WEST HERR WEDNESDAY: Austin Kowalski

For this week’s West Herr Wednesday, we headed over to West Herr Hyundai of Williamsville to meet Sales Consultant, Austin Kowalski. Austin joined Team West Herr about a month or so back, and before then, he was in the hospitality industry!

While this is Austin’s first dive into the automotive industry, he’s had 10+ years of customer service experience from his previous jobs. He mentions that he was the Guest Experience Manager for The Plating Society, and the Head Server at Bratts Hill – both for our good friend, Chef Darian Bryan!

Austin says he wanted to gain independence and responsibility at a young age. He started his first job at 14 at a local bar washing dishes, which then led him to work at Giancarlo’s Steak House as a dishwasher. While he was working there, he says he quickly helped change the structure in the ‘back of the house.’ His hard work got him many promotions, working his way up to serving, which is where he met Chef Darian!

While working at The Plating Society, Austin mentions it was a great opportunity to network and meet people he would’ve never had the opportunity to meet otherwise. He says that working for Chef Darian, there was a certain level of professionalism that was expected of him. Austin says he thinks that’s why he was able to transform into West Herr so smoothly.

“West Herr was always a company that I had in the back of my mind,” Austin says. He mentions that he had always been told he should give sales a try, and he thought there would be no other place to do that than West Herr.

Aside from having an interest in cars, Austin mentions a huge reason of why he chose West Herr was because of all the good they do in the community. “My girlfriend is a NICU Nurse at Oishei Children’s Hospital, so seeing how much West Herr does for them alone really is amazing. That holds value to me,” Austin adds.

Austin also says his grandfather was a huge influence on his career in the automotive industry. His grandfather was a race car driver, so growing up, Austin was exposed to automotive at a very young age.

While Austin is still new to West Herr, he already has a favorite memory that has stuck with him in his time here. He mentions his first car sale had happened a few days after starting, and he felt as though it was meant to be! A customer had come in for an oil change, just browsing the idea of trading in her car. Austin had found the car that met all her needs, and immediately the customer signed the deal with no hesitation!

Outside of work, Austin loves to kick back and relax. “I always have worked in fast paced work environments, so after work I just love to relax,” he says. He loves to spend time with his girlfriend and their puppy!

While Austin is still learning the West Herr Way, he mentions there have been a lot of co-workers who have helped him learn & get acquainted. He mentions Aron Borzillieri, Shane Nelson, Meghan Ramirez, Kyle Faulkner, and Matt Wager.

Austin mentions the first goal he’s like to achieve here at West Herr is President’s Club. He mentions he has very high standards for himself, and he believes this would be one of the best accomplishments he could achieve in his first year here.

A fun fact about Austin is that he is a twin, with younger twin siblings! He says his family’s case was so rare, that they ended up sharing their story on Good Morning America!

Austin has such an amazing work ethic, and we are lucky to have him on #TeamWestHerr! Keep up the good work, Austin!