[Roach]

I realize this thread has likely turned away from the automotive industry but as a GM in automotive retail I will still give my rambling thoughts in case anyone else is considering the field

- Working in sales you feel like all your peers are your friends. But more often then not there will be sharks on the floor who steal your leads and will do anything to get a commission and that includes stepping on you. Cliques can form. Drama can ensue.

- There are great customers but there are also horrible customers. Demanding, rude, and disloyal. Expectations are that you respond to their call or text at the drop of a dime. They are quick to try and deleverage you so they can try to gain an upper hand in the sales interaction. It's disheartening how some people feel they can treat product advisors because of their own perceptions of the industry.

- Management can be good. But management can also be absolutely horrible. Sometimes the guys who stuck around the longest or sold the most eventually become sales managers. That doesn't mean they are at all equipped to deal with having staff. If the sales manager is good - they may not last long as they get plucked and moved along to another store/role. This happens a lot in the multi-rooftop dealer groups. I'm not even going to get into the typical tension between a sales department and parts/service department trying to get things done for your deliveries.

This combination of fellow product advisors/customers/sales management can really ruin a day for you.

In addition to these factors, it is a tough time to be in the industry. There is an inventory storage. You can't sell from an empty cupboard. While factory orders are great, you are only paid when the car arrives and it is rolled. Used cars are scarce and dealers are having to overpay to bring in cars. If your sales manager is a dolt and hasn't done enough research they will often FAR overpay for a vehicle just to show their superiors that inventory is being brought in. When you try to sell that same car commission will be very minimal as there is virtually no mark-up on the car.

Beyond that, from a higher level perspective - I suspect that after COVID, manufacturers will no longer channel stuff vehicles to stores. The overhead of having a large lot with a bunch of new cars sitting and aging may be a thing of the past. There may soon be a world where the Tesla model of retail permeates to other manufacturers. Dealerships will act as order fulfillment and service centers. This may put a squeeze on the product advisor gravy trains that have existed. There is already a squeeze occurring on finance managers and I imagine this will continue downstream.

Kev