At the Richardson City Council meeting of October 14, 2024, the Council approved yet another car dealer to locate in Richardson. And not just any car dealer. This was a request by AutoSavvy. Does Richardson benefit from yet another auto dealer? Especially AutoSavvy? I say no. No City Councilmember could say yes, except maybe as a placeholder for five years, the length of the special use permit under consideration. But they unanimously voted for it anyway.
AutoSavvy specializes in preowned, branded title vehicles. Let's start with the business name. The dictionary definition of "savvy" is "shrewd and knowledgeable; having common sense and good judgment." That's a good choice of name for a car sales business. Not necessarily accurate, but good for marketing. But there's a play on the word "savvy" that I have to believe is not accidental. Change a few letters and "savvy" becomes "salvage." That's the business AutoSavvy is in. It specializes in preowned, branded title vehicles. AutoSavvy explains it this way. "A branded title vehicle is any vehicle that has experienced an insurance incident resulting in a total loss." Yikes! Shields up! Danger, Will Robinson!
When you are in an accident and your car is "totaled" by your insurance company, it might get scrapped, or it might get repaired and sold as a "pre-owned, branded title vehicle." Same for all those cars totaled by recent hurricanes in the Southeast. Flooded cars might look undamaged, but they can still be totaled by an insurance company. And then show up on a car sales lot as a refurbished "branded title vehicle."
It's a business model I guess. For a car buyer, a totaled car that's been repaired enough to pass a safety inspection might cost a little less money, but you'll get what you pay for. What demographic is AutoSavvy marketing to? What does it say about Richardson that AutoSavvy thinks its business model will be profitable here? At least Clay Cooley VW sells new cars.
Our City Council has now given AutoSavvy a special permit to operate on the northeast corner of Greenville Ave and Arapaho Rd. That is the gateway to Richardson's IQ district. Here's the City of Richardson's own description of this district:
The Richardson Innovation Quarter, also known simply as the "Richardson IQ®" or "The IQ®," is a living laboratory for big ideas and ground-breaking technology. It's an amenity-rich environment where entrepreneurs take risks and are supported by the Richardson community; where start-ups and scale-ups can collaborate and thrive; and where nearby college graduates come to live, work and invent. It's a place where special things happen.Source: City of Richardson.
"A place where special things happen." Like branded title car sales? Does no one on City Council read the City's own marketing? Imagine real estate marketers escorting entrepreneurs with "big ideas and ground-breaking technology" looking for a place where "start-ups and scale-ups can collaborate and thrive." Imagine their impression of Richardson's IQ district when they first see a car lot full of vehicles with branded titles, that is, the kinds of cars you've been warned to look out for since you were in the market for your first car. Would you be attracted to locate your business in Richardson? Or would you be inclined to keep looking?
When City Council was deliberating whether to give Clay Cooley VW approval to add a repair shop, a body shop, and a vehicle storage lot on their property in the Interurban District, Mayor Bob Dubey said, "We could do a lot worse." I think he just did.
"For IQ gateway,
is salvage really savvy,
or sign of decay?"
—h/t ChatGPT
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