Print

Monthly Employee Spotlight

Handy Toyota's Employee Spotlight

Allow us introduce you to the monthly employee spotlight, a supplement to our staff page.  In this section you will get a brief but revealing look at a member of the Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT family like never before.

Our goal is to allow any potential and repeat customers out there a chance to get to know our Toyota sales, service or car repair, and parts team members a little better - because we have all been new car buyers before or had our vehicles serviced, and you never know who you will get for a salesperson or service advisor; this can be an anxiety ridden occasion.  While we suggest reading online reviews to get a different perspective on our team, we hope that shining some light on these individuals' hopes, likes, dislikes, and more each month will quell some of that nervousness.

In the end we want to let you know that the our St. Albans, Toyota dealership staff at Handy Toyota is here to work for you, and if you get to know us a bit beforehand, ideally it will augment your overall new or used car buying experience.  On behalf of all those in the spotlight now and in the future, we thank you for giving us your time.




Employee Spotlight - December 2011
Sam Farrar - Finance Manager

Remember the 1980s?  Many of us do, although it depends on where you surf for Handy Toyota's new Toyota inventory, used car inventory, Toyota service and car repair, or genuine Toyota car parts information.  If you're searching for us on Google, Yahoo!, or Bing or using a social media site like Facebook or Twitter @HandyToyotaVT, chances are you probably are not that familiar with Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT and thus are a teenager or young adult, and you're also likely not a Toyota shopper in the greater Burlington, Vermont area by simple virtue of the "small town effect."  If you're finding us by typing handycars.com or handytoyota.com or you're simply stopping by our downtown St. Albans, VT location at 39 South Main Street, probability dictates that you are our core clientele, that being the middle-aged citizens of the greater Burlington, VT and Plattsburgh, New York areas on up.

What's my point?  Well if you're a member our strong core of customers, you may remember the old Ghostbuster's tune:  "who ya gonna call?" which brings us to the point of the topic.  We're not talking about bustin' ghosts, but rather car loans in VT.

To digress, when you need to buy a new car in the greater Burlington, VT area and need to finance it, who ya gonna call?

Sam Farrar... finance manager at Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT and the spotlight winner for this month's employee spotlight segment.  And with that said, let's start back at the beginning.

Samuel Farrar, a one-year Handy Toyota staff member and financing wunderkind, came to us out of sheer luck.  After a change of financial advisors here at the store, the previous finance manager decided that it just wasn't for him.  Alas, this happens in the world of employment, and tasks you once thought were ideal for you - presumably anyway, or else why would anyone take a new role when they excelled at the previous one well enough to be up for promotion, right? - turn out to be anything but.  With heavy hearts we parted ways with our previous finance manager, and though the previous financial advisor, long time Handy employee Krista Bourgeois, was a fantastic choice for the position, we had simply grown too attached to her ungodly business managing skills.

After seemingly endless weeks and perhaps months of looking for a candidate proper, one thing became abundantly clear:  not only was this a difficult task, it was coming to the point where we simply needed a finance manager.  As you may or may not remember from the June 2011 spotlight, sales consultant Ben Howrigan has a knack for finances as well but is too busy due to his love of customer interaction and Toyota sales in VT.  To repeated, we needed a finance manager.

Sam Farrar was at the time working for a Nissan dealership in the Burlington, Vermont area, not far from where he resides.  Though he says he loved working there, he had been in the position for a few years and desired a change.  With he and his girlfriend originally from St. Albans, they wanted to be closer to their joint families - and lucky for Handy Toyota's sales team, Sam answered the call.

Trust me here, folks, when I tell you in all my years I've nary seen a person fall so rightly into a position, let alone one of great stress.  From handling financial information for our company (read that having a big role in keeping us all fed, clothed, and in warm houses!) to dealing with customers that want something different for a lease payment or financing specials, Sam was most certainly not only the right candidate for the once-vacant position, but the best candidate for which we could have ever dreamed.

