Lawrence Marshall won't be clobbering big city prices!

[oceangaia]

There were rumors on the Chronicle comments about other causes that made more sense. That lousy/shady accounting could not locate $2.6 million worth of vehicles, that Chrysler Financial who holds the title and wants their money had offered to negotiate a settlement and Ray told them to eff off, so yesterday morning Chrysler seized the entire floor plan and inventory.

And the opinions on Ray were mixed - half think he is a great guy and half think he is a total jerk that has lots of people fooled. I have to admit the latter made a better case, i.e. informing the manager of the closing by email, not addressing the employees in person, not responding to media for comment.

[Mom2Feebs]

Originally Posted by DiverTodd62

I have to admit the latter made a better case, i.e. informing the manager of the closing by email, not addressing the employees in person,

Source, please? I didn't hear any of that on Channel 11, just that it was a big surprise to buyers and employees. Maybe I missed something. There are definitely circumstances that warrant not disclosing certain information to employees (sales/service), but informing the manager by email? That's no good. I hope that isn't true.

[oceangaia]

Originally Posted by Mom2Feebs

Source, please? I didn't hear any of that on Channel 11, just that it was a big surprise to buyers and employees. Maybe I missed something. There are definitely circumstances that warrant not disclosing certain information to employees (sales/service), but informing the manager by email? That's no good. I hope that isn't true.

I gave the source, readers comments attached to the Chronicle article from those claiming to be sales managers or sales associates. They claim he routinely gave important decisions by email to "Ted".

I'm not vouching for the veracity of it. Just reporting what was said. But let me ask you this, what do you know that Ray Childress has had to say about it? Can you find a quote by him on the matter? Seems a stand up guy would stand up, face the media, answer questions. Why would it close immediately with no prior notice? No going out of business sale?

A salesman called in the radio and said he had sold a car, contracts signed, about to hand the keys to the customer when his manager came up, tore up the contract, and said they were closed.

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However, the dealership may have already been having problems; Dan Parsons of the Houston Better Business Bureau, said complaints about Lawrence Marshall had been growing for the past four to five years. There are reports that the dealership had failed to pay off vehicles that were traded on new cars and trucks as recently as December, potentially leaving customers with two notes to pay. Tightened credit from GMAC and Chrysler Financial may have simply been the last domino to fall.
http://www.allpar.com/news/index.php...nder-in-texas/

[mjdtexan]

I was a little sad to see it go as well. One thing new car dealerships have been doing lately is taking on huge debts of their own. We just went through (IMHO) a very long period of economic growth. Dealerships saw that and borrowed. Now the economy has gone south and some cant survive. I am not saying this has happened to this dealership but I suspect that it may be a factor.

[txedghill]

I don't know about what kind of guy Ray Childress was in person, but I grew up seeing the Aggie/Oiler DE say 'We clobber big city prices'. It's almost like not seeing Mattress Mac say 'Gallery Furniture saves you money!'

[mjdtexan]

Originally Posted by txedghill

I don't know about what kind of guy Ray Childress was in person, but I grew up seeing the Aggie/Oiler DE say 'We clobber big city prices'. It's almost like not seeing Mattress Mac say 'Gallery Furniture saves you money!'

Interestingly enough, Mattres Mac is opening another store in the Westheimer area.

[EasilyAmused]

Ray and his wife Kara contribute a lot of time and money into Houston Charities. It's sad to see this happen. I wish the best for them and their HERD of spawn. Love ya Kara!

[case44]

I never thought I'd see a day where this had to happen. The first time I looked at this, I was floored. All those Ray Childress commercials were on all the time during my trips to Houston. The dealership, indeed, was a Hempstead institution. Another unfortunate victim of the national economy and a huge loss for the Houston/Southeast Texas region.

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGirl1

They made a statement that they could only operate on selling in huge volume and that is how the dealership was set up.

It's a tough break for Hempstead and everyone who loses their job, but anyone who's set up like this is set up for failure. If at any time the economy doesn't support big volume anymore, you're dead in the water.

I wonder how many of the rank-and-file at the dealership knew that. Those who did saw this coming a mile away.

[Trae713]

Originally Posted by txedghill

I don't know about what kind of guy Ray Childress was in person, but I grew up seeing the Oiler DE say 'We clobber big city prices'. It's almost like not seeing Mattress Mac say 'Gallery Furniture saves you money!'

Agreed. I remember those commercials from when I was like four years old.