The Who, What, Where and Wow of the 2005 SEMA Show
Reprinted from SEMA News magazine, April 2006
by Julie Hedges
The excitement and flash of the 2005 SEMA Show is over, but a look back at this annual showcase will provide specialty-equipment companies with valuable insight on industry trends along with some useful information to help them grow their businesses and plan for the thrill and flare sure to be a part of the 2006 SEMA Show.
Who Was There…Attendance
Better qualified buyers, more exhibitors and a growing number of attendees from foreign countries were a few notable highlights of the 2005 Show.
A tougher screening process was put in place for attendees participating in the 2005 event. The goal of the screening was to better qualify attendees by reducing the number of consumers admitted. “The new screening process helped us to maintain the trade nature of this annual business event,” said Peter MacGillivray, SEMA vice president of marketing and communications. “As the popularity of the Show has risen within the industry, it has also risen among enthusiasts who want to come and see the new products and cool technologies. The improved screening process helped to significantly reduce the number of consumers getting into the Show and improved the quality of the attendee at the SEMA Show.”
Attendance at the 2005 SEMA Show was 140,000. The Western states provided the highest number of participants and accounted for 44% of the total attendance. Nearly 17% of the Show's attendance came from the Midwest, 15% from the Southern states and 8% from the East coast.
Attendees from foreign countries accounted for 16% of the Show's participants. This category increased by 16% from last year and continues to be one of the fastest-growing attendee categories. “We are very aggressive about bringing in buyers not only domestically but also from abroad,” MacGillivray said. “The growth in the number of international buyers at the SEMA Show is exciting, because it represents new business opportunities for our exhibitors
The largest percentage of foreign participants came from Canada with 26%. Mexico was second with 11%, and China and Taiwan each had 9%.
Of the Show's 140,000 attendees, 49% were buyers, 34% were exhibitors and 17% were non-buyers ( Table 1 ). Exhibitor participation grew 10% from the 2004 Show.
| Type | Quantity | % of Total Attend |
| Registered as buyer | 68,896 | 49.2% |
| Registered as exhibitor | 47,572 | 34.0% |
| Registered as other | 23,529 | 16.8% |
| TOTAL SHOW ATTENDANCE: | 139,997 | 100.0% |
| (Table 1) | ||
The Show's buyers were packed with clout: 87% had the authority to either make the buying decisions or buying recommendations for their companies ( Table 2 ). “The buying power of the Show's attendees underscores that it truly is the place where buyers and sellers can come together and do business,” said MacGillivray.
| Buyers: Authority | Quantity | % of Total Buyers |
| “Make Buying Decisions” | 40,905 | 59.4% |
| “Make Buying Recommendations” | 19,326 | 28.1% |
| TOTAL “Decisions or Recommend” | 60,231 | 87.4% |
| (Table 2) | ||
Based on attendees' registration information, we get the following description of the size and types of businesses at the show: A majority—58%—were single-outlet companies, and 30% had between two to 10 outlets. Three-quarters of the businesses reported annual sales of $5 million or less, and over half had been in business for more than 11 years. In addition, over 50% of the companies said that wholesale business accounted for between 10% and 75% of their sales.
When it came to identifying their company's primary focus the top five business categories present at the show were: Accessories & Installation; Wholesale/WD; Parts Dealer; Vehicle, Tire & Wheel Dealer; and Auto Parts Retailer.
“The strength of the Show has always been the high participation of small to midsize businesses,” said MacGillivray. “The big ideas and the passion that these companies bring are what make it so exciting. They have been the key to the success of the Show for the last 40 years and are the key to the Show's continued success and growth for the next 40 years.”
New Products
One of the biggest draws to the Show is always the enormous new-products display. This year, 1,637 new products were entered, giving attendees the opportunity to see firsthand the new and innovative products that reflect current market trends and drive growth in the industry.
First-time exhibitors were the most active in presenting new products. Of the more than 550 exhibitors new to the Show, 36% entered products in the showcase, while 28% of Show veterans presented new products. Most companies had more than one new product entry, but COMP Performance Group was by far the most active, submitting 51 entries.
When the new products were classified by entry category, Performance-Street and Best Engineered had the highest number of entries, each getting 14%. The Exterior Accessory Product category was next, with 12% of the entries.
When the new products were classified by interest or market segment, a picture of where industry professionals believe the hot markets are appears. Performance and Racing Accessories, Styling and Appearance Accessories, and Off-Road/4-Wheel-Drive products were the segments with the most new-product entries. Nearly half—780—of the new-product entries fell into the Performance and Racing Accessories market. Styling and Appearance Accessories and Off-Road/4-Wheel-Drive products each had 31% of the new-product entries. Luxury Vehicle and Comfort & Convenience Accessories each got 18% (Table 3).
| Performance & Racing Accessories | 780 | 47.6% |
| Off-Road/4-Wheel Drive Products | 506 | 30.9% |
| Styling & Appearance Accessories | 502 | 30.7% |
| Luxury Vehicle Accessories | 300 | 18.3% |
| Comfort & Convenience Accessories | 298 | 18.2% |
| Family-Friendly Accessories | 252 | 15.4% |
| Outdoor & Towing Accessories | 233 | 14.2% |
| Gadgets & Gift Ideas | 225 | 13.7% |
| Products for Vintage Vehicles | 225 | 13.7% |
| Tools & Work-Oriented Products | 207 | 12.6% |
| Mobile Electronics & Technology | 187 | 11.4% |
| Performance Marine Products | 142 | 8.7% |
| Organization/Cargo Control Accessories | 92 | 5.6% |
| Entries with no specified interest | 27 | 1.6% |
| (Adds up to more than 100% due to multiple entries) | ||
| (Table 3) | ||
First-time exhibitors focused on Appearance and Styling, with a third of their new-product entries falling into that category. A third of their entries also fit into the Performance and Racing markets, and 25% fell into the Comfort and Convenience, Luxury Vehicle Accessories and Off-Road/4-Wheel-Drive Products segments.
