It’s that time again. October. The month of wicked fun… and we’re not talking about Halloween. This year we plan to make some waves at SEMA! Still the biggest automotive event of the year. You should experience it at least once if you have the opportunity to go! This is a 4 day long industry specific event that has been going on for years. It’s well established and you can use this time to your advantage.

Here are some of our top priorities at SEMA!

Relationships

May it be vendors, distributors, friends, or fans, this is the place to set aside time to connect with people. This isn’t our daily work routine. During the show, we don’t have to juggle orders or clients that generally take immediate priority. Allow yourself the time to build relationships while in Las Vegas. They are well worth the time in the bigger picture. You’re only as good as the contacts that you have at your fingertips. Think about. Even if you’re the best mechanic in town you’re speed can only be as fast as the slowest vendor you rely on.

Industry news

A lot of R&D goes into our field. Each year manufacturers aim for faster, cleaner, and more efficiency. Whenever we work on a build, we are striving to achieve a certain level of performance or reach a specific standard. For some drivers, it’s the exterior that’s important, for others it’s the speed. Everyone has their ideal setup and is satisfied by something different. To each their own. As industry professionals, it is our job to find out the options and solutions that our customers might not be aware of. We can respect everyone’s vision while offering our opinion. If I know your goal is a smoother ride, you bet it’s my job to tell you the way you can achieve that goal. Use this as an opportunity to find more potential paths for customers to take.

Inspiration

You surrounded by some of the best and most respected people in the industry. Some of the cars showcased here are the best in the country– world. Get inspiration. Absorb the nuggets of wisdom that you’ll hear in passing. The ideas will flood your head faster than you can write.

Education

The classes at SEMA can be valuable for certain attendees. We’ll be honest, not every session will be your cup of tea. You can always step out if you don’t find much value from a session. Of course, be respectful if you leave in the middle of session. Pro tip: Sit near the door. 

TL;DR

The big takeaway is you should make an itinerary for classes you find interesting. But have a secondary list of places you want to visit too. Ideally, this second list would be places that are nearby the session you’re attending. If a class doesn’t end up working out you’ll have something to do from the second list.

Written by Nica Lu
Edited by Porsha Howard