Nissan’s exclusive Women’s Worldwide COTY Rome event

There were 35 female motoring journalists at the Nissan event in Rome. Photos: Nissan

In a world first, Nissan held a car launch for the judges of the Women’s Worldwide Car of the Year in Rome, with the largest group of female automotive journalists ever.

The event had 35 judges from around the globe, including many European countries, plus Dubai, India, Cyrus and AutoMuse’s New Zealand-based Liz Dobson.

Nissan not only had the Rome event to its crossover fleet but also revealed a new performance model.

According to Katherine Zachary, Nissa’s vice president of communications for Africa, the Middle East, India, Europe and Oceania, the event was also to promote the automotive brand’s corporate emphasis on inclusivity.

Nissan’s Katherine Zachary hosted the WWCOTY event.

“For Nissan as a corporation, collectively DEi is important to us as an organisation,” said Zachary.

The motoring journalists flew into Rome the day before the Nissan crossover event, with a welcome dinner that night. 

The next day, the judges were introduced to updated Nissan crossovers and for Women’s Worldwide Care of the Year (WWCOTY) executive president, Marta García, the late February Nissan event was a turning point for the organisation.

“It was a milestone in the history of the automobile …  Never before had there been anything like what happened (with) 35 motoring journalists, all women, packed the press room where Nissan was to hold a press conference on its crossover range,” the Spain-based Garcia told AutoMuse.

“Sitting there, in the midst of these judges in Women's Worldwide Car of the Year, I saw a dream come true, an aspiration for which many of us women journalists have been fighting for years. That day, I realised that the effort of all of us jurors who are part of the WWCOTY is worth it.

Nissan held a press conference and launch for the Crossovers including a new model.

“Nissan has been the first to understand this, to be sensitive enough to value our work, our professionalism and to understand how much we have to contribute to the industry,” said Garcia.

“I am sure that other brands will open their minds more and more to female talent, to that way of understanding the motor world that goes beyond the nuts and bolts because the automobile is also an expression of freedom.”

The day before the Nissan event, Garcia was in Madrid presenting WWCOTY’s International Awards.

WWCOTY is made up of 82 professional journalists working in 55 countries on different continents, who vote to recognise the best cars of the year for their design, safety, efficiency and innovation, among other aspects.