Show veterans entered new products targeted more toward the Performance and Racing markets, with over half of their entries falling into that segment. Just over a third of the products they introduced fit into Off-Road/4-Wheel-Drive Products and Styling and Appearance segments.
Very few of the new products were application specific to a single vehicle make or model. Instead manufacturers introduced products with multiple vehicle applications that would appeal to more market segments.
Covering the Show
How to cover the more than one million square feet that the Show encompasses has baffled many—especially when there are so many pretty and shiny things to stop and look at. The four-day Show—with over 1,900 exhibitors, 10,000 booths and 2,000 display vehicles—requires some focus, planning and really comfortable shoes.
Making the Show convenient for both attendees and buyers is an ongoing process, especially as the Show continues to grow. Notably this year, bus and taxi service was re-routed to the East side of the convention center to expedite pickup and drop-off and ease congestion. This change also made it easier for attendees to walk to activities outside in the Silver Lot.
“These changes worked really well and helped draw attendees to the temporary structures outside,” said MacGillivray. “The ‘Overhaulin' studio and Yahoo! Autos Installers Challenge along with feature vehicles on display all created a lot of foot traffic in the Silver Lot.”
To help navigate the Show, SEMA arranged it into 10 market-based sections within the North, Central and Upper and Lower South Halls. And to keep traffic moving in all the exhibitor halls, special events, attractions and services were strategically placed to make it easier for attendees to move around the convention center. “There really isn't a bad location in the Show,” MacGillivray added. “Foot traffic throughout all the halls was very good and steady.”
How attendees worked the Show can be tracked using information collected from card-reader data. The average attendee scanned his card 13 times. Wednesday was the busiest day on the floor, with 33% of the total card-reader activity taking place on that day. Tuesday was second with 28%, followed by Thursday with 26% and Friday with 13%. Although a few hit the floor early, most attendees were at the Show from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Show Vehicles
From Lamborghini to Chevrolet to Honda, the broad range of vehicles displayed at the Show reflected the wide range of consumers interested in aftermarket products. Over 2,000 vehicles were featured at the Show. Some introduced a new make or model; others displayed emerging trends; still others allowed attendees the opportunity to see firsthand how a new product looked, sounded or worked.
“Display vehicles are a barometer of where the industry is headed,” said MacGillivray. “They reveal emerging trends and point to new marketing opportunities. The trend in display vehicles was to modify newer vehicles, not second- or third-generation models. We also saw a trend in the type of vehicles being modified. More luxury and high-end vehicles were modified, which is a parallel to where the market is going.”
| Segment | Number | Percentage |
| Light Truck | 574 | 28% |
| Sport Compact | 250 | 12% |
| Luxury | 204 | 10% |
| Muscle Car | 197 | 10% |
| Other | 197 | 10% |
| Off Road | 151 | 7% |
| Sports Car | 127 | 6% |
| Motorcycle | 109 | 5% |
| Racecar | 60 | 3% |
| Urban | 55 | 3% |
| Hot Rod | 49 | 2% |
| Exotic | 34 | 2% |
| Lowrider | 20 | 1% |
| Resto Car | 18 | 1% |
| Boat | 7 | 0% |
| TOTAL | 2,052 | 100% |
| (Table 4) | ||
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. was the official Vehicle Manufacturer of the 2005 SEMA Show. A total of 98 Hondas and 26 Acuras were displayed at the Show. Special attention was focused on Honda's introduction of the all-new Civic Si, a favorite of many sport-compact enthusiasts. Overall the sport-compact segment represented 12% of all vehicles displayed at the Show, second to the light-truck segment, which had 28% of the Show's display vehicles (Table 4).
Several leading vehicle manufacturers exhibited at the Show. General Motors Corporation and Ford Motor Company had the highest representations of vehicles on display, with 21% and 20%, respectively. DaimlerChrysler AG had 16%. The Ford Mustang was the most-displayed model at the Show with 103 cars. Ford's F-Series trucks also had a strong presence at the Show, and a total of 77 Ford F-150s were displayed.
Early SEMA pioneers could not have imagined that the Show they started in 1967 would grow into the size and scope of today's event. According to Tradeshow Week 200 Annual Directory, the SEMA Show is the fourth-largest trade show held in the U.S. and Canada.
“The Show is rocking, and we want to keep it fresh and exciting,” said MacGillivray. “We are constantly looking at new ways to improve the Show so that it continues to benefit new and established businesses in all market segments.”
The 2006 SEMA Show will be Oct. 31 to Nov. 3 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.