We were in New Orleans last week to volunteer at the National Association of Free Clinic's free clinic. On the afternoon of the last day, we went out on Veteran's Memorial to eat lunch at the Houston's restaurant, but got there a bit early. So, we made one of the infamous U-turns so necessary to negotiating Veteran's Memorial and ended up just a bit too far down the road from the Barnes & Noble (where we were going to kill the time).
Instead, I wheeled into the temporary lot of the Mercedes-Benz dealership, in which is co-located smart Center New Orleans. Whilst my lovely wife hit the restroom, I kicked around a bit in the smart showroom.
Not a good experience, I am afraid to say. There was a pink 2009 smart front and center in the showroom, along with the stripped smart shell on castors. Nothing else, not squat. Not all that many outside in the lot, although we didn't do a careful count.
There wasn't any smart literature on display save one brochure. (There were numerous copies of the local society rag - I copped one of those to add the NO charity organizations to my musical group's mailing list.) But, other than that, the shelves and walls were bare, almost like an out of business store at a shopping mall.
Apparently, the lounge was being used by the customers of both dealerships, this while the new M-B facility next door was being completed. All of them looked bored as hell.
The smart "merchandise center" was literally picked bare. One shirt was on display, and nothing else - no cute stuff, no smart accessories - nothing.
There was one salesperson in one of the three or four cubicles, but he was on the phone the whole time we were there. It's just as well, as there were no customers to be seen.
All in all, not an encouraging sight.
Carlito
Today
Linear Mode
