Business View Magazine | April/May 2022

74 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 4 that’s when we start making headway.” BVM: How will HADA continue to be a valuable voice for members? Salinas: “The Houston Auto Show is our main revenue source for the association. It means a lot to the Houston community, as far as an economic impact, but it’s also a great way for local car buyers to see all the vehicles in one place and do some smart consumer shopping before they head into the dealerships. We’ve seen changes within the marketplace of how the manufacturers want to participate in that arena. But on the local level, we hear from dealers that it really makes a difference when their brand is not at the event. So we’ve been working with our dealers to make sure everyone is fairly represented at the Auto Show and that our consumers have access to all the information they want when they’re trying to make a large vehicle purchase choice. “Looking ahead, HADA is moving forward with a sense of adaptability with dealerships and local government. I see lots coming to light with the electric vehicle market and all of the complexities of an EV, as well as its benefits. So we’ll be working a lot on consumer and dealer education and making sure our local governments are creating the necessary infrastructure in the right areas to target all the people who want an EV. As far as the supply chain, it’s going to be interesting to see how dealership floor plans change, in regard to how many vehicles they have on the lot. I don’t know that the inventory will be nearly as high as we had before. There is a lot to learn in the coming years.”