Audi suits sales consultant

Audi Henderson sales consultant Joe Sirna is not afraid of hard work. Sirna, who’s now 63, has been working since he started mowing lawns in Kansas City, Mo., in the 1950s.

Sirna’s life has been challenging and interesting, especially since his father, a captain on the Kansas City Fire Department, was killed while fighting a gas fire in 1959.

“My mother had four of us to raise, all boys,” Sirna said. “She never remarried and she was very strict with us. We all had to help out at home .”

His career has taken many turns, including owning a restaurant from 1972 to 1983; working as a whiskey salesman in the 1990s and managing a design business in Las Vegas. When the design business closed about nine years ago, Sirna decided to try the car business, working for another Audi dealership in Southern Nevada.

When Jim DiGuilio opened Audi Henderson, part of the Findlay Automotive Group, in the Valley Automall, Sirna got wind of the new store .

“I was ready to get out of the car business,” he said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I was very close to finding something else.”

But, Sirna said he liked DiGuilio instantly.

“I liked the way Jim was straight and honest with everyone,” Sirna said. “He has an open-door policy; his goal was to start a dealership with a quality product. I opened a restaurant from the ground up, and I wanted to do the same here.

“I have been working 10-hour days for so many years that working the same amount of hours in the car business is no big deal to me. You do what you have to do.”

It seems to be a recipe for success for Sirna.

“First of all, Audi is good product. You feel comfortable when you go there and everyone is helpful,” said George Baggott, who bought three Audis from Sirna. “Joe knows his product well and he keeps me apprised as to what’s coming down the road.”

Baggott, who is originally from Cleveland and now lives in Henderson, bought a Q7 SUV and a 2012 A5 convertible. He has referred several other clients to the dealership.

“The staff spends time helping people learn about the product,” he said. “There is no high pressure.”

Bruce Deifik, a resident of Las Vegas and Denver, also has bought several vehicles from Sirna.

“I have also sent the dealership several referrals over the years,” Deifik said. “I’m living in Colorado and other places, and I can buy cars from lots of places. It’s about follow-up after the sale and the public relations aspect of it. There are no issues when buying a car there. Joe and Jim believe in the service after the sale.

“It’s the people who bend over backwards that you remember. Joe Sirna follows up and he calls. There is real connectivity from the sale all the way through from the time the car was sold until the next sale.”

George Schaeffer of Beverly Hills, Calif., has lost count of how many vehicles he has purchased from Sirna.

“He is an untypical car salesman,” said Schaeffer, who runs nail polish company OPI Products Inc. “I think the people behind Joe are also excellent and he represents a very good car line. Joe is an honest guy. The whole dealership is terrific. The Findlay Group is a private family and that says a lot.”

DiGuilio said Sirna fits the dealership’s culture perfectly.

“We recognize the competitive nature of what we do. We have to set ourselves apart by taking great care of our clients, staying humble and working hard,” DiGuilio said. “Joe does all of that. He has made our store better since Day One.”

Audi Henderson is at 7740 Eastgate Road. For more information, call 702-982-4600 or visit www.audihenderson .