SEMA Show Special Appearances
If you’re looking to brush with celebrities and industry icons and view famous vehicles, there’s no better venue for it than the 2016 SEMA Show. This year, comedian Larry the Cable Guy brings his stand-up comedy routine to the Show as the featured entertainer at the SEMA Industry Awards Banquet, Thursday night, November 3. (For those who haven’t yet RSVP’d online, tickets will be available at SEMA Central during Show week.) In addition to Larry the Cable Guy, you’ll also find the following scheduled celebrity and legendary vehicle appearances throughout the Show. (Listings current as of September 16, 2016.)
Buyers attending this year’s SEMA Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), should expect more business opportunities than ever before at the world’s premier automotive aftermarket trade event.
On July 8, 2016, SEMA members joined with car clubs, businesses and thousands of enthusiasts to celebrate the seventh annual Collector Car Appreciation Day (CCAD). A wide range of events was held in the United States and Canada to commemorate the day. The celebration was designated by SEMA-requested U.S. Senate Resolution 507, which was sponsored by U.S. Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Jon Tester (D-MT).
It’s countdown time for the 2016 SEMA Show, to be held November 1–4 in Las Vegas—which means that it’s time to assess your preparations for the Show as an exhibitor. Have you done everything you can to ensure success by attracting buyers to your booth? According to SEMA Vice President of Communications and Events Peter MacGillivray, more than 60,000 buyers are anticipated at this year’s SEMA Show, and an extremely large number of them are already deciding which exhibitors they want to see.
With the 2016 SEMA Show just around the corner and plans already in the works for 2018, Trade Shows Director Tom Gattuso is always three steps ahead of the game when it comes to coordinating America’s largest annual gathering of small businesses. He has produced automotive events for 22 years—five of them with SEMA. He recently took some time to talk about what to expect and how to plan for the 2016 SEMA Show.
Slated for November 1–4 in Las Vegas, the 2016 SEMA Show is getting a strikingly fresh graphics makeover, courtesy of the pencilings of celebrated automotive artist Ed Tillrock, whose creative sketchwork will grace not only Show signage but related marketing materials as well. According to Peter MacGillivray, SEMA vice president of communications and events, this new look goes far beyond fresh art demarking Show aisles.
With more than 1 million sq. ft. of exhibit space in and around the Las Vegas Convention Center, the annual SEMA Show attracts 160,000 industry leaders from more than 100 countries. In 2015, the Show featured more than 2,400 exhibitors, including 400 first-timers. SEMA offers several tools—the Exhibitor Summit in particular—to help rookie exhibitors succeed.
For new exhibitors at the SEMA Show in November, the list of deadlines and paperwork to get done can seem quite daunting. Some of these elements can mean the difference between success and frustration, particularly for first-time exhibitors.