Salesman Tom O’Connor is celebrating an anniversary with a difference this year.

The popular North Kerry man is celebrating his 31st year a Toyota salesman with Kelliher’s Garage.

In more-normal times a 30th anniversary should be celebrated but with the country in a depths of a lockdown this time last year it was impossible to mark the occasion.

Instead the county’s only Toyota dealership decided to mark his 31st this year.

When Tom started in Kelliher’s in 1991, the motor trade landscape was very different to today.

Popular cars at the time included the entry-level Starlet, the ever-popular Corolla and the mid-range Carina II. A Camry was a rare sight on Kerry roads and sports cars like the Celica were even rarer again.

Commercial vehicles like the LiteAce and HiAce were the van of choice for local trades people. Petrol and diesel were the only engine variants available.

Today the Toyota range extends from the town can Yaris to the sports Supra and every style in between.

Even every individual model today is available in multiple guises: the Corolla alone can be purchased as a saloon or hatchback, as a hot hatch sports car or a touring estate. Trim levels are almost endless from entry-level to super luxury. Hybrid power has joined, and in some cases overtaken, petrol and diesel as the locomotion of choice.

In his 31 years in Toyota car sales Tom says these factors are some of the biggest changes he has seen over the last three decades.

“The choice of various models across the Toyota range compared to 10 or 15 years ago and the success of Toyota hybrid in Kerry are the biggest changes,” he says.

Three decades is a long time.

“I love the buzz every day,” he adds “And I enjoy meeting new people.”

Like the rest of the world, Tom is looking forward to getting back to normality and apart from his love of cars, he is also heavily involved in the Kerry greyhound coursing scene.

His wish for the new year: “Normality coming back after the past two years of lockdown and a good greyhound,” he adds with a smile.