The 2023 Women in Auto Care Leadership Conference couldn’t have been held at a more ideal time as March is Women’s History Month and is a time to celebrate the achievements of women throughout history. The Women in Auto Care Leadership conference focuses on sharpening personal and professional development skills and providing an update on the latest industry news and trends.
The annual conference, held this year, in Palm Springs, California, brings together women from different automotive industry sectors, including manufacturers, distributors, and service providers. Over 265 women attended this year including the six women Auto-Wares Group of Companies invited. Five individuals were employees of Auto-Wares Group of Companies (pictured below) and one Certified Service Center Shop Owner, Sue Dickson from Closs Tire & Auto Repair.
Kim Nolan, SVP of Sales for BBB Industries and 2022 Women of the Year Winner
Women in Auto Care came with a goal in mind for this conference: develop, empower, and mentor women in the automotive aftermarket, and that’s absolutely what they did. All throughout the conference, you’d see Resilient and Empow[HER]ed, on the windows, the backdrops, the handouts, and even the bathroom mirrors. Reminding the female attendees that they are able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions and that together we can make each other stronger and more confident.
Tuesday’s kicked off with Keynote Speaker, Erin Stafford, who shared her experience with workplace burnout and five mindset shifts to beat it. Kim Nolan, SVP of Sales for BBB Industries and recipient of the 2022 Women of the Year Award, shared her journey through her career and the trail she’s blazed on the way there. Other session content throughout the conference included workplace culture, building a world-class team in a remote/hybrid setting, unleashing your unstoppable confidence, and more!
The evening featured a Palm Spring Retro-themed live auction, where attendees could bid on all sorts of things including tickets to see Taylor Swift in concert, a Delta Airline Travel Voucher, a Louis Vuitton Neverfull bag, and more! Over $65,000 was raised for the Women in Auto Care Scholarships which provide financial assistance for women taking post-secondary automotive coursework across the United States. Learn more about the scholarships here.
About Women in Auto Care
The Women in Auto Care community is dedicated to its mission of connecting, empowering, and mentoring women within the auto care industry.
Women in Auto Care is dedicated to providing opportunities, education, and career leadership to women in the auto care industry through conferences, networking, scholarships, education, data, awards, and more.
- Annual Leadership Conferences – Women in Auto Care conferences focus on personal and professional development, offering various educational and networking opportunities.
- Accredited by Northwood University since 2012 – offering continuing education unit (CEU) credits
- Scholarship Program – Women in Auto Care annually grants scholarships to deserving high school and post-secondary female students.
- Awards – Women in Auto Care administers and sanctions awards at the Women in Auto Care awards ceremony during AAPEX in Las Vegas
- Women of the Year awards
- The Automotive Communication Awards
- Mentor Program – Women in Auto Care curates mentor relationships based on individual goals, fit and experiences
March is Women’s History Month
What does the patent for the first-ever windshield wiper arms and blades & the invention of the car heating system have in common? They were both created by women!
The car heating system was invented by Margaret Wilcox in 1893.
In 1903, Mary Anderson designed, produced, and was granted a patent for the first-ever windshield wiper arms and blades! Her designs are the basis for what is still used today.
