make.”
“Take over the store? What are you talking about?”
“Let’s be realistic, Uncle Ed won’t be coming back to the store. Even if he recovers from the stroke, at his age he’s not going to want to drive to Canton every day.”
“He’s not even sixty yet. He’s not ready to retire, and even if he was, that’s his decision to make. Your momma inherited Tom’s half of the store, Gregory Thomas, not you.”
“And she trusts me to take care of things. Why can’t you?”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you.”
“That’s sure what it sounds like. I can handle this. I know I’m not a Navy SEAL like Grant, but I can run this store and make it a success. I’ve already got new suppliers and I have several new clients on the line.”
“New suppliers? We’ve always done business with Georgia Wholesale Distributors. They’ve been in business over fifty years.”
“Times are changing, and you have to keep up with the times. This new supplier is out of Mexico and costs half of what Georgia Wholesale does. If we’re going to compete with the national chains, we have to have competitive prices.”
“Anderson’s Automotive was never about cheap prices. It was about quality products and service. Why, your daddy once hand delivered a spark plug to a man who lived in a cabin in the woods behind Dale.”
“No one cares about that anymore. They want cheap and fast.”
Grant could see his mother was getting more and more upset. “I think we need to discuss the changes at length later. Greg, why don’t you get the paperwork together and show my dad, mom and I what you have in mind? Maybe if you lay it out for us, we can talk about it rationally and find a business plan we can all agree on.”
“You can’t just come in here and take over. I’ve been working in the store since my dad died, and now you’re gonna bust on in and play hero?”
“I said present your business plan to me and my folks, you know, the other half of Anderson’s Automotive, and we can discuss it. I’m not trying to take over, but I will protect my parents’ best interests.”
“And I’m not? I’m trying to make this podunk store into something, man.”
Sue was wringing her hands, looking back and forth at her son and nephew, and Grant knew he had to cut this short. “I appreciate how much effort you’ve put into keeping the store going since my dad had his stroke. It can’t be easy having someone who doesn’t know the business coming in and questioning your decisions. Why don’t we step back a minute and take a breather. Here’s my number, call me when it’s convenient for you to set up a meeting. We both want what’s best for the store and our family. I’m sure if we cooperate, we can come up with something that works for everyone.”
Grant rattled off his number and watched as Greg entered it into his phone. “If you email Ellie the updated account information, she can go over it with me, no charge.”
“Yeah, uh, not all of it is in the system. I haven’t gotten the new supplier logged in yet.”
“That’s okay. You can bring that information when we have our meeting. Sometime next week?” Grant didn’t give him a chance to argue. “C’mon, Mom, let’s head out. I’m sure you want to get back to Dad.”
“I do, I do. I don’t like leaving him for long, even with Ellie. Greg, you say hey to your momma for me. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“G’bye, Aunt Sue. Grant.”
Greg watched them walk out of the store but made no move to take the out-to-lunch sign off the door.
As soon as they were back on the road, Sue pulled out her cell phone. “I’m going to call Anita right now and hire her back. I don’t care what Greg says. She has a family to feed and she’s worked at Anderson’s for ten years.”
“Just hold your horses.” Grant laid his hand over hers before she could dial the phone. “Let’s wait until we can sit down with Ellie and look over the books. I don’t know much about
“Take over the store? What are you talking about?”
“Let’s be realistic, Uncle Ed won’t be coming back to the store. Even if he recovers from the stroke, at his age he’s not going to want to drive to Canton every day.”
“He’s not even sixty yet. He’s not ready to retire, and even if he was, that’s his decision to make. Your momma inherited Tom’s half of the store, Gregory Thomas, not you.”
“And she trusts me to take care of things. Why can’t you?”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you.”
“That’s sure what it sounds like. I can handle this. I know I’m not a Navy SEAL like Grant, but I can run this store and make it a success. I’ve already got new suppliers and I have several new clients on the line.”
“New suppliers? We’ve always done business with Georgia Wholesale Distributors. They’ve been in business over fifty years.”
“Times are changing, and you have to keep up with the times. This new supplier is out of Mexico and costs half of what Georgia Wholesale does. If we’re going to compete with the national chains, we have to have competitive prices.”
“Anderson’s Automotive was never about cheap prices. It was about quality products and service. Why, your daddy once hand delivered a spark plug to a man who lived in a cabin in the woods behind Dale.”
“No one cares about that anymore. They want cheap and fast.”
Grant could see his mother was getting more and more upset. “I think we need to discuss the changes at length later. Greg, why don’t you get the paperwork together and show my dad, mom and I what you have in mind? Maybe if you lay it out for us, we can talk about it rationally and find a business plan we can all agree on.”
“You can’t just come in here and take over. I’ve been working in the store since my dad died, and now you’re gonna bust on in and play hero?”
“I said present your business plan to me and my folks, you know, the other half of Anderson’s Automotive, and we can discuss it. I’m not trying to take over, but I will protect my parents’ best interests.”
“And I’m not? I’m trying to make this podunk store into something, man.”
Sue was wringing her hands, looking back and forth at her son and nephew, and Grant knew he had to cut this short. “I appreciate how much effort you’ve put into keeping the store going since my dad had his stroke. It can’t be easy having someone who doesn’t know the business coming in and questioning your decisions. Why don’t we step back a minute and take a breather. Here’s my number, call me when it’s convenient for you to set up a meeting. We both want what’s best for the store and our family. I’m sure if we cooperate, we can come up with something that works for everyone.”
Grant rattled off his number and watched as Greg entered it into his phone. “If you email Ellie the updated account information, she can go over it with me, no charge.”
“Yeah, uh, not all of it is in the system. I haven’t gotten the new supplier logged in yet.”
“That’s okay. You can bring that information when we have our meeting. Sometime next week?” Grant didn’t give him a chance to argue. “C’mon, Mom, let’s head out. I’m sure you want to get back to Dad.”
“I do, I do. I don’t like leaving him for long, even with Ellie. Greg, you say hey to your momma for me. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“G’bye, Aunt Sue. Grant.”
Greg watched them walk out of the store but made no move to take the out-to-lunch sign off the door.
As soon as they were back on the road, Sue pulled out her cell phone. “I’m going to call Anita right now and hire her back. I don’t care what Greg says. She has a family to feed and she’s worked at Anderson’s for ten years.”
“Just hold your horses.” Grant laid his hand over hers before she could dial the phone. “Let’s wait until we can sit down with Ellie and look over the books. I don’t know much about
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