About us — family-run since 1984
From Santiago to Edmonton
Four decades ago, a political refugee with a trade worker's hands started wrenching on cars out of a single city lot in northeast Edmonton. That lot is now one of Alberta's largest family-run auto recyclers. Here's how it happened.
From Santiago to Edmonton
In 1974, Ruben San Martinarrived in Canada as a political refugee from Santiago, Chile, carrying little more than a trade worker's hands and an immigrant's determination. He landed on a Thursday. By the following Monday, he was working the line at the Gainers meat packing plant in Edmonton.
Ruben had grown up in Coronel, a small fishing town on the coast of southern Chile. He never forgot where he came from — and it would shape everything that came after.
Three tickets, one dream
While working full-time, Ruben taught himself English and enrolled at NAIT, earning his B-Pressure welding ticket. That ticket took him north — working for BA/Cominco in Tuktoyaktuk and Alert, some of the most remote communities in the Canadian Arctic.
The North changed him. The tight-knit communities, the open land, the fishing trips with local friends — it all reminded him of Coronel. He fell in love with the people and the place.
Ruben had always dreamed of running his own business. On one of those fishing trips, talking with his friends about what he'd call it someday, they suggested a name: Eskimo. He loved it — it would forever remind him of the North, and of the friends who believed in his dream before it existed.
Building it one week at a time
Ruben returned to NAIT for his second journeyman ticket as a Millwright. With better wages came his first piece of land — a city lot in northeast Edmonton. And that's where the grind began: three weeks working in the Arctic, one week back in Edmonton wrenching on vehicles for local customers out of his small shop, then back on the plane north. Over and over.
Eventually, Ruben went back to school one more time and earned his third journeyman ticket as an Automotive Service Technician. He left the North behind, and Eskimo Auto & Truck Parts became his full-time life's work.
Eskimo today
More than 40 years later, that single city lot has grown into one of Alberta's largest family-run auto recycling and parts operations.
We dismantle, inventory, test, and warranty our parts — and we still answer the phone the way Ruben taught us to: like your problem is our problem.
The next generation
Today, Eskimo is led by Ruben's son, Italo San Martin, who grew up in the yard and carries the same values forward: hard work, honest dealing, and putting the customer first — the same values that took a young man from a meat packing line to 40 acres.
We're proud of where we came from. And we're just getting started.
In memory of Ruben San Martin, our founder, who passed on May 9, 2026. His story is the foundation this company stands on.
How we work
We pull it for you
This isn't a pick-n-pull. Our dismantlers pull, clean, and test every part before it goes out the door.
Tested & warrantied
Parts are inspected and warranty-backed. If something isn't right, we make it right — that's why shops keep coming back.
Recycling done right
Every vehicle we process keeps usable parts on the road and fluids, metals, and batteries out of the landfill.
Local yard, continental reach
Free pickup in Edmonton, regional delivery, and parcel + freight shipping across Canada and into the USA.
Straight answers
Real people answer the phone — like your problem is our problem. No call centres, no runaround, no fake prices.
Built on relationships
Mechanics, body shops, and DIYers trust us because we treat every part like our name is on it. Because it is.
Come see the yard
12940 53 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5A 0B9 · Mon–Fri 8:30–5:30, Sat 10–2