So what makes Sam tick?  Well, as mentioned he does live in South Burlington, VT, a city he loves because of the perfect, Vermont-special mixture of a big college city with a quaint mountain town.  Comparing it to a much smaller scale Aspen, Sam enjoys golfing in the summer months and skiing during the winter in his downtime or spending time with his girlfriend of many years.  Sam has also lived in Vermont for his entire 31 years, going to college in Vermont and stating that he'll likely never leave.

"Both Burlington and St. Albans," he starts, "just have this incredible feel that you can't get anywhere else.  You can visit New York City or Washington, D.C., or some other big city where you first believe there is a 'lot more to do,' but you learn pretty quickly that the same old routine is the same old routine anywhere."  Sam continued by mentioning that the changing seasons and crisp Vermont air, both of which he loves year round, are what really keep him grounded in stressful times.

Though Sam used to work for a Nissan dealer and drives a car he purchased while there, he's been talking quite a bit about getting a new car that fits his personality.  "I want to get either a 2012 Camry SE V6 or a 4Runner," he says.  "The 4Runner I'm not as sure about as far as specificity.  I'm not sure if I want the trail-tough Trail Edition or the luxurious 4Runner Limited.  I suppose I'll try them both out for a night and make my call," he finishes with a laugh.

"But my dream vehicle is different!" he tells me.  "I want one, and I would buy it if I could, but there aren't too many around and any that are in good shape would likely be more than I'd want to spend, but... I want an older Land Cruiser.  Like a late 1980s, 1990s model, back when they were a little shorter in overall length, possibly a little wider (although I don't have the definitive dimensions, I'm just saying it looks it), and when they were boxier.  I love the old boxy, rugged looking ones!"

So whether you need a Land Cruiser, an FJ Cruiser, a 4Runner, or even a Tacoma, Tundra, Corolla, Prius, or Prius Plug-in, make sure you call Sam.  Thanks to his excellent rapport with our strong list of preferred auto loan banks, Sam can make some pretty magical things happen for any qualified buyer.  And though some of you read a lot of my blogs, Facebook posts, and other online offerings, keep this in mind:  the picture below is MY Corolla that Sam Farrar helped me lease... and he got me the literal deal of my dreams.

For more on Sam, email him using our online contact form or send him a direct message at sfarrar@handycars.com.  You can also call him at 888-352-5749, check out his monthly lease specials or new Toyota specials, or simply fill out an online car loan application using our secure Route One Credit app.

Previous Employee Spotlights

Employee Spotlight - November 2011
Tom Young - Sales Consultant

After taking another look at Handy Toyota sales consultant Ali Kamal in September 2011's employee spotlight, you knew it was coming:  another look at the one and only Blogmeister himself:  Tom Young.

So what has Tom Young been up to for the past 18 months - and yes, it's been nearly that long since his last spotlight came out believe it or not - and how has he been?  I sat down with him to find out.

Read the rest of Tommy's updated segment in the November 2011 spotlight to find out what the Blogmeister's been up to in between blogs.



Employee Spotlight - October 2011
Chelsey Howard - Internet Sales Consultant

A little over a year ago, Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT lost one of our best Internet sales consultants, but as she says, it was the best year of her life.  Because Chelsey Howard, this month's employee spotlight, left the Handy Toyota crew to take on one of the biggest, most rewarding challenges any person can:  she brought her first child into this world.

After learning how to deal with a new baby boy - this was Chelsey's first, as mentioned - she is now back in the proverbial saddle and ready to do what she does best for the team:  get customers in St. Albans, Burlington, and Plattsburgh into the new Toyota vehicle or used car of their dreams without ever having to leave the comfort of their home, office, or wherever else you shop online at handytoyota.com.

Find out more about what Chelsey's has been up to since she left us by reading her full spotlight now!



Employee Spotlight for September 2011
Ali Kamal - Certified Sales and Leasing Consultant

As some of you may remember, we looked at Ali Kamal in our very first employee spotlight, way back in May of 2010.  You may remember at the time Ali was a 19-year veteran already at Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT, and as such his "time served" has increased to a whopping 21 years.

