- Expertise: Product, marketing, CRM, customer retention
- Location: Paris, France
- Languages spoken: English
- DOB: September 1973
Who is Helen Perry?
As Head of Electric Passenger Cars & Infrastructure for Nissan in Europe, Helen is responsible for the marketing of the existing EV line-up and any new EVs coming down the line. She ensures this aligns with the business' broader electrification plans.
Collaborating with other functions in Nissan that work across the product lifecycle, Helen also helps to make sure that their work supports the consumer needs and behaviours across markets in the region. Regular liaison with Nissan's dealer network and sales teams also lie in Helen's remit, allowing her to continually provide the business with updates on the customer, their demands and EV charging needs.
Career History
Helen joined Nissan in 1999, starting her career with the UK team in customer relationship management (CRM) and digital marketing. Helen then moved to Nissan Europe in 2005 where she continued working in the CRM, digital and marketing areas of the business. Helen made her first move to the product side of Nissan in 2008, moving to cross-car line marketing and supporting product teams on the management of incentive spend and different product reports. In 2010, she landed the role of Micra Product Manager before moving to the position of Qashqai Product Manager in 2014. 12 months later, Helen became the Chief Marketing Manager for Small Cars for Europe, before starting in her current role in 2019.
Achievements
Across her 20 years at Nissan, Helen sees the product launches as the standout moments – whether being involved in Marketing Communications or in Product Marketing. Most recently, she orchestrated the marketing launch of the latest generation of Micra and Juke – the latter being representative of the brand's leadership in the crossover segment.
Personal Memory
Helen has many fond memories of her time at Nissan. They include her time spent on digital in 2007 where she helped devise a pre-order system for the Nissan GT-R. This was at a time when digital was in its infancy and proved a great testbed in digitalisation. She also remembers building the CRM activities for the launch of Qashqai. The key challenge here was to explain to consumers how the Qashqai name should be pronounced in different European languages, a name that is now part of all our vocabulary. Helen also recalls the launch of Micra and the process challenges and learnings this presented being an Alliance vehicle built in a Renault factory in Flins. Most recently, she recalls her last trip to Japan in October 2019, accompanying key European journalists to the reveal of Nissan's Ariya Concept vehicle, the new icon of Nissan Intelligent Mobility. It made her feel proud to work for Nissan.
Why is Nissan different?
Nissan's challenger mindset is what Helen believes makes it different from competitors in Europe. This spirit is particularly important when considering the strength of the domestic brands in countries like France and Germany.
Nissan's cultural diversity is also another element that Helen calls out as one of the reasons why it's great to work at Nissan in Europe. With employees joining from across the globe, Helen says she and her colleagues are all able to benefit from a diverse mindset and different ways in which people work. It's these traits that keeps Helen passionate about Nissan in Europe today.
Future Predictions
Automotive brands are now moving to electrify their line-up due to increased regulatory pressures. Helen thinks the key challenge is the time it will take to bring consumers on this journey towards 100% electric and automakers need to guide consumers on the different electrification options and benefits, something Nissan has been doing now for 10 years.
Helen believes the future of the industry will be centred around electrification and connectivity. Thanks to new car technology, consumers will see their vehicle as a seamless extension to their everyday life. Brands will need to be more agile and marry the tech and engineering of a vehicle to create a complete ecosystem that adds value to consumers. Helen says those organisations that can adapt themselves quickly will be the most successful in the future.
Education
Education was never a passion as Helen grew up. Preferring to gain experience through work from a young age, she worked in many roles. Starting in a farm-shop, Helen went on to work in restaurants, events, pensions and health and fitness before working for Hyundai, which was her first experience in Automotive.
In Helen's Personal Time
Much of Helen's spare time is spent with her family. Her children, Amelia (11) and Louis (10) are full-on with all their clubs! She also enjoys rowing, skiing and gardening.
Your current car
Helen currently drives a Nissan LEAF and is loving it!
Your first car
Helen's fist car was a Volkswagen Polo, shared with her two sisters.
