Kia’s Director of Regional Operations has been a longtime advocate for advancing dealership ownership and employment opportunities

Kia America’s Percy Vaughn is the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD) 2023 Distinguished Service award winner. The annual award recognizing an individual who advocates for diversity and inclusion in all aspects of the automotive industry will be presented tonight during NAMAD’s annual conference in Miami.

“This award recognizes an individual’s dedication to advocating for full inclusion of all ethnic minorities in all aspects of the automotive industry,” said Damon Lester, Vice Chairman of NAMAD.  “Percy’s tenure with Kia in consistently moving the needle to increase its Minority Dealer Network is a testament to his hard work and dedication.”

Vaughn, who joined Kia in 1995 and opened the company’s Southern Region office, oversees Kia’s Southern Region operations which comprises 48 Kia team members and 211 Kia dealers. Accounting for nearly 30% of Kia’s total sales in 2023, the Southern Region is Kia’s number one volume region in the U.S. 

“I am honored and humbled by this recognition from my colleagues and friends at NAMAD, and I would like to thank Kia America for continuing to invest in U.S. jobs and manufacturing,” said Vaughn. “Kia’s growth in the U.S. is one of the auto industry’s greatest success stories, and I am proud of the meaningful opportunities we have provided and will continue to provide to minority entrepreneurs and employees as Kia moves into a leadership role in sustainable mobility.”

Kia America recently set a record for sales through the first nine months of the year with September 2023 marking the fast-growing brand’s 14^th consecutive month of year-over-year sales growth.