Learn more about one of Handy Toyota and our customer's favorite sales consultants by reading Ali's updated spotlight.



Employee Spotlight for August 2011
Kyle Ward - Sales Consultant

Almost a year ago in November of 2010, we looked at one of our "up and coming" sales stars, Kyle Ward.  We knew someday we would have to follow up with our staff - remember, Handy Toyota has one of the lowest turnover rates in the greater Burlington, VT area and many finalists were chosen for the first retread.  However in the end the choice boiled down to one person, and that choice was surprisingly easy.

So what was it that made the final selection of August 2011's employee spotlight so easy?  For no other reason than the former up and comer, Kyle Ward, has blossomed into one of the premier, certified sales consultants Handy Toyota and indeed handycars.com has to offer.

Read the rest of Kyle's 8/2011 spotlight to learn more about what Kyle has been up to over the past year and a half in this month's spotlight.



Employee Spotlight for June 2011
Ben Howrigan - Sales Consultant and Finance Advisor

I first met with Ben months ago, back when Handy Toyota's Facebook page was hosting a daily trivia game in which we asked random questions relating to Facebook posts like blogs and whoever answered first won a free $10 gift card.  One gentleman, Ben Howrigan, ended up winning one day and so naturally I planned to finally meet him.  An odd thing happened that day as I took my lunch and went up to Bob's Meat Market here in St. Albans for one of Rob Pravasi's delicious sub sandwiches.  Little did I know I'd not only run into our trivia contest winner, but also meet future sales consultant Ben Howrigan.

Learn a little more about Ben by viewing his full employee spotlight segment.



Employee Spotlight for May 2011
Jordan Mosher - Sales Consultant

Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT has a certain caliber of person that we look for when hiring a new staff member, as does any company one would suppose.  Drive, determination, punctuality, a positive attitude, and someone who relates well to customers are perhaps the building blocks of any great sales consultant, but rarely do these qualities come together in a perfect way.  Handy's was lucky enough to stumble upon a well-educated person of all of these more in this month's employee spotlight, new sales consultant Jordan Mosher.

To read more about Jordan, check out his full spotlight.



Employee Spotlight for April 2011
Dan Beaulieu - Vehicle Reconditioning Technician

Every dealership in the entire United States and hopefully the world along with every single customer that has ever or will ever walk through the doors has one thing in common:  when a new car or used vehicle is delivered to its new owner it needs to be clean.  Let's face it folks, this isn't even a "rule" perse as much as common sense and something that's expected.  After all, who in their right mind would drive off in a new Toyota after paying for such an investment with a dirty floor or some such?  Of course this is where this month's employee spotlight, Dan Beaulieu, comes into play.

Learn more about vehicle reconditioning expert Dan Beaulieu in April 2011 spotlight and finish reading about him now.



Employee Spotlight for March 2011
Dan Oriesko - Toyota Technician

For this month's employee spotlight, we're going to take a look at one of the nicest guys to grace our St. Albans Toyota dealership's facility in a long time, Mr. Dan Oriesko.  Dan was born in Virginia, but don't think if you meet him you'll ever hear any southern twang.  Just after his birth, Dan moved to Vermont and has remained here ever since.

Find out a little more about Dan by reading his spotlight today.



Employee Spotlight for February 2011
Tyler Barnier - eCommerce Assistant

Originally charged with taking photographs of the new Toyota, new Chevrolet, and used vehicles for the Handy Family of Dealerships, 17 year old Tyler Barnier of Swanton, Vermont has grown to be just another piece of an all encompassing puzzle that makes our business so great.  His pictures were so amazing in fact that we eventually had to switch his job to something a bit more challenging, and he was made into our YouTube video creator.  Now all you have to do is check out the Handy Channel, sit back, and watch some videos of unique vehicles.

Read more about Tyler to learn more about our former eCommerce assistant.



