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Girls can grow up to be anything they want to be, right? Technically, yes. Are there still lots of stereotypes and gender role expectations that women have to face on a daily basis? Also, yes.

We’re not just one thing. We can be many things, including what society has deemed as not feminine. When it comes to women and auto mechanics, the conversation can often still be problematic. It is expected that women don’t know anything about cars, but that isn’t true.

Photo: Piqsels

Sometimes women often share experiences with mechanic shops where they feel talked down to or taken advantage of regarding their vehicles simply because they’re female. But Girls Auto Clinic is on the scene trying to change the conversation surrounding women and their cars.

It’s a shop where customers can get their car fixed, learn more about the repairs themselves, and they can even get a manicure if they wish while they’re waiting. The founder of Girls Auto Clinic, Patrice Banks, used to refer to herself as an “auto airhead.” According to her, she always dreaded taking her car to an auto shop.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

In an interview with Marketplace, Banks stated, “I always felt taken advantage of. I waited to the last minute, you know, to do any maintenance or repairs. Any time a dashboard light would come on, I’d kind of wish it would go away. And I always felt like I needed to ask a guy for help when it came to my car.”

At the time, Banks was bringing in six figures as an engineer with DuPont before she made the decision to return to school to learn how to work on cars. Then, in 2017, she opened up Girls Auto Clinic just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Photo: YouTube/Girls Auto Clinic

The auto shop is mainly female-run, and it offers an onsite nail salon for customers who want to get their nails done while they wait for their car.

The shop’s website reads, “Girls Auto Clinic is committed to creating a unique, comfortable, and confident automotive repair experience for women. We opened our doors in January 2017 to provide the Philadelphia area with dependable, honest, and educational auto repair. We offer full-service auto repair, women mechanics, and the cherry on top – manis and pedis while you wait at Clutch Lounge and Beauty Bar!”

Photo: YouTube/David Merrett

Banks explained her idea behind the onsite nail bar, saying it came out of her days while at DuPont. She’d often take her care for oil changes during her lunch breaks.

She explained to Marketplace, “Me and my girlfriend, on our lunch break we would go to the specific Jiffy Lube because there was a nail salon next to it. And we would get our nails done and get our oil changed, right, so we loved it. And I thought this would be great. You know, we go out of our way to get our nails done. We will not go out of our way to get our oil changed. So I thought this is great. Killing two birds with one stone.”

Photo: PICRYL/US Air Force

Besides being a space designed to make women feel more comfortable around cars, Girls Auto Clinic also has monthly sessions on car maintenance, teaching people how to properly look after their cars – everything from oil checks to changing tires, checking breaks, and more.

Her shop has been a success, and it has inspired Banks to try and expand by “franchising” in order to get to more women. Banks said, “It’s just a matter of time. My goal is to reach every woman driver. So yeah, I’m excited to start expanding and growing.”

Check out the video below:

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