MT. JULIET, Tenn. -
Firework sales were significantly down this year and sellers say the recent hot and dry weather is to blame.
In Mt. Juliet, one firework stand slashed prices almost immediately after opening to compete with other vendors.
They offered even steeper cuts on Wednesday but the sales didn't pull buyers in.
Setting off fireworks is legal in Wilson County but bans on fireworks in several communities apparently scared off buyers.
Employees said they sold only about 20% of what they expected to.
At Crazy Eddie's Fireworks located on the Sumner-Davidson County line, workers told Nashville's News 2 they also had unusually low sales this year.
"Usually we sell out here and so, obviously as you can tell sales aren't as good," employee Ben Coile said, pointing to dozens of unopened boxes still behind the shelves.
Coile said this year customers were mostly purchasing smaller items.
"We sold more of the small things this year. Usually we have a lot of small stuff left, this year we have a lot of our big stuff left," he said.
Despite the lack of sales, Coile said they still hope to make a profit, but even if they don't, he won't let it stop him the next time.
"Either way, we enjoy it. We have fun," he said.
The unsold fireworks were loaded up on Thursday and taken back to warehouses.
