Friendly Chevrolet Buick

To all of my neighbors in Montgomery County, I wanted to take this moment to say thank you. If you can believe it, Friendly Chevrolet will soon celebrate its 13th anniversary.

It humbles me when I drive our roadways and see the stickers and plates on vehicles running around our county. I have been honored by the acceptance so generously offered this token “Yankee”. If I had a dollar every time someone said, “you aren’t from around here”, after giving my best sales presentation on why they should buy their car from Friendly Chevrolet, I’d be retired.

I can not tell you that it has been easy. Like all of us here, the challenges we have faced economically have been astronomical. Who would have imagined the impact of globalization and the effect it would have on a rural county like ours. Lack of employment opportunities that the nation now battles, has been our war for over a decade. During this struggle, I have had the pleasure of participating in many great achievements by our junior and senior citizens alike.

Our football team at West going to the State Championships. Our West shooting team winning the State and being nationally ranked. The team has been led by the overall state champion 3 years in a row, by 2 different young men. Young Austin Warner is the current, overall National Champion and yet placed second in the state to our own Levi Epps who placed first in North Carolina. Our young ladies playing softball in the ponytail league have gone to the world series. The East soccer team went all the way to the state championship. Our very own, Mr. Larry Kissel was elected to Congress. These are the achievements of us all. We share in these successes as participants, parents, sponsors or fans. We have much to be proud of and thankful for.

This past and present year has been an uphill battle in the car business too. The price of fuel last year stopped the auto industry cold. Both GM and Chrysler have been in and out of bankruptcy. The economy has been compared to the great depression of 1929. If this wasn’t enough to survive, there was a list made of dealerships to be terminated by their respective manufacturers. Friendly Chevrolet Buick was listed by General Motors as being one of their key dealerships to carry them forward into the next decade. I will soon attend a kickoff meeting in Detroit to coordinate our efforts with GM in a united future strategy. My heart is both burdened with grief for my fellow dealers who were not granted a continued contract and excited about what the future may hold.

It is with this excitement for the future that I simply want to thank all of the people who have supported Friendly Chevrolet. If I have ever fallen short of your expectations, please accept my sincere apology and a promise that each day it is my solemn effort to improve and make Friendly Chevrolet a world-class dealership. I have had to make many changes to compensate for the economic downturn. You may have noticed the new face on the inventory that we carry. Internet sales have risen over 2000% You’ve read that number right. We have delivered vehicles from Florida to Alaska. We have picked up customers from the airport that have flown in from Texas, Maryland, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Nebraska and many other states to pick up their selective cars and trucks. It is survival of the fittest and believe me when I say, the competition is fierce.

So again I say thank you. I share in the excitement and accomplishments of our county as a whole and wanted each and everyone who has taken their time to read this letter to be aware of my heartfelt appreciation. I look forward to whatever our Lord has in store for us. I promise you my continued support and the best efforts of every employee that make up the team of Friendly Chevrolet.

Respectfully yours,
David Odom
Owner/operator of Friendly Chevrolet Buick

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