FFUN Dealerships are located throughout Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Ontario, and many of them serve small rural communities. Working at a dealership in one of these small communities often means a smaller team that helps each other out to serve customers better and grow the business. We took a trip to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and sat down with each member of the DriveNation team to get to know a little more about them.
Meet Nicole Addley from Forest City Mazda who has over 15 years of automotive industry experience. Starting as a part-time receptionist at 19 years old with General Motors, while she worked as a hairdresser full-time, she quickly discovered her love for the automotive world and has made a career out of it.
Nicole joined Forest City Mazda as a Finance Manager five years ago where she worked in that position for a year and then returned to the sales side. Using her knowledge of finance and sales, she wanted to create synergy between the two departments. Through her dedication and hard work, Nicole was promoted to the General Sales Manager position, where she continuously motivates her team to be the best they can be. We sat down with Nicole and learned a bit about Nicole outside of work.
1. Where are you originally from?
Nicole was born and raised in Sarnia, Ontario which is (roughly) an hour from London, Ontario. She has called London home since 2016.
2. WHAT ARE YOU KNOWN FOR?
Nicole says that if you were to ask other people what she is known for, she is confident that would say that she is known for being super involved, that she gets along with everyone, and that she is very approachable.
3. IF YOU COULD TRAVEL ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, WHERE WOULD YOU GO?
Nicole’s husband is from Scotland, and she absolutely loved visiting, and she wishes that while she was over in Europe that they would’ve travelled to Italy – where her mom’s family is originally from. With that said, her top travel destinations are Australia and New Zealand.
4. WHAT ARE THREE DREAMS/BUCKET LIST ITEMS?
1.Travel to Australia and New Zealand 2.Travel more of Europe 3.Run her own dealership
5. WHAT ARE YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT?
Nicole fully admits that she is very invested in her career and that it is a passion of hers. First and foremost, she loves her family more than anything. She has two nephews who she helps raise and will visit her family as often as she can.
6. IF YOU WON THE LOTTO, WHAT’S THE FIRST THING YOU WOULD DO?
Well, we’ve got to love employees who say that even if they won the lottery, they would still come to work – that’s how much Nicole loves her job. She did share that the first thing she would do if she won the lotto would be to help her parents and brothers out. Okay, she also admitted she would take a little time to travel as well.
7. WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE SMELL?
With a little chuckle and puzzling tone of why we would ask this, Nicole responded with her favourite smell being Sandalwood Candles.
8. DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN ONE WORD.
Driven – which is in line with Jay mentioning she is Driven to Grow.
10. PINEAPPLE ON PIZZA, YES, OR NO?
Even though we spoke with Nicole over the phone, we could sense the smile on her face when she quickly said, “absolutely.” In fact, her favourite pizza toppings are pineapple, ham, and hot peppers.
11. ANY BIG SUMMER PLANS?
Nicole shared that she isn’t one to take a lot of time off, but she does plan to spend time at her family’s cottage. Her cousin and she are also participating in a 5-kilometre Mudder race and a 5-kilometre Foam Fest Run.
12. WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO IN YOUR FREE TIME?
In Nicole’s free time she enjoys being outdoors, paddleboarding, and going to the gym.
13. DO YOU HAVE ANY PET PEEVES?
Nicole laughed and said her husband could (probably) come up with a long list of her pet peeves; however, she says her biggest pet peeve is when people procrastinate.
14. DO YOU HAVE ANY SECRET TALENTS?
Well, it won’t be a secret anymore, but Nicole happens to be fully ambidextrous. We laughed and agreed that it’s every athlete’s dream talent.
15. WHAT DO YOU LOVE WORKING AT FFUN?
What Nicole loves about working at FFUN is the family atmosphere. Even though Forest City Mazda isn’t anywhere near where the bulk of the dealerships are, she still feels incredibly welcome in the group. For her, it’s the family that’s away from family. She commented that it’s nice belonging to a group where everyone truly cares about everyone else.
16. WHAT DOES RELENTLESS EXECUTION MEAN TO YOU?
For Nicole, RELENTLESS EXECUTION is setting consistent goals and then coming in every day and formulating a plan on how you are going to achieve that goal. For her, RELENTLESS EXECUTION doesn’t stop there; it’s important, once you reach a goal, to set another one and to always look at ways to improve yourself.
