Article Summary
The Women's Industry Network (WIN) has surpassed 100 Canadian members for the first time, marking a major milestone for women in the collision repair industry. Beyond membership growth, WIN expanded its Northern Star scholarship program to Canadian recipients, providing financial assistance, mentorship, and professional development opportunities to support women's careers and retention in collision repair.
- WIN surpassed 100 Canadian members for the first time, reflecting growing participation among women in collision repair
- The organization offers networking, mentorship, and professional development programs designed to support long-term career advancement and retention
- WIN's board represents multiple collision repair sectors including repair facilities, suppliers, consultants, and insurers
- WIN's mission is to attract, develop, and promote women into collision repair professions while strengthening the industry's workforce pipeline
The Women’s Industry Network has surpassed 100 Canadian members for the first time, as participation continues to grow across the collision repair industry.
"Numbers tell part of the story. Reaching the 100+ member milestone in Canada is real progress, but the bigger story this year is impact: for the first time, WIN scholarships reached Canadian recipients, giving women in the Canadian collision industry the same access to opportunity and mentorship we've built in the U.S.," said Janette Tooley, WIN Canadian task force co-chair, treasurer, finance & governance chair (Consolidated Dealers senior V-P & CFO).
"That's the kind of growth that matters most to us. As we look ahead, we're committed to deepening that investment with more scholarships, more mentorship, more ways for Canadian women in this industry to lead. This is just the beginning."
The milestone reflects increasing engagement among women in collision repair who are joining the network to access mentoring, professional development and industry connection opportunities.
WIN is an organization with a mission to attract, develop and promote women into collision repair professions. Its vision is to serve as the leading network driving the advancement of women in the industry. The organization’s board of directors represents multiple segments of the collision repair sector, including repair facilities, suppliers, consultants, information providers and insurers.
Alongside membership growth, WIN highlighted continued expansion of its Northern Star scholarship program, which is designed to support women entering collision repair education and training pathways.
The scholarship initiative provides financial assistance to students and apprentices pursuing collision repair careers, while also connecting recipients to WIN’s broader member benefits. These include networking opportunities, mentorship access and professional development programming intended to support long-term retention and advancement in the industry.
WIN representatives noted that one of its key achievements this year has been the continued rollout of the Northern Star scholarships, which are helping support the next generation of collision repair talent while strengthening the industry’s workforce pipeline.
The organization also continues to focus on expanding member value through networking opportunities, volunteer engagement and structured professional development initiatives.
"As someone who has spent years working to create space for women in collision repair, seeing WIN surpass 100 Canadian members is deeply meaningful. It reflects not just growth in numbers, but growth in confidence, connection, and representation," said Renee Sicotte, Canadian task-force member representative at WIN. "Every woman who joins strengthens our industry and helps build the future we’ve all been working toward."
According to WIN, these efforts are contributing not only to individual career growth but also to broader industry development by supporting retention and increasing awareness of career pathways in collision repair.
“From starting the first WIN Canada calls, I can honestly say I am beyond proud of this team and watching them thrive, grow, and continue to improve on their efforts to evolve WIN Canada." said Laura Kottschade, WIN national chair "Seeing the support they received on the Zoom call they had set up with sponsors and the scholarship winners, this is a true testament of their hard work and dedication. To say I am proud of them in an understatement.”
WIN Canada and its volunteer task force were acknowledged for their role in supporting continued growth and engagement as the organization moves beyond the 100-member milestone.
