Nominations open for annual Auto Trader Retailer Awards

Auto Trader has opened nominations for its 2025 Retailer Awards to recognise dealerships across eight different categories.

The winners will be determined either by analysis of thousands of data points, or an independent panel of judges.

This year sees the return of the Woman of the Year Award category, which launched last year to recognise the exceptional women in automotive retail, and to support the Automotive 30% Club’s ‘Moonshot’ initiative.

The self-nomination award celebrates inspiring women working within an operational management role in a retail organisation who’s delivering results and destined to be a future leader.

The winner of the inaugural award was Kate Carter, head of truck sales, at eStar Truck and Van, who the Automotive 30% Club’s founder, Julia Muir, described as “truly inspirational.”

In addition to The Woman of the Year Award, the other four independently judged self-nomination categories are: 

• The People & Culture Award will celebrate those businesses that puts its people first and have created a dynamic, open, and diverse workspace.
• The Innovation Award will recognise a retailer that have successfully innovated to better their business
• The Sustainability Initiative Award will showcase the best examples of businesses doing all they can to become more sustainable and helping to combat the climate crisis
• The Rising Star Award will identify those burgeoning businesses that have been around for up to three years and destined to set the industry alight. 

All the self-nomination categories will be independently judged by this year’s panel of experts, which last year included senior executives from John Lewis, LinkedIn, Ocado Intelligent Automation, The Carbon Literacy Project, Mony Group (MoneySuperMarket) and the Automotive 30% Club.

Shortlisted nominees will be invited to attend the awards ceremony on the October 16 at Landing 42, in the City of London.

The winners of three further categories will be determined by data.

This includes the Customer Experience Award, which will use mystery shopping exercises to whittle down the top 1,000 performing retailers on Auto Trader.

It also includes the Awards’ top accolade, the Retailer of the Year, which in 2025 will once again be split across car, van, bike and new car.  

Rebecca Clark, Auto Trader’s group sales director (pictured), said: "We look forward to the Retailer Awards every year, as it’s an opportunity to see and celebrate the very best in automotive retailing.

"Winning these awards is tough; it’s independent, its data and fact based and it’s unbiased, so even to be shortlisted is a huge achievement, particularly in an increasingly competitive and complex market.

"A winner or finalist logo on your digital or physical forecourt can really help your business stand out and build that all important trust. So, as ever, I’d urge all those brilliant retailers who are delivering retailing excellence day-in and day-out not to miss the opportunity to have their hard work and commitment rewarded.

"That includes the many exceptional women who are playing such a vital role in our industry’s success, and who we are immensely proud to help give the recognition they deserve."

Self-nomination entries are now open and will close on August 17. 

Retailers can submit their entries at: https://www.autotraderretailerawards.co.uk. Individuals can nominate themselves or be made on someone else’s behalf.