Woman love to deal with a woman mechanic

By CYNTHIA NEEDHAM
The Providence Journal
Wednesday, July 25, 2007

It started with a teenage fixation.

Debbie Clark was 16 and, like most high schoolers, in desperate need of the newest gizmo. Back in 1987, it was a cassette player for the family's Oldsmobile that stole her heart.

The tomboy in Clark decided to install it herself, learning as she stumbled through. It was the first in a string of successful projects in her parents' garage.

Two decades later, she can't remember precisely when she decided her hobby could be her career. But after high school, she took a job at Brock's Auto Collision Center & Auto Repair, in Warwick. Two years ago, she and a partner bought the business, and the rest has been a whirlwind.

For Brock's customers, the novelty of dealing with a female mechanic hasn't worn off. The new ones assume she's the counter woman, or someone's wife. It's a mistake Clark takes in stride. Female mechanics are a bit unusual, she acknowledges with a shrug. Even in 2007, auto repair shops remain largely male-dominated locales, so it's not surprising that customers are curious to find a ponytail beneath the hood.

"There are also men out there who think that women aren't capable of doing this work. I hope I show them that we can," she said, taking a break on a recent morning.

Debbie Clark is a soft-spoken woman with an open face and watery-blue eyes. A smudge of grease licked her forehead and she tucked her oil-stained hands behind her back when she spoke.

In Clark's two decades at Brock's, she's developed something of a following. Women of all ages say they trust her to fix their cars without taking them for a ride. They drive to Warwick from as far as Cumberland and Massachusetts for that peace of mind.

"Women love dealing with her. They just feel more comfortable," co-owner Anthony Broccoli says.

Clark understands where they are coming from. When you're a woman negotiating a car transaction, there are men out there who assume you don't know what you're talking about and occasionally take advantage of that.

"I was in their boat once too," Clark admits. When she was 19 and just breaking into the business, she remembers taking her first car into a shop for a quick tune-up. A thousand dollars later, she walked out convinced that the work had been unnecessary, though the repairman assured her he'd saved her from disaster. It was a situation Clark vowed never to put her own customers in.

An honest reputation is the best kind a mechanic can have, she reasoned.

Clark's husband, a carpenter, brings his car to the shop so his wife can change his oil and check his filters. As the story goes, the last time he did it himself he spilled oil everywhere.

Reach Cynthia Needham at cneedham(at)projo.com. For more stories visit scrippsnews.com