By SEMA Editors
 Todd Sanders |
Todd Sanders Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation Board of Trustees
The Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation (AACF) has elected Todd Sanders to its board of trustees. Sanders is the senior vice president of professional sales for the Advance enterprise brands. Prior to the Advance Auto Parts acquisition, Sanders served as vice president of professional markets for Carquest, overseeing the TechNet professional program, Carquest Technical Institute, B2B e-commerce and the company’s national accounts. For more information or to get involved, contact Joel Ayres at joel@aftermarketfoundation.org.
Meyer Distributing Names Air Lift Co., Camco and Mickey Thompson Vendors of the Year
Meyer Distributing has named Air Lift Co., Camco and Mickey Thompson vendors of the year in their respective categories. In the truck accessory division, Air Lift has stood out with its efforts with Meyer to communicate and educate the dealers and consumers about load support. Camco has really stood out to Meyer with its products, service and partnership in the RV and towing industry. Mickey Thomson has proven to be a strong partner with its eagerness to work with the purchasing, sales and marketing teams, and vast array of tires and wheels that appeal a wide audience.
Motovicity Adds G-Sport by GESI to Product Lineup
Motovicity Distribution has introduced another brand to its lineup. G-Sport by Global Emissions Systems Inc. (GESI)—a developer of emissions-control technology.
Aeromotive Inc. Appoints Kahn Media as Agency of Record
Kahn Media has been selected as the agency of record for Aeromotive Inc. Celebrating 25 years in business, Aeromotive is looking to reinforce its consumer and business-to-business marketing efforts by utilizing Kahn Media’s full suite of services. Kahn Media will handle public relations, digital and content marketing, social media management, influencer outreach and event marketing support and assist with creative services. The partnership allows for Aeromotive to utilize Kahn Media’s extensive network of resources and in-house experts to provide support and connect Aeromotive directly to its target markets with cohesive brand messaging.
 Members of the Indiana Automotive Equipment team, now an exclusive distributor of Stertil-Koni heavy-duty vehicle lifts. |
Stertil-Koni Expands Distributor Network With Addition of Indiana Automotive Equipment
Stertil-Koni has announced that it has expanded its network of exclusive distributors across North America with the addition of Indiana Automotive Equipment, based in Maxwell, Indiana. For its part, Indiana Automotive Equipment (IAE) has experience in vehicle equipment sales, parts and service. And now, as a Stertil-Koni distributor, IAE has added heavy-duty vehicle lifting systems to its offerings. Stertil-Koni has experienced record growth in the first six months of 2019, and with IAE on board, the company has the opportunity to expand its presence in parts of Indiana and Kentucky.
Motorz TV C10 Build to Be Featured at 2019 SEMA Show
Duke Networks LLC, publisher of the Automotive Improvement television series “Motorz,” is bringing its ’69 Chevrolet C10 “Blue Moon” project vehicle to the 2019 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, November 5–8. The project truck, built in partnership with Vintage SpeedShop and Painkiller Customs in Arizona for the TV show, will be featured at the Wastegate Technologies Inc. booth #61016, where it will be used to demonstrate new wrap films in its current partial build state. Current product sponsors include Year One, Craftsman, Katzkin, Early Classic Enterprises, Sikkens, Old Air Products, Flex-A-Lite, Precision Replacement Parts, Dynacorn, POR-15, Vibro Solution and LMC Truck.
 Chris Bovis |
Chris Bovis Joins Hart Marx Advisors as Partner
Chris Bovis, an expert in the performance, racing and automotive aftermarket industries, has joined Hart Marx Advisors. Bovis will apply his 20 years of client development, acquisitions and integration, and marketing expertise to his new role as a partner at the firm. Bovis previously served as vice president of marketing and business development at WELD Racing, where he created an acquisition-based growth strategy, which resulted in the resurgence of the wheel manufacturing brand in the performance and motorsports industry. As WELD Racing transitioned into new ownership, Bovis played an instrumental role in the acquisitions of wheel brands CCW, HiPer Technology and Forgestar from 2015–2017, helping to greatly diversify the company’s product offerings. As a partner within the firm, Bovis will be involved at a granular level with business development, client relationship cultivation, deal making and negotiating, as well as oversight and implementation of critical marