Virginia Dealers Association chief Don Hall shares 6-point wake-up call to retailers

While dealers obsess over monthly sales numbers and chase manufacturer incentives, Don Hall thinks they're missing the real threats that could disrupt the franchise model.

The longtime Virginia Automotive Dealers Association president told Daily Dealer Live hosts Sam D’Arc and Uli De’Martino that the industry's short-term focus is blinding retailers to policy battles, narrative wars, and structural changes that will determine whether franchised dealers thrive in the next decade.

Here are his six strategic warnings aimed at helping dealers protect the franchise system.

1. Avoid letting broker deals chip away at the future.

Hall didn’t mince words when he said brokers should be banned. He called out states like New York for allowing brokering, despite strong consumer protection laws, warning that broker-led volume plays weaken the dealer’s position in the eyes of manufacturers and regulators.

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“No disrespect to anybody, but to allow brokers to sell our cars, it is a bad concept we ought not to allow it to happen,” Hall said. “We do that oftentimes because, again, the pressure from the owners … saying, ‘We need numbers, we need this, we got to have certain incentives by the manufacturers and so forth…’ We allow ourselves to believe that others can do a better job. But they cannot, and they will not, nor should they at the end of the day,” he said.

2. Protect the creative edge of franchised dealerships.

During yesterday’s episode, Hall also held up a letter sent to the DOJ by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation that claims the franchise model is outdated.

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His POV: “They want us to be like McDonald's. We look the same, we act the same, we talk the same, we use the same pickles no matter where we are.”

The issue: That strips away the uniqueness of how dealer lots operate, and pushes a system where independence is lost.

3. Don’t let volume pressure cloud your customer promise.

Hall says OEMs want it both ways—pushing volume while preaching customer experience.

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“They talk out of both sides of their mouth... we'll turn a blind eye to cars being sold in ways that are not what we would prefer, because in our zone, we're under a lot of pressure to deliver certain units.”

That leaves dealers stuck in the middle, and chasing factory targets while holding the bag when things go sideways.

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“At the end of the day, we will be in our locations and in this industry selling. They will move on to other OEMs or out of the industry or wherever.”

Hall’s reminder: Dealers carry the relationship. Stick to what works in your market (within reason), even when the messaging doesn’t.

4. Ditch the 30-day panic.

He also called out what he sees as a major vulnerability in the retail mindset, aka the obsession with monthly results.

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“We have what I call, you know, this 30-day cancer that lives in our life. Everything's about 30 days,” Hall said. “We got to sell cars, it's this month, we got to close strong, but man, we're in trouble.”

Why this matters: That short-term tunnel vision, he says, leaves the industry flat-footed when bigger threats surface—like OEMs challenging the franchise model or pushing direct sales strategies through side doors.

Cue his separate warning, where he urged dealers to stop coasting and get involved.

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“Dealers, managers, people who give a damn about this industry as a career, including those who service us in this business, need to understand our industry is under attack.”

The takeaway: Dealers only playing for this month are already behind. The long game (policy, positioning, and political will) is where survival happens.

5. Remember that Tesla is winning on narrative. Not experience.

At one point in the show, Hall told the story of a Virginia senator who privately admitted his Tesla was a disaster to service… but wouldn’t say so publicly.

Not true for everyone, but one he says comes back to dealers still having the advantage in today’s market through choice, competition, and community. That said, he believes they need to own that story more aggressively and stop letting OEMs or the media define it.

6. Renew the focus on recruiting, and sell the dream.

Hall closed on a personal note, reminding the audience that this business changes lives, including his own.

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“I was a dropout kid who grew up in East L.A., whose father was in prison,” he said. “My mother, at 16, had me—had more drug problems than things you could ever imagine. I ended up in the Marine Corps, went into the auto industry by mistake, by accident, needed a job, baby was being born in 1979, and it’s an industry that provides incredible opportunities, regardless of your race, your size, anything about you—your gender, what you think you are or not, what religion you ain’t or is—it doesn’t matter.”

He called for better work-life balance, smarter expectations for the next generation, and a renewed focus on recruiting, not just to fill roles, but to sell the dream.

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“Our number one asset is not the franchise, it's not the dirt that we're on, it's the people who work for us and with us.”

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