SAN ANTONIO - Sparkling City Auto Auction of San Antonio held its first sale on November 10, opening to strong reviews from dealers who crowded the lanes to take part in the grand opening festivities. Built in 2008, the facility was acquired last summer by the Walker family, which has operated Sparkling City Auto Auction of Corpus Christi since 1990. Situated on 33 acres of rolling hills on the north side of San Antonio, the auction includes a 12,000 square foot office building, five-lane auction arena, and a full-service detail shop.

"Ever since I opened the Corpus Christi auction, my customers told me that there was a need for a good, strong independent auction in the San Antonio area and urged me to open an auction there," said owner Wade Walker. "When the opportunity came to purchase this facility, it didn't take us long to decide it was time to expand and offer ServNet's brand of superior service in San Antonio!"

Sparkling City Auto Auction of San Antonio runs weekly on Wednesday. Ashley and Weldon Dietze, Walker's daughter and son-in-law, are managing operations at the new facility.

"The turnout at our grand opening sale was phenomenal," reports General Manager Ashley Dietze. "We welcomed more than 300 dealers to the sale, who came to bid on a consignment of 300 vehicles running on two lanes, including vehicles from Cavender Chevrolet, Mac Haic Ford, Cavender Audi and Western Funding. It was great to greet some old friends who followed us to San Antonio Corpus Christi, but we were equally thrilled to see a lot of new faces, as dealers from the San Antonio area arrived to find out what Sparkling City brings to the San Antonio market."

Chuck Rogers, certified pre-owned manager for Cavender Audi in San Antonio, ran vehicles for the first time at Sparkling City's grand opening sale, selling 100 percent, and continues to consign vehicles there every week. He has high praise for the auction and its employees. "It's a clean, professional, customer-oriented facility run by great people who don't hesitate to get things done," says Rogers. "Sparkling City Auto Auction has set a new standard in customer service!"

All dealers attending the premiere sale - whether buyers, sellers or bidders - qualified for drawings for thousands of dollars in cash, and received logo'd hats, visors and coffee mugs. After the sale was over, customers were treated to a catered dinner, enjoying barbecued pork from two whole pigs that were roasted onsite.

"We are thrilled to be here in San Antonio and are looking forward to the New Year," said Wade Walker. "We have high expectations for a lot of new business, including national accounts that will be coming on board. As we're fond of saying, 'this isn't our first rodeo': although this auction may be new to San Antonio, we're not new to the auction business. We've been in the business a long time and are looking forward to expanding our opportunities in San Antonio."