Catherine

My name is Catherine Simpson and I’m the owner and manager of Catherine’s Auto Repair. People always ask me how in the world I ended up owning an auto repair shop. Well, it’s a long story, but here’s the abbreviated version: I grew up in Atlanta and went to school at Westminster, then Georgetown University in Washington, DC. After college, I moved to Seattle with some friends and worked for a couple of years as a teen counselor. Feeling the need for a change, I signed up for a 5-month course for women that taught basic trades skills. During this time, an idea hit me – wouldn’t it be great to learn about cars and then open my own auto repair shop and be the kind of place where people feel good about bringing their cars? So I decided to pursue that dream. I started with a job as a trainee in a transmission shop, and then continued working as a mechanic and manager at several places over the next 4 years. Back in Atlanta, I did some unrelated things for a few years (helped my mom with her art gallery, worked as nanny for my sister’s twin boys) until I finally decided it was time to go for it – and now here we are!

If you want to know the longer version of how I got my start in the automotive industry, click here to read more.