Driving the economy: Local auto sales are strong, but idling (Chesterfield Observer)
March 1, 2018
The pace was leisurely one bright winter morning at Haley Toyota of Richmond on Hull Street Road. Parked just inside the showroom was a high-end Avalon sedan hybrid, white with a brown and gray leather interior. The sticker price: $44,533.
Anthony Gray, a dealer representative, was just finishing with a customer. While sales have been strong at the sprawling dealership near state Route 288 for several years – the highest levels ever, in fact – when it comes to actual growth, “You got a flat line,” he says. Increases in year-to-year sales have stalled.