Dalton Carpet Sellers, State Meet Over Fines

Dalton, GA, May 5, 2011 -- Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal and John Sours of the Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection met with Dalton carpet dealers on Wednesday to discuss their complaints over fines against businesses that use "wholesale' in their name.

The GOCP has recently pursued businesses under a Georgia statute that defines “wholesale” despite the fact they’ve been advertising and selling to the public the same way for decades, according to a story in the Dalton Daily Citizen.

Last year, the state began levying fines against carpet sellers for using the word "wholesale" in their names and in their advertising.

The dispute centers on a 1962 provision of the state code that defines “wholesale” as it is used in advertising: “For the purpose of this Code section the term ‘wholesale’ means a sale made for the purpose of resale and not one made to the consuming purchaser.”

Attorney Rick Brown said that Dalton carpet sellers had been selling both wholesale and retail for more than 50 years without any problems but that interpretation of the law was recently changed.

He said an official with the GOCP under former Gov. Sonny Perdue told Dalton sellers they could not sell both retail and wholesale. Brown said that forcing carpet sellers to choose one or the other would put many out of business.

Sours said the GOCP had acted against 40 companies since 2006 for violating the law, and 80% of the cases involved companies in the floorcovering industry, but that the law wasn't meant to ban a company from selling both wholesale and retail.

Deal said any decision will recognize the unique nature of Dalton carpet sellers, which have historically sold to everyone at wholesale prices but that the state couldn't create a special exception for Dalton businesses.