Tom Ballestero’s love for cars goes far beyond the workplace. With his classic 1967 Chevrolet Camaro, the newly named Sales Manager at Thomas Kia of Highland is a car enthusiast as well as a motivated leader.
“What excites me about Thomas Kia is that it is the first Kia dealership in Indiana,” Ballestero said. “They’ve grown year in and year out regarding the customer base with a very high customer satisfaction level.”
Ballestero recently took the wheel at Thomas Kia of Highland, where he is thoroughly enjoying the environment, staff interaction, and the Thomas Kia experience.
“There is such a great vibe in the dealership. Everybody works so well together,” he said. “All departments work toward one common goal and that is to serve the customer. That was a deciding factor for me.”
Ballestero was previously a sales manager at another local dealership. Shifting his gears to Thomas Kia of Highland, Ballestero is thrilled to help the team achieve new heights.
“My responsibilities are to manage, motivate, and maximize all of the efforts of the sales staff, as well as set goals for us as a staff to achieve,” he said.
Ballestero said another positive of his job with Thomas Kia is working alongside one of his good friends, Tom Seely, General Manager of Thomas Kia of Highland.
“I’ve been friends with Tom Seely for over 20 years,” he said. “I worked with Tom, actually, before he came to Thomas Kia.”
Once Ballestero cruises out of the Thomas Kia of Highland parking lot for the day, he likes to spend his time biking, hiking, and attending car shows.
“I enjoy going to classic car shows because I am a car guy,” he said.
Ballestero acquired his very own classic car from a customer looking to purchase a new vehicle at his previous dealership back in 2004. He knew he had to jump on the opportunity, even if that meant he had to put some elbow grease into it.
“It wasn’t restored, so I had it restored myself.”
The 1967 Chevrolet Camaro is a part of Ballestero’s family, including his wife and three children.
To learn more about Thomas Kia of Highland, visit https://www.thomaskia.com.
