Breaking Ground: Auto Trader’s Catherine Faiers Claims Prestigious Inspiring Automotive Woman of the Year 2025
In a landmark moment for automotive leadership, Auto Trader COO Catherine Faiers has been crowned the Automotive 30% Club IMI Inspiring Automotive Woman of the Year 2025. The announcement, made at the prestigious IMI Awards Dinner, celebrates Faiers’ transformative impact on the industry since joining Auto Trader in 2017.
“The future of automotive is bright with all these incredible women at the heart of it,” remarked Faiers, whose journey from her 2017 entry to her 2019 COO appointment exemplifies the leadership potential for women in automotive.
Beyond her executive role, Faiers champions a multi-faceted approach to industry transformation:
• Drives diversity initiatives as Auto Trader’s ethnicity network executive sponsor
• Provides targeted mentorship for women facing intersectional career barriers
• Partners with the Social Mobility Foundation and Cherie Blair Foundation For Women
• Pioneers female entrepreneurship through angel investing, addressing the 3% VC funding gap for women
• Launched the groundbreaking “Great Events for All” initiative, partnering with the Automotive 30% Club and Consent Collective to promote safer, more inclusive industry events
Julia Muir, Automotive 30% Club Founder, praised Faiers’ comprehensive impact: “Catherine truly embodies what it is to be an Inspiring Automotive Woman. She’s not just a senior executive driving change within Auto Trader – she’s revolutionizing the entire automotive sector and broader business landscape.”
As a Patron of the Automotive 30% Club, Faiers continues to champion workplace equality, social mobility, and inclusive practices, setting new standards for leadership in the automotive industry.