Bianca Hurduc is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the car blog Arctic Swan. She is based in France and her site features a mixture of automotive news, interviews and test drives!
1. Can you introduce yourself in a couple of sentences?
Hi everyone, I’m Bianca and I’m an automotive blogger based in France, at the border with Luxembourg, Belgium and Germany. I discovered my passion for cars when I was little but I didn’t explore it until almost two years ago, when I decided to turn it into an entrepreneurial initiative, by starting my own automotive magazine. I love coffee, the sound of engines and driving, of course.
2. What was your first car?
It was a blue Opel Corsa C, 3-door hatchback, 1.3 L. Born in 2002.
3. What inspired your blog Arctic Swan?
When a woman becomes a mother, her whole life changes in a heartbeat. After I had my daughter I became a stay-at-home mom, although until then I was a workaholic involved in the business of online media publishing. I bought my web domain months before I started my project and it’s called ArcticSwan because my aim was to dye my hair in arctic grey color (this is still a plan). I have been searching for many years for an idea I would be deeply passionate about. I thought about it a lot. Didn’t find it. Until one day – it was just a regular day in which I was driving to the supermarket and I noticed that there were many women in the traffic. Then, I just knew that an automotive project written from a feminine perspective was something I had to create. Women behind the wheel inspired me to create this blog.
4. How does it feel as a woman entering what has traditionally been the male domain of cars?
Very good! Since this is a niche that hasn’t yet been totally explored by women there are plenty of creative projects that can be built around cars, from a feminine point of view. I’m speaking of automotive content, there are many ladies that work in this industry and they do a great job.
5. What is the mission of Arctic Swan?
First of all, this is an online book I’m creating for my daughter. I think and hope she will enjoy reading what her mom wrote and maybe she will remember our trips with these cars we are testing together.
The other mission of Arctic Swan is to become the place where women come to inform themselves when they want to buy a new car. Women pick their cars slightly differently to men. Their top preferences are not quite the same. And since I think there is not enough automotive content that answers women’s automotive questions, Arctic Swan can help lady drivers to make a decision.
6. Which car has been your favourite to test and why?
Oh, this is a hard question to answer! I loved every single car I tested. I’m grateful I have the chance to drive the newest cars on the market, I’m in Candyland. But if I had to choose, I would say it depends on my lifestyle. The BMW Z4 sDrive 30i will always have a special place in my heart but in this moment of my life I would choose the Audi A1 – it’s a combination of the things I search for in a car right now and this is the first one that inspired my daughter to climb behind a steering wheel. If I would have to choose a car for a family roadtrip, the Tesla Model X would be my first choice. For our family daily-drive I would choose the DS7 Crossback. There’s a new hybrid version I would like to test.
7. What has been your most memorable moment with Arctic Swan so far?
It was the 3rd of March 2018 and it started snowing, although a few days earlier spring seemed to embrace the region. It was a special thing because it happened seconds after I had just climbed in the first car I ever tested in partnership with a car dealer, a lovely, acid yellow Hyundai Kona.
8. What is your favourite music to listen to in the car?
It depends on the car but I prefer the rock genre until a car makes me shut down the music because I want to listen its engine instead! (As it happened with the Z4, for example).
9. What advice would you give to anyone who wants to start a successful blog?
Don’t do it for the money but for the journey.
10. What’s next for Arctic Swan?
I’m planning a series of special projects around my drive tests, some of them in partnership with other car bloggers. I also plan to participate at more car events.
Thanks to Bianca for taking part in this interview! You can follow her across social media:
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