LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — After announcing Monday they would be abruptly shutting down its business temporarily, Southeast car dealer giant U.S. Auto Sales is officially shuttering its operations.
The news came down Sunday evening following an email from U.S. Auto Sales CEO Bob Anderson that was sent out to all employees. Two employees and a manger then shared that news with 11Alive's Cody Alcorn following a story he did regarding the sudden closure of its dealerships and the frustration of the company's employees.
The email sent out to all employees and managers reads in-part:
We regret having to write to you again and communicate further news about the state of the business. Although we have been diligently working for some time, including over this weekend, with our private equity owner and lenders, we were unable to reach an agreement that will allow our retail and supply chain locations to remain open.
Unfortunately, this means that our retail and supply chain locations will remain closed on Monday, April 24, 2023, and for the foreseeable future. Regrettably, this also means that if you work at one of these retail or supply chain locations or are on the Underwriting, Marketing, and BDC teams, you will be placed on furlough, which is a company-initiated unpaid leave of absence. The furlough shall be effective immediately while we continue to work with our stakeholders.
The company's email finished by saying, "We apologize for the impact this has had on you and your family and the uncertainty it has caused in your life."
The Lawrenceville-based car dealer operated 39 dealerships across six states including Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina and Alabama. It was founded in the Gwinnett County city back in 1992, according to its website.
Despite the closings, the loan servicing department for U.S. Auto Sales will remain open -- meaning if you have a loan, you need to keep paying.
Right now, it is unclear at this time if employees will be paid their final check.
On Thursday, we spoke with employees and managers who said they were frustrated by the lack of transparency from the executive team regarding the future of their jobs.
At the time, they had received this email on Monday, April 17:
I regret to inform you that effective immediately for the next 48 hours, we must temporarily close all of our dealership locations and temporarily pause our retail operations, including our BDC, underwriting and reconditioning. If you're currently working in one of these areas, please finish what you're doing, clock out and leave the facility.
Now nearly one week later, U.S. Auto Sales is closing down its business for good.
On Friday, 11Alive's Bobeth Yates covered the story of several U.S. Auto Sales employees who are now out of work. They spoke about now being out of a job and a steady income to pay bills and provide for their families. You can read the full story here.