Did Rising Gas Prices Lead to Matthew Mcconaughey's Recent Car Sale?

by Wesley Berry

Published on this site: August 24th, 2006 - See more articles from this month

Actor Matthew McConaughey reportedly sold his 1971 Corvette Stingray convertible on eBay for $61,600. But, it wasn't rising gas prices that led to the sale; McConaughey sold the car for charity, donating the proceeds to Oprah Winfrey's Angel Network for Katrina and Rita relief. While gas prices may not have much of an affect on the deep pockets of Hollywood stars, they have
hit the rest of us quite hard-including florists and those who buy flowers from them.

Rising gas prices affect the florists on a number of levels, such as deliveries to customers and shipments from wholesalers. The affect on florists has been so profound that it's prompted some to take their concerns before the House committee on Energy and Commerce.

When John R. Wilkins, AAF, executive vice president of Delaware Valley Floral Group in Sewell, New Jersey testified in May of 2006, he told the committee, "Other than labor costs, perhaps no single factor has more power to impact the bottom line of floral businesses than the cost of fuel. As you buy flowers for your mothers, wives or daughters this coming weekend in celebration of
Mother's Day, I am estimating that up to 50 percent of the cost of flowers is attributable to transportation costs. That's not counting the percentage that might be attributable to other fuel prices-heat for greenhouses and electricity for refrigeration."

Still other florists are taking matters into their own hands in an attempt to reduce their costs and pass the savings on to their customers. Many florists have begun to invest in new vehicles that get better gas mileage. One such vehicle that some florists are swearing by for their deliveries is the Toyota Scion xB, which gets a reported 31 miles per gallon.

Janesville, Wisconsin florist Tom Carlson of Fairview Florist and Greenhouses says he's cut his operating costs in half while increasing his visibility in the area. His customers say they see his Scion, dubbed "the chick magnet," all over town. Carlson had this to say of the Scion he's owned for about a year now,
"Depreciation is less, insurance is less, maintenance is less and gas is less."

Mesa, Arizona florist David Johnson, owner of Watson's Flower Shop, reports that he's saved more than $6,000 in gas since trading in his two Ford vans for two Scions last summer. The enormous savings is enough to cover the cost of one of the Scion's leases for twelve months!

Although the Scion is smaller than the traditional vans that most florists use, there are ways around that, too. Tom Carlson uses his larger van only when he has large deliveries while in Melbourne, Florida Tina Stoecker, AIFD, PFCI (of Designs of the Times Florist) says her little Scion has just as much space as a
van when she removes the back seat.

No matter what business they're in, people all over America are looking for ways to beat the rising price of gas. Though the cost may lead you to sell your old gas-guzzler, if you're like most of us, you won't be able to donate the money to charity like Matthew McConaughey did-you'll have to use it to pay for gas to
fill the tank of your new car! Or, you could use some of the money to buy yourself flowers as a little pick-me-up.