Several representatives from locally owned used car dealerships aired their complaints against pop-up car sales in the area during the recent Mayor and Board of Aldermen meeting.
Among the representatives speaking were Tony Cain, Joanna Stricklin, and Troy Stricklin of T&J Autoplex, Russell Wilmoth of American Automotive, Tom McGraw of T&M Motors, and Dennis Vandevere of Big D's Auto Sales.
The overall theme of the complaints was that the pop-up car dealerships are taking away sales opportunities from the locally-owned dealerships during tax refund season, which is an important sales period for local businesses.
"When you let these car lots in each year, you take money out of our car lots that we do business in," said Cain. "I'm here today to ask that you do not do that anymore and to tell them to please put a stop to it."
"It is not acceptable for them to come in, especially during the height of our season," added Wilmoth. "They are coming in here for 10 days, making their money, and then they are going."
Wilmoth said, as a local business owner, he tries to support other businesses in the community, such as Simmons Tire, Delta Muffler, Big D's Wrecker Service, as well as churches and other volunteer organizations.
"I promote business in this city, and our city needs to support us," he said.
Joanna Stricklin, whose family has held land and businesses in Yazoo City and Yazoo County, said that traveling car sales are not fair to other business owners nor to the customers who buy from them.
"We really struggle all year when there is not much money flowing in Yazoo until the tax season comes," she said. "These car businesses that come here pick this time when money starts flowing, when we need this to afford us the rest of the year."
Stricklin added that customers are often drawn into the pop-up sales by what appear to be better offers.
"They can do that through credit acceptance, which is charging our people here in Yazoo City ungodly interest rates and funds and such stiff hidden costs that they are losing their cars in three months time," she said.
Dennis Vandevere had the same complaints as his fellow businessmen.
"I have been in this town for over 30 years doing business, and I keep my business here," said Vandevere. "I have the same problem with them, taking our tax dollars back to Greenville or to Ridgeland or where ever they are from. It’s hurting all of our businesses."
The city council heard these complaints and told each representative that the matters would be discussed and followed up on a later date.
According to the Yazoo City Clerk's office, the permit needed for the pop-up sale locations is called a Transient Vendors License, which must be purchased at City Hall for $250 before the business can set up. Each permit sold lasts for 10 days.
Transient Vendors Licenses can be purchased by any traveling sales group or person who plans to set up a temporary location within the allotted time period. These types of vendors include food trucks, traveling car lots and other types of pop-up sales that appear in Yazoo City from time to time.
