The National Automobile Dealers Association named Carmen Hinton as the winner of the 5th annual Women Driving Auto Retail Video Contest, sponsored exclusively by Stellantis. The service manager at Carter Myers Automotive’s Valley Subaru Service Manager in Staunton, Va. was announced as the contest winner during a segment on NADA’s Live Stage at the organization’s annual event.
“Every year, it is amazing to see the caliber of women working in the auto retail industry through this contest,” said Val Bowen, president of ValMark Chevrolet in New Braunfels, Texas and NADA Board of Directors member. “These videos are truly inspiring and make me proud to be a woman working in this industry.”
“Women purchase more than 60 percent of all new cars sold in the U.S. and influence more than 85 percent of all car purchases. I’ve always been surrounded by strong intelligent women in my family and I am a strong ally for women in all dealership roles,” said Wes Lutz, president of Extreme Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep, RAM Inc. in Jackson, Mich, who presented the award alongside Bowen.
Launched in August 2019, the video contest is part of NADA’s Women Driving Auto Retail initiative, which highlights the current voices of women working in dealerships and encourages other women to pursue automotive careers. The video contest celebrates women who work in all areas of car or truck dealerships, and aims to encourage more women to pursue a career in auto retail.
“I love what I do” said Hinton, who joined the auto retail industry with little experience and has been with Carter Myers Automotive for 11 years. “I am still learning every day. There are still obstacles that I am overcoming, but I feel like it has made me a better person.”
Video contest sponsor Stellantis agrees that gender diversity in the automotive space is crucial: “Building a diverse employee talent pool continues to be a critical focus for Stellantis, its dealers, and its business partners,” said Phil Langley Stellantis vice President of dealer network. “Improving the diversity of our dealer network within all roles in the dealership starts with having a strong bench of qualified candidates who are excited to represent the Stellantis brands and products.”
In a video of three minutes of less, this year’s contest called on women working in the auto retail industry to share their experience, how their auto retail career journey began and why the industry is a great career path for other women.
“If you are a womanor know a woman interested in learning more about the successes Stellantis brands have had in the marketplace and want to join the family, I would encourage you to reach out to your local dealer and learn more about available opportunities,” said Eric Wong, Stellantis senior manager of dealer market representation, diversity and technology.
The winner will receive a $1,000 gift card plus complimentary registration to NADA Show 2023 in Dallas, while the other nine semifinalists announced in early March will receive a $500 gift card, along with a scholarship to NADA’s Professional Series, a training program to foster dealership talent working in any dealership department – a value of $2,995, which will also be offered to the winner.
View the submissions from the ten finalists here and find more information on NADA’s Women Driving Auto Retail initiative here.
