Real Voices: Shelby Carwardine

Read our latest Real Voice from Shelby Carwardine, Sales and Service Specialist at Blackhawk:

Upon leaving school with all the usual Maths and English GCSEs, and also having studied animal care with a love for animals, coupled with a part-time job in kennels, I thought maybe this was the path I was going to take. But not really knowing. At the same time, I had a part-time job at the weekends at a local motocross track. Working at the motocross track brought back some great memories, from following Speedway with my father from a very young age. So, maybe subconsciously, I was being steered towards automotive.

Being realistic, it was time to look for employment, and it was at this point I started to look into apprenticeships. I visited the local college to see what apprenticeships were on offer, however I felt like the males were being directed towards practical roles like mechanics and engineering. Looking back, it did feel like I was being guided towards administrative roles. It was at this point there was an apprentice administrative role available at a company called Car-O-Liner.

"Give automotive a go; don’t be afraid to try. You can do anything you want to if you put your mind to it. Ask for help when you need it. People in this industry are some of the nicest people I have met."

Shelby Carwardine

Upon applying for the interview, Car-O-Liner accepting, and leaving feeling positive, I was offered the position and started 2 weeks later. During my first week, my father was invited to visit the office for a tour and meet my colleagues. Discussing the industry I was entering led onto a discussion about motorsports. And at this point, the industry just seemed like the right fit. Now 8 years later, I am a Sales and Service Specialist at Blackhawk.

There are many parts to the job I could describe as the best part, the ones that spring to mind instantly are that I have a lot of freedom, I make my own decisions, and I am continuously learning (stock handling, communication skills, sales negotiations, presenting/demonstrating products, and learning about the collision repair industry by no means least). You never stop learning as my mentor keeps reminding me. So, the best part of the job is the everyday challenge.

The main transferable skills I brought over from my previous role in service would be communication. I was communicating with management, front desk and most of all the technicians. This helped to increase my confidence, but also helped people’s confidence when speaking to me as to my knowledge of the industry and the products they are using.

Starting the position of apprentice administrative role layered the learning, as I worked up to service and support administration role, leading onto the admin assistant to the Blackhawk sales representative. The vacancy for the Blackhawk Sales and Service specialist role was available and secretly I knew I was the person for this role. After several conversations/meetings with management, it was agreed with no hesitation from all sides that I would take on this challenge from the beginning of January 2024.

Without stating the obvious, the biggest misconception is that the automotive industry (especially the collision repair sector) is driven by males for males. However, I am learning that in the sector I have chosen, sales and technical support, that there are a lot of females. In my new role, I get to visit workshops daily, coming across a stronger than I expected percentage of female managers, paint sprayers and panel technicians. I would also like to add, starting in the motor industry in admin like I did is a good place to start to develop your skills leading you onto a management position.

Give automotive a go; don’t be afraid to try. You can do anything you want to if you put your mind to it. Ask for help when you need it. All the skills and competences I have learned plus the skills I am continuing to learn are easily transferable to wherever I would like to take them in the future. People in this industry are some of the nicest people I have ever met and possibly ever likely to.

I had zero experience or knowledge about anything automotive before I came into this industry. I watched motorsport and that’s the only link I had to automotive. I started on an apprenticeship, which was a way to learn and make money. Even today, I continue to grow my knowledge and learning in the industry. I truly believe today that this is the right path/industry I chose. Fortunately, I have a manager who believes in me and gave me the opportunity to improve myself as he saw that I was eager to learn, the rest is down to me.