Employee Spotlight for January 2011
Christopher M Dugan - Internet Manager

You, the reader, are quite possibly right this very second wondering how this website came to be, or at least how it bloomed into its current state.  Due to the meticulous organization and proper grammar, the down-to-earth topics in many of the daily blogs, the multiple types of online media in which Handy's operates like Facebook or on Twitter @handytoyotavt, along with all the other venues you may think it is thanks to a full IT team deep in the catacombs of Handy Toyota who constantly churn out the great items you see today.  But one may be surprised to know that this is all done by one man:  the internet manager of Handy Toyota of St. Albans, Christopher Dugan.

To learn more, check out Chris' full spoglith for January of 2010.



Employee Spotlight for December 2010
Matthew Brosseau - eCommerce Assistant

Just like you, I can clearly remember being 17 years old.  Of course it wasn't that long ago, only 9 years, but I can remember my attitude about every topic just as vividly.  I, like many youngsters, thought I was invincible, infallible, and all alone in the world; nobody could possibly understand me, nobody had ever went through what I had to, and nobody perceived the world quite as well as I did.  Jeez... just about everything your parents tell you when you're that age comes true, doesn't it?  Because, as they say, hindsight is 20/20 and you realize most of your angst was, sadly enough, typical.

One thing that I am personally most upset about with regards to my path is in regards to how I acted towards employers at this age.  It's not as though I was ever fired nor did I speak too far out of turn, but knowing that college was just ahead of me I didn't think any of these "petty" jobs mattered; I'm not going to be flipping burgers in a few months, so why should I care what you think Mr. or Ms. Supervisor?  The point of all this is that Matt Brosseau does not follow this archetype.  He is far and away the most respectful person, and when you factor in his age the astonishment increases a hundred fold.

Would you like to read the rest of Matthew's interview?  Check his full spotlight out and learn why he was such a valued member of the team!



Employee Spotlight - November 2010
Kyle Ward - Sales Consultant

I first met Kyle during the Franklin County Regional Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner and Silent Auction wherein Handy Toyota won the coveted 2009 Business of the Year Award.  I was videotaping the event after the dinner and auction during handycars.com's award ceremony when I noticed someone sidling up to me.

"What an honor!" the gentleman exclaimed at Handy's award, clearly envious of our company's proud moment.

"Yes, though I'm rather new here," I told Kyle, "I'm pretty proud to have been accepted into the fold, especially during this time - not to mention getting an invite to the party."

To finish learning about Kyle Ward, check out his (now original) spotlight now.



Employee Spotlight - October 2010
Jami LaPan - Internet Sales Consultant

For those of you not up to date on the goings on in the cyberspace realm, the automotive industry was revolutionized years ago by the internet, just after the dot com crash of the millennium's change.  In today's world the automotive-internet scene is used for extensive research by the prospective buyer:  price-matching, feature intelligence, service plan-pricing, and much more.  All the same customers still want to know there is a real, live human being on the other side of the machine, and that's where Handy Toyota's employee spotlight for October 2010 comes in.  With today's market continually gaining ground on the Internet, Internet sales consultant Jami Lapan becomes more important to our survival with each passing day.

To learn more about Jami, check out her full spotlight interview.



Employee Spotlight for September 2010
Ricky Lapan - Toyota-trained Master Technician

Where do you go when you need your Toyota vehicle worked on, be it service, auto repair, or maitnenance?  Do you go to a local service shop, also known as a "Mom and Pop" service station?  Or maybe your service station of choice is an independent service shop such as a Mineke or a Jiffy Lube?  Handy Toyota understands a portion of our greater Burlington, Franklin County, Vermont, and Plattsburgh customers and neighbors have done or will do just this, and we also realize why.

In some cases, they might have lower prices on their service specials or more specials in general from which to choose, or perhaps you feel that supporting a smaller business is the socially responsible choice.  We do not fault you and that is not our point at all.  The point is this:  Why are they able to offer so many different specials versus Handy Toyota's monthly service specials?  Why does the "Mom and Pop" or independent shop seemingly always have an open bay, thus allowing them to sneak you in for a quick oil change seemingly on command?

