October 2021

OCTOBER 2021 AFTERMARKET 15 How important is it for face-to-face events to return? We’re seeing confidence return to large business events, with a recent Messe Frankfurt 2021 survey showing 97% of businesses wanting to return to trade exhibitions. As event organisers, we listen to what the market wants and deliver events to meet their needs. We have surveyed over 300 garages and consulted major suppliers in the market to find that there is an exceptionally high demand for a face-to- face event to return in 2022. Our research showed that business owners scored the concept of a UK dedicated event for garages and bodyshops 4.5 out of 5, so there is strong market demand for a new event to be held in 2022. When we spoke to Hayley Pells, owner of Avia Autos, she said “The UK Garage and Bodyshop Event is a must for my diary as a workshop owner. Digital resources have helped enormously during lockdown, but I am looking forward to experiencing first-hand the training and products that are going to drive my business forward." Why will people be making their way to the NEC next June: What will be the big draws? The event will offer suppliers the chance to showcase and demo their latest product/technology developments to a captivated and core audience of garage and bodyshop businesses. Designed to deliver valuable take-aways for visitors, the event will have three training hubs and three feature areas. There will be live demonstrations and accredited training across three key areas: EV Hybrid, Workshop and Collision Repair, each offering technical seminars from industry experts covering ADAS, MOT, safety/service and repair, diagnostics plus more. The three feature areas include; a modern-day garage which will showcase the latest equipment, tools and infrastructure and enable business owners to understand the updates required for their work space to service and repair the latest vehicles. We will also host a Garage Equipment Showcase plus a Garage Owners’ Business Lounge which will be supported by leading associations and experts to share business advice. How will it differ from a ‘standard’ Automechanika event? What will the points of differentiation be? Although The UK Garage & Bodyshop Event is presented by Automechanika, and it will benefit from the same level of commitment and professional organisation from the organising team, the event has some major differences to Automechanika Birmingham. It is a focused national event for UK garages and bodyshops. Therefore, 100% of the event offering is designed specifically to deliver valuable training, tools and technology from leading suppliers and experts, all of whom wish to connect with this targeted audience. This event will also introduce new exhibitor and product categories under Collision Repair and EV/hybrid, with supporting features and content to amplify the focus on these topics. These will be supported by the enhanced and very popular Workshop Training Hub content, which we have developed at Automechanika Birmingham over a number of years and will take to a new level for this event. There will also be a take-home training guide folder for visitors to collate their training library and options from each training hub, supplier and feature. In the last year, we have been able to launch auto:resource, the digital resources platform to inform, train and connect the aftermarket online. The successful launch of this product has enabled our team to engage with our aftermarket community of suppliers and regular visitors 365 days of the year. auto:resource is now an established information and marketing communication channel, and will enable us to work closely with our sponsors and exhibitors to amplify their marketing campaign before, during and after our face-to-face events. The UK Garage & Bodyshop Event will be promoted in a comprehensive 9month marketing campaign as we work with sponsors, exhibitors and partners to deliver a successful event for the industry. While this launch event is different to Automechanika Birmingham, it is leveraged by the recognised and established global brand Automechanika, which allows us to cross promote and launch this event to an engaged audience. Garage and bodyshop visitors to Automechanika Birmingham have grown every edition since 2016 and have shown huge satisfaction levels with 87% of them wanting to return to trade exhibitions. What about support from the industry? The event has seen huge industry support with associations already backing the event with interest to be involved including the Institute of Motoring Industry (IMI), Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF), Society of Motoring Manufacturers (SMMT), Independent Garage Association (IGA), National Bodyshop Repair Association (NBRA), Hybrid Electric Vehicle Repair Association (HEVRA) to name a few. Mark Field, CEO of IAAF said “With arguably the biggest shift for the UK aftermarket happening here and now with the presence of ADAS and hybrid/EV technology, increased cybersecurity and access to in-vehicle data, a UK focused exhibition for garages and bodyshops is essential to keeping the industry connected and up to date.” We have taken the event to major suppliers in the aftermarket who have had a hugely positive response. Adam Griffiths, Marketing Country Lead UK & Ireland of ZF added: “This event gives us a great opportunity to engage directly with our end customers at a time where such support is much needed. With so much change and development taking place in our industry, it is imperative we take a proactive approach in regards to delivering training, advice and support to our networks, ensuring our industry is equipped to face the future.’” The line-up of suppliers will be announced in the coming weeks. Final thoughts? We look forward to welcoming the industry back together again in June 2022 – for more information about the event, interested exhibitors or visitors should visit www.garage- and-bodyshop-event.uk.messefrankfurt.com or contact grant.elrick@uk.messefrankfurt.com or 01483 483984. www.aftermarketonline.net The event will offer suppliers the chance to showcase their latest developments... ”