” he said. “I guess the more population growth a city has, the more tendencies for accidents.” 
As an independent shop, Trevino said the team has to work harder to get the repeat business, which is why they do the best they can on each and every job. 
In the future, Trevino hopes to expand the business into a second location on the other side of town. 
“Since we already have a location here in the Southside, it would be good to someday open another branch closer to the beach or Padre Island,” Trevino said. “The boss left the business in good hands, like a well-oiled machine in good running condition. All we have to do now is maintain it.” 
Gardner Automotive Service and Body Shop is located at 3717 Wow Road in Corpus Christi. For more information, call (361) 852-0100 or visit gardnercomplete.com.