I am afraid the answer is simple:  those service stations do not have Toyota University trained and certified technicians, and since this is the case they are not versed in your Toyota vehicle.  Not only is this the case, but these other places do not have Ricky Lapan - master technician, and this month's employee spotlight focus.

Read the rest of Ricky's spotlight to learn why your Toyota deserves nothing less than the best treatment!



Employee Spotlight for August 2010
Kyle Palmer - Service Advisor

Kyle Palmer is nothing if not a happy-go-lucky kind of guy.  With a smile on his face and a chuckle in his speech, it's not often one meets someone with such a bright outlook on just about every angle of life.

Born in Burlington, Vermont in 1985, Kyle is 25 years old as of this writing.  He is also approaching his fifth year with the Handy Family of Dealerships, where he works at Handy Toyota as a Toyota service and car repair advisor under Joe Luneau, Toyota service manager and son of General Manager Dan Luneau.  When asked what has kept him here for five years, Kyle speaks very plainly.

"Well it's the people; I get to see different customers all day, every day.  And then there are the repeat customers that almost seem like part of the family.  Also, Joe's a great guy to work for.  He is not like some bosses that will just come down on you because they are in a sour mood or even just because you did something wrong and they want to be passive aggressive.  You can bet be certain that if he's upset, there is good reason.  That's a good, straightforward boss to work for."

Read Kyle's full spotlight to learn more about the long time service advisor at Handy Toyota of St. Albans, VT.



Employee Spotlight for July 2010
Doug Jacques - Sales Consultant and Tundra Truck Champion

In 1989, Doug Jacques, sales consultant and Tundra Truck Champion became a full time - or more like full and a half time - Toyota sales consultant and a member of the Handy Toyota fold.

Doug was born in St. Albans, Vermont and has remained here for his entire life.  Why does a man of so many talents stick around?

"Family, work, and I love my hobbies," he says quite bluntly.  "I have four children and a granddaughter now, and I've worked here for a long time.  It makes sense to stay.  Speaking of my children, I need to mention my oldest daughter - she just graduated from the Air National Guard, and I'm very proud of her for that!"

To learn more about Doug and to find out what makes him a Tundra Truck Champion, check out his full spotlight today.



Employee Spotlight for June 2010
Tom Young - Certified Sales and Lease Consultant

Yet another 19-year Sales superstar is added to the ranks of our employee spotlight of the month club, and this time it's none other than the original Handy Toyota-blogger, a.k.a. the Blogmeister himself, Mr. Tom Young.

As anyone who knows Tom will tell you, there is a faint bit of an accent hanging around contrary to his years spent in the Green Mountain State since 1987.  Mr. Young was born and raised in New York City, New York, in the Bronx to be specific, hence the slight accent that makes it's way to the surface unintentionally.

"The funny thing about the Bronx," Tom says, "and it's something we always used to joke about when I was growing up is the use of the in front of the burrough.  Nobody knows why!" he exclaims with a chuckle.  "You have Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, Brooklyn? And the Bronx.  We never understood why!"

Read the rest of Tommy's spotlight to learn more about the leading Corolla-seller and Blogmeister.



Employee Spotlight for May 2010
Ali Kamal - Certified Sales and Lease Consultant

Ali Kamal, a 19-year veteran on Handy Toyota's sales floor, is quite an interesting man.  Having moved to Vermont in 1980, you would think he was just like any other Vermonter, but more lies beneath the veil than one would think.

Quite a cultured man, Ali speaks five different languages, English one of the five, and he is fluent in all but Spanish.  "Yeah, I haven't used the Spanish in a while," Ali mused during the interview.  "You know, use it or lose it!" he laughs, "yeah, that's what happened.  I can still speak it, but not as well."

To read more about Ali, check out his full spotlight today.

Close