Austin Gardiner, 37
CEO and founder
San Diego, California
For Austin Gardiner, the pool industry has been both a career and a calling. He started as a technician for his father’s company, later branching out as a sole proprietor. In those early years, he not only ran service routes but also honed his repair skills, often contracting part time for companies that didn’t handle repairs in-house. More recently, he has specialized in pool system setups, putting his technical knowledge to work programming and labeling new pools for efficiency and longevity.
When he founded GL Pools, Gardiner built the company around a philosophy that prioritized people over pools. “I love watching people grow and learn,” Gardiner says. “Our company is focused on training experts in the pool industry, and that work takes time. We get to know our trainees and help create open lines of communication so they can give us feedback as trainers. We work for them to help them succeed and find a career in this industry.”
That dedication has paid off and led to Gardiner training over 50 pool industry professionals. Those people now represent the company in the field, serving thousands of pool owners across San Diego County. Beyond technical skill, he’s most proud of the culture they’ve built together — a community that cares for one another and shows up each day with a commitment to serving clients well.
Gardiner is candid about the challenges he’s faced, including the weight of self-doubt. “Imposter syndrome is real — I know because I have it,” Gardiner says. From his first days as a service technician to leading strategic meetings as CEO, he’s often felt stretched. But he’s learned to embrace those moments. “If I lean in, not out, and I never give up, then I will keep growing as a person and professional,” he says.
Gardiner hopes to deepen GL Pools’ impact beyond the business itself. “We have dreams about the ways we can impact San Diego neighbors, and build a reputation that inspires kindness and generosity,” Gardiner says. He also wants to change how the public perceives pool service work. “It’s not easy to do this at the highest level, but it’s very easy to do it at the lowest level,” he explains. “To do it at the level where you are a subject matter expert, and run like a real business, takes a whole lot of effort and commitment.”
At home, Gardiner enjoys music — playing guitar and singing — along with exercising and ocean kayak fishing. While he insists he’s a master at none of his hobbies, he relishes the challenge of learning. “I love the long story arc of learning difficult things,” he says.
