The fact that Kristi Feinberg works 70-hour weeks at Family Hyundai and averages 20 sales per month doesn’t seem overly extraordinary. However, when you consider that she spends 40 of the 70 hours in the office as a biller, her numbers certainly are extraordinary; she keeps that average despite working the sales floor only about 30 hours a week.

Feinberg, who’s been in the automotive industry for about 10 years, got into the business out of necessity. Her husband passed away 10-and-a-half years ago, making her the provider for her three children. “I needed a job, and one of my husband’s friends owned a car dealership and I went to work for him. When he closed, I came to Family Hyundai, and I just started selling cars because I needed the money.”

One convenience she had as a working mother was that she lived only a few minutes away from the dealership, so if her kids ever needed her, she wasn’t far from home. “I had to do what I had to do … my daughter, who’s 24 now, helped out a lot.”

While Feinberg’s career in the dealership began out of necessity, she didn’t start out selling vehicles. She said she got into vehicle sales by accident. “Actually, I didn’t want to [try selling].” At the previous dealership, she’d done office work, and when she started at Family Hyundai, she strictly worked in the office doing billing, license and title work. When she told her then-manager that she was going to work at another dealership’s office in the evenings as a second job, he told her to stay at Family and work evenings there and help out however she could.

Though she had no intention of selling vehicles, she did just that. “The first night I stayed, [the dealership was] busy, and I helped this nice woman and her daughter and sold them a car. And they paid me. I was like, ‘Wait a minute here, I can do this,’ and I just kept doing it. It was pretty nice. It was like, ‘Hey kids, you know, we might be able to buy steak this week.’”

She’s been selling vehicles ever since. In 2007, she sold 268 vehicles, an average of over 22 cars per month, and received the Bronze Award for new car sales from Hyundai. For over eight years now, Feinberg has been a leader on the sales staff of 27 at Family Hyundai. She’s consistently in the top three of the pack, and Frank Psyhogios, general manager, said, “If I could clone her, I think I would have an army of sales leaders.”

Over time, Feinberg has built up a large database, which she works daily, according to Psyhogios. Feinberg estimated that about 65 percent of her business is repeat customers and referrals. “We get a lot of repeat and referral business, which is really, really nice. And it’s just about treating your customers the right way, especially when they need something. They call you, you need to be here and help them out—whether it’s for service or making sure they get a loaner.

“I had a lady call me the other day, and she was in a parking lot with her son and she said her car wouldn’t turn on. Her steering wheel was stuck … She called her husband, and he was downtown and didn’t know what to do. She called a tow truck, which hadn’t gotten there yet. She called me, and in two minutes, I walked her through how to unlock it,” said Feinberg.

Helping out customers is one of her favorite things about her job. “When people come in to buy a car, it’s the second biggest thing they’re spending money on ever … it’s a big decision. You’ve got to guide them through it … They don’t understand the ins and outs of the paperwork and the financing and all that, and if you help them, it makes it a lot easier for them.”

Sundays, however, are a different story. Her only day off is reserved for family. Her oldest daughter brings her three grandchildren over for the day, they cook and enjoy one another’s company, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. “Sunday’s family day, all day.”

Our congratulations to Kristi Feinberg, Sales Professional of the Month, and thank you to Frank Psyhogios, general manager, for bringing him to our attention.

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