Team Member Stories
“I have worked for many companies and had multiple careers and all of them promised that the harder I worked the more I would be rewarded. This has only ever been accurate at G&C.”
Kyle French had been a Body Technician for at least five years at Fairfield Auto Body when G&C bought the location in 2012. He stayed on, working for G&C as a Technician and Production Manager. He’s now a Corporate Body Department Manager. Kyle says working for G&C has given him a chance to grow and learn other sides of the business, participate in solving problems and look for bigger opportunities in the future. His advice for job candidates: “Hard work beats talent if talent doesn’t work hard.”
“Over the past four years I’ve gone from not being able to tell the difference between a fender and a quarter panel to leading the largest shop in the company. I would say my greatest accomplishment has been in earning the trust and respect of the team that allows me to lead them.”
Hard work pays off.
Sergio started working for G&C in 1994 as a Detailer. Soon after that he became a Prepper and worked his way up to Painter. He’s now a Corporate Refinish Paint Manager. His favorite part of the job is being able to train employees and watch their growth through the years. “What makes me feel proud is that G&C has allowed me to grow as a person and become a leader,” he says. “One thing I would like to put out there for anyone interested in working at G&C is that hard work pays off.”
I feel that I make a difference.
Francisco was working as a detailer for Lithia Dodge before joining G&C in 2014. Since his hiring, he has worked in Quality Control, as Parts Coordinator, Production Manager, Service Writer Trainee and is now Regional Parts Manager. Francisco says working at G&C has helped him develop more responsibility and become a problem solver. “I feel that I make a difference and I love helping others doing the same job that I did so that they can be better,” he says.
I love the sense of family.
Rachele started in 2007 as a Guest Services Representative at G&C’s Santa Rosa office. She was trained in a variety of office and customer service skills and in 2010 became an Clerical Lead in Training. From there, Rachele served as the Clerical Lead in G&C’s Windsor shop for a year, then was promoted to Clerical Lead at the flagship Santa Rosa location. She is now the Corporate Clerical Director for all locations and says she hopes to continue to grow as the company grows. “I love the sense of family here at G&C and how they are so involved in giving back to the community,” Rachele says.
Keep growing and learning.
Blaine Bessler applied for a job with G&C in 2013 after working for a small family owned shop in Santa Rosa. He was hired at the Santa Rosa location and after three years as a Service Writer, Blaine was given an opportunity to manage G&C’s Novato location for a year and then two years in Fairfield, G&C’s third-largest facility. Now Blaine is the Vice President of Operations overseeing 12 G&C shops in Marin, Solano Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Blaine says he enjoys navigating solutions to problems. The fact that the auto body industry is constantly changing means those involved will keep growing and learning. “I love the feeling of being able to extract a level of performance out of people that they don’t know they had and the satisfaction of fostering that talent to achieve their personal and professional goals,” Blaine says. “My greatest achievement is seeing the Service Writer Trainees that I have mentored become Service Writers and those Service Writers become Managers and leaders in the company.”
My greatest achievement is seeing the Service Writer Trainees that I have mentored become Service Writers and those Service Writers become Managers and leaders in the company.