A call for a more female friendly motor industry
Steph Savill
FOXY LADY DRIVERS CLUB
A motoring association for women
I first set up FOXY Lady Drivers Club with my husband in 2004 after our daughter had a bad experience at her first solo garage outing. I was horrified to learn that garages aren't licensed and that mechanics don't have to be qualified or assessed to repair our cars.
Since then research confirms that many women feel intimidated by garages, would prefer to buy cars from women and generally find the motor industry too blokey.
 Steph Savill
In 2008 we launched FOXY Choice; a female friendly garage services website which includes a Good Garage Guide, encourages female feedback and allows women to search for the sort of unbiased garage information they won't find anywhere else. Such as important signs of measurable quality, ones that are near shops (so we can multi-task...) ones with clean washrooms (so important to women), ones that welcome children and offer trustworthy car collection and courtesy loan car services.
We also identify businesses that employ women because women trust women in an industry that is 80%+ male.
This isn't a feminist issue - some 50% of motorists are female, we buy cars and garage services for our own cars and increasingly for our families so we are VERY important customers.
The secret that so few businesses in the motor industry seem to understand is that women don't want to be treated like men. Those female friendly ones that get it right for us will get our custom, loyalty and referrals whereas those that don't will get left behind as we shop elsewhere.
My call to industry action is therefore 'Let's put customer service to the fore and get more women into the industry to benefit male and female customers alike.' I honestly believe that all customers will spot the difference and that the right female touch can add real value to the business' bottom line.
Steph Savill is an Automotive Careers Champion, a Chartered Marketer, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM) and a member of the Institute of the Motor Industry (MIMI). She has an MBA in Strategic Marketing and speaks at conferences about 'What Women Want' and 'Marketing to Women'.
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