Early registration for the upcoming National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Convention and Expo in Las Vegas indicates attendance is on pace to exceed 20,000 for the first time in four years. The NADA says this offers another sign the auto industry is recovering. Convention registration is up 20 per cent compared to the same time last year.
Exhibit sales are up 30 per cent, with 450 companies exhibiting in more than 500,000 square feet. Six hotels in Las Vegas have already sold out.
“The NADA convention is considered the automotive industry event of the year. It’s also considered a bellwether of the economy,” said Stephen R. Pitt, NADA vice president of conventions and expositions. “We haven’t seen these kinds of numbers since before the economic collapse in 2008. But now the economy is on the mend. New-car and -truck sales are steadily improving, and dealers are preparing for brighter days ahead.”
This is the first time the American Truck Dealers (ATD) Convention & Expo will be held in conjunction with the NADA convention.
Industry keynote speakers for the 2012 NADA-ATD convention, held Feb. 3-6 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, include Sergio Marchionne, CEO of the Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A.; NADA Chairman Stephen W. Wade; NADA Vice Chairman William P. Underriner; ATD Chairman Kyle Treadway; and Martin Daum, CEO of Daimler Trucks North America.
The NADA-ATD convention includes a combined 38 dealer franchise meetings. Seven automakers – Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., Chrysler Group, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Kia Motors America, Mitsubishi Motors North America and Subaru of America – will also be exhibiting.
For car and truck dealers and their managers, NADA University is offering more than 50 workshops at the convention with two full workshop sessions beginning Friday afternoon on Feb. 3.
For more information or to register, visit: www.nadaconventionandexpo.org.
