As I live in the depths of the countryside, my car has become my office. I am often commuting to meetings in London and beyond, and a lot of business is done while I’m driving. We all know that our phone batteries run out pretty quickly, so I am loving the wireless charging in the Ateca. The infotainment system is also really good; you do not have to fiddle around with buttons or the screen when you need to answer a call.
Sometimes it feels as though I’m juggling a thousand balls, trying to be a mum, doing my Challenge Kiddo activities and TV appearances, as well as setting up a new business. Having a car I can rely on is essential, as I’m developing a charity-based fashion tech company, which means driving from meeting to meeting, and the Ateca has helped enormously.
The business is called Donate the Change and it comes from an idea I was discussing with my father at Christmas. We were thinking about how hard it is becoming to raise money for charity – we felt there had to be an easier way – and looking for a means for everyone to become a philanthropist. Working with a friend of mine who is into wearable tech, we are using a contactless chip to create a bracelet for making round-up donations, so that, for example, if you buy a cup for coffee for £2.40 it rounds it up to £3.00, giving 60p to charity.
When I drive to meetings with investors and tech companies, I like to keep people guessing about what car I’m going to arrive in. They associate me with cars so much that I like to give them a surprise – it might be a 1970s off-roader, an 80s hot hatch or the Ateca that I arrive in. People are very proud of turning up at meetings and showing off their latest car, and taking colleagues out for a spin in your new motor is a massive thing. I’ve taken tons of people out in the Ateca and they’ve all been impressed by the amount of gadgets and gizmos that you get for the price.
Whichever way you look at it, cars are important to people, and they do project a lot about your image. I know at my son Indio’s school there are a few other mums already looking to buy an Ateca, they love it, and I have had other people come and take a look. It does get eyes; it’s a pretty car, you cannot deny that. My father is bowled over with it, he thinks it’s just the best car and he is a man used to driving classic sport cars! He loves the screen, and says the navigation system and display are among the easiest to understand that he’s used, which coming from a gentleman of later years is high praise indeed.
