SANDRA INIESTA: “IF YOU PERSEVERE AND FOLLOW YOUR GOALS, YOU CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING”

Motul is a truly diverse global brand that encourages women in motorsport at all levels, in all areas. In Spain and Portugal, Sandra Iniesta is Motul’s marketing and communications director, responsible for building the brand and growing the business. Here, she shares with us how she got into this area and what it’s like to work as a woman in motorsport and automotive.

I am the marketing and communications director for Motul Spain and Portugal. My job involves designing and developing strategies that help to grow the business in Iberia as well as to help transform Motul into one of the most desirable and attractive brands on the market, while leading the brand positioning standards established by the company. We work side by side with our customers and stakeholders to offer them diverse products and other tools to help them develop their business. And I'm also responsible for all the events related to motorsport. With these events, we get closer to the audiences, strengthen the brand presence, and offer our customers unique experiences.

Before Motul, I worked at six different multi-national companies in the FMCG and other industries, in different areas of marketing and communication. I was offered the opportunity to join the Motul family. It is a very challenging project with great growth prospects on a personal and professional level, and which I'm very proud to be part of. I have discovered a company with very solid values such as brotherliness and passion, which have led me to live experiences totally different from what I had.

It is quite a male dominated field. I see it when I go to meetings with some customers, and probably 90% of them are male. There are very few women in this sector. It didn’t come as a surprise for me because I had previous experience in this field. However, there is an increasing presence of women in this sector, in management positions too, which is as a sign that something is changing. I have been in these kind of environments for many years and I've always felt comfortable. Motul has been very, very welcoming and gave me the opportunity to get involved in projects that promote the role of women.

Working in marketing and in this field is something I'm passionate about. I haven’t faced many big difficulties for being a woman or in relation to the people I work with. In fact, there's a large female presence at Motul internationally, carrying out different activities and roles in the company, from R&D to finance. So, I feel welcome and comfortable, and I hope that more women are encouraged to join these areas wherever the field, sector, or industry.

I would say the challenges I had to overcome are the same that any man or woman would face: hard work and enjoying what you do. Motul was a challenge in itself for totally different reasons than being a woman, such as having to develop a team from scratch and growing a brand with huge potential. I feel really proud to be part of it and the success we’ve had.

Women are becoming more and more present at Motul. Four out of six of our team are women. And in the motorsport world, our presence has been growing and nowadays women and motorsport is seen as something quite natural. There are now more and more female engineers, drivers and riders and mechanics. Years ago, they were the exception. There is still a long way to go but having more women will encourage others to follow.

To pursue your dreams. Difficulties will arise, but you shouldn’t let them stop you. Never give up. If you persevere and follow your goals, you can achieve anything. Nowadays there are many examples of women succeeding in different fields. So, us women should believe more in ourselves. I think we are capable of reaching any goal we want in life, and we should be proud.