Thomas KIA of Highland is run by a passionate team of employees committed to providing the community with the highest quality service imaginable. Of course, Thomas KIA wouldn’t be the team that it is without General Manager Tom Seely. Seely’s 32 years in the car industry have taught him many things: the importance of self-motivation, friendship, leadership, and, the force behind all of these things, the power of growth.
“In my 32-year career, the highlight has been watching everyone and everything grow around me,” said Seely.
Growing up, Seely’s mom often told him that he had the “gift of gab” and that he would be a great car salesman. Seely took his mom’s words to heart; one day her car was being serviced, so he went with her to pick it up and asked the folks at the dealership if they were hiring. Seely did a short interview, and before he knew what was happening, he was hired as a salesman.
It didn’t take long for Seely to fall in love with the car industry and grow tremendously as a hardworking individual. He was so passionate that he once sold five cars in one day.
“It just came so easy to me. I loved the challenge of working hard to make as much as I possibly could rather than working for a straight hourly wage,” said Seely.
Seely worked hard for several years as a salesman until becoming an internet manager, one of his most unique roles. In this position, he sold cars online to people all around the world including dozens of people in Iceland and even a Saudi prince.
“That was the most unusual sale I ever made,” said Seely. “I asked why so many people from overseas were buying our cars, and he said, ‘We don't produce any cars, so we have to get them from someplace.’”
After working a few years as an internet manager, Seely kept rising. He was promoted to sales manager and did that for a while before eventually becoming the general manager at a Ford dealership.
Seely has now officially been a general manager for the past 15 years. 11 of those years have been for Thomas KIA of Highland and Thomas Nissan of Joliet, and he couldn’t be happier with where he’s ended up.
One of the highlights of Seely’s long career has been seeing how much cars have developed over the years.
“I've seen a lot of changes in the auto industry. I was there when airbags first started coming into cars. I've gone through eight-track players, cassette players, CD players, satellite radio, and Bluetooth,” said Seely.
Seely also loves how many lives he’s been able to touch throughout his career. Getting to serve families loyally for countless years means everything to him, and that service has resulted in invaluable friendships.
“I’ve met such an array of people. To this day, I have so many families that I've sold vehicles to for generations. Some of them I could call up right now and get invited to Thanksgiving dinner. Those 30-plus-year relationships mean a lot,” said Seely.
Developing as a person, watching the car industry change rapidly, and building relationships with the community have been an integral part of Seely’s life, but Seely’s favorite part of his career by far has been seeing his employees grow.
“The most rewarding aspect of everything is watching someone that I hire succeed. I hired my finance manager fresh out of his second year at Purdue University North Central (now Purdue University Northwest), and he's been with me ever since. He's gone from being a porter to a salesman to a sales manager to a finance manager to a finance director. Now, he's being groomed for a GM position. It’s that growth that brings me joy,” said Seely.
Today, Seely is committed to maintaining a welcoming atmosphere at Thomas KIA and making it the cleanest dealership in all of Northwest Indiana. Between holding fun team potlucks and early morning hikes at the Dunes for some extra team bonding, Seely is always coming up with innovative ways to create not just a team but a family. He encourages anyone who is interested in getting into the car business to not be afraid – as long as a person is driven and friendly, they’ll be successful.
“The best advice I can give is to find a good, reputable dealership and just stick with it. Don’t be afraid to keep learning – even to this day I drive to work listening to inspirational podcasts to improve myself. Most importantly, keep a smile on your face. If you have any amount of work ethic, you can succeed. Anybody can do this,” said Seely.
Ultimately, Thomas KIA of Highland couldn’t ask for a more passionate and caring general manager. Seely can’t wait to see what the future holds for his career and is grateful to everyone who has pushed him to be the person he is today.
“I just want to thank everyone who has worked for me – they've made me who I am. I’d also like to thank the Thomas family for allowing me to do this for the past 11 years. They're outstanding people and an outstanding family. They’re the reason why I work so hard to get everything right; they’ve shown me it's all about the people. I’m grateful every day for the opportunity to run their dealerships,” said Seely.
To learn more about Thomas KIA and its committed staff, visit thomaskia.com.