Business
18 May, 2023
Mazda salesman scores silver
Westco Motors star employee beats more than 560 others to take No. 2 at annual awards
WESTCO Mazda sales executive Daniel Wicks has been ranked No. 2 in Australia, missing out on the top position by a whisker.
The 28-year-old has achieved Mazda Guild Master Status 2023, competing against more than 560 other Mazda salesmen and women across Australia.
“I am very happy but I am kicking myself I didn’t get first,” he said.
“I will be aiming for No. 1 next year,” he said. The award is judged on the key performance indicators of sales, customer service, sales recommendations and sales of accessories.
Mr Wicks said there was also a percentage weighting as the smaller regional dealers could not compete against metropolitan sales staff. But he said it helped that Westco Mazda had a 13 per cent share of the Cairns car market.
Mr Wicks has been placed in the top 30 twice before. Mr Wicks – affectionately known as ‘Wicksy’ – has sold 600 Mazdas since joining the Newell St dealership five and a half years ago. He attributes his sales success to building a good relationship with his customers.
“I tailor a customer experience to every one,” Mr Wicks said. He has been in retail since aged 13, first at EB Games followed by Optus and then Westco Mazda.
“The first car I sold was a Mazda CX-3 to my Dad (Marc),” Mr Wicks said.
“The most memorable sale was also to Dad. He ordered a Mazda BT-50 GT top of the line then got on line and added a full list of extras as well. It was about $77,000 all up at the time.”
Mr Wicks has sold three or four Mazdas to the same customers over the years and sometimes is involved in a two-car deal. His favourite current Mazda is the Mazda3 hatch or sedan as a driver’s vehicle while he personally owns a BT-50 GT.
The most Mazdas he sells are CX-5 SUVs and BT-50 utes. The Westcourt resident also has a soft spot for Mazda rotaries, such as the RX-7 and RX-8. He is looking forward to the new Mazda CX-60 arriving in June or July.
“The CX-60 looks the most promising. On paper it is fantastic with three engines in the line-up (2.5-litre fourcylinder hybrid and 3.3-litre mild hybrid turbo petrol and mild hybrid turbo diesel),” Mr Wicks said.
“I hope it lives up to all the hype,” he said.
Mr Wicks said he “loved” working at the family-owned business. He said there was a great culture and everyone looked after each other.
“Like anywhere there are ups and downs but here there are more ups than downs,” Mr Wicks said. Westco Mazda general manager Scott King said it was “no fluke what Wicksy has achieved”.
“We are very proud of him and it’s not easy to get this accolade,” he said.
“He’s an absolute workhorse for us. He’s tireless and goes out and does a job without being asked.
“He’s future management material here at Westco.”
