About Cavender

The Cavender family has become as much a part of San Antonio and South Texas as some of its landscape, and as close to a local dynasty as you can get, and our family business begins with James M. Cavender. James grew up in San Antonio, and began his career in the automotive industry by going to work for Goade Motor Company on Lexington Avenue. Because of his aptitude and work ethic, James was selected in the 1930's by General Motors to become a trainer in its sales division.

Due to his position, James became a familiar face to the owner of a local Oldsmobile dealership, Mr. E. A. Kinsel. In 1939, Mr. Kinsel was becoming concerned about the future of his dealership and lured James away from his position with General Motors by hiring him as the sales manager of his dealership. Shortly thereafter, Mr. Kinsel asked James if he would consider buying his business. And so begins the Cavender Auto Family story.

Drawing from his training and experience in serving his customers, James firmly believed in the idea that "Great service and customer satisfaction build confidence and trust". This belief has resonated for generations for the Cavender Family, and continues to ring as strong and true today as it ever has. "Confidence is Cavender". It's more than just a slogan; it's a commitment to action of Making Confidence Happen in all we offer to our team and our customers.

For 20 years, James Cavender operated his business under the name General Oldsmobile, and wasn't until 1960 when it was branded Cavender Oldsmobile. This was the beginning of many more successful Cavender dealerships to bear the family insignia. While growing up, James' twin sons, Jimmy and Billy, worked alongside their father at the dealership, taking every opportunity to learn all they were able to about the business. Eventually, both Jimmy and Billy began to work full-time and continued to grow the business with their father, James. Later on, the acquisition of Riata Cadillac from Mr. Frank Late allowed both Jimmy and Billy to each manage a dealership.

Billy Cavender went to lead operations at the Cadillac dealership, while Jimmy Cavender ran the Oldsmobile dealership. Just as James Cavender had done with his sons, Jimmy and Billy made sure their sons worked with them to not only learn and understand their businesses, but to infuse the same level and commitment of work ethic and customer service their grandfather so adamantly believed in. Billy's twin sons, Bobby and Billy Jr., went to work for their father at the Cadillac dealership, and were later followed by Billy's youngest son, Stuart. Jimmy's sons, Rick and Stephen, remained with their father working at the Oldsmobile dealership. This third generation of the Cavender Auto family worked in various positions of their dealerships.

Today, with now several additional acquisitions of other automotive dealership franchises, a fourth generation of the Cavender Auto family is following in their predecessors' footsteps. By joining their fathers, uncles and grandfathers, Kate Cavender, WB Cavender and Lee Cavender continue the ideals and traditions started more than 75 years ago by James Cavender. They are proving, once again, the Cavender Auto family is devoted to the ideal, "Make Confidence Happen"!

Cavender Toyota is the # 1 sales volume leader of new Toyota sales in South Texas for the fourth year in a row, the # 1 Toyota franchise dealer of pre-owned and Toyota Certified Used Vehicles in the United States of more than 1,240 Toyota dealers across the country. Additionally, Cavender Toyota has been awarded the President's Award from Toyota Motor Sales for the 11th year, as well as the prestigious Toyota Board of Governors Award for the 4th consecutive year. These successes are the result of the Cavender principals handed down through the generations and from the efforts of our magnificent team, but most importantly, from our wonderful customers who allow us to continue to prove every day that "Confidence is Cavender"!

Audi Dominion is the # 1 sales volume leader of certified pre-owned Audi vehicle sales in Texas, and is the recipient of the prestigious Magna Society Elite Award for Audi new vehicle sales, Audi Certified pre-owned sales and customer satisfaction and enthusiasm ratings. We thank our dedicated team and our incredible customers for every opportunity to allow Audi Dominion to "Make Confidence Happen"!

The Cavender Auto family portfolio of dealerships has grown to represent Audi, BMW, Buick, Cadillac,  Chevrolet, Ford, GMC,  Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Polaris, Toyota, and Subaru, and we continue to grow and look to the future. If you're looking for a rewarding and lasting career, we invite you to learn for yourself how Making Confidence Happen will lead you to success!