Marla Mayer started her career in the car wash industry when she was just 11 years old.

“I was fortunate to be born with a towel in my hand,” said Mayer, now controller for Weiss Guys Express Wash. “My family has been in the car wash business since the early 1950s.”

While she loved the business, Mayer took a few years off from the industry after graduating from the University of Arizona with a bachelor of arts in speech communications and a minor in accounting and marketing. “Most of my education, though, came from being in the family business,” she said. “What my father and uncles have taught me is invaluable. Being in a family business offers something you can’t learn in a classroom.”

After her break — where she had roles in retail, banking, property management and real estate — Mayer went back to the industry she knows so well, and she hasn’t looked back.

“I don’t really have a typical week, which is what I love about my job,” Mayer said. “One minute I could be doing P&Ls for the company, and the next I’m placing a purchase order for the car washes.”

Despite the industry being male-dominated, Mayer said being a woman hasn’t been a problem for her. “I have always felt confident in who I am as a woman and business person,” she said.

And her peers have nothing but respect for what she does. Mayer recently was elected vice president of the Western Carwash Association board. “It is such a great honor,” she said. “We will have to see what the next two years bring.”

Mayer has two pieces of advice that have served her well in her career. “Probably the best career advice I have been given is that you never look back on the decisions you’ve made,” she said. “And you never get a second chance to make a good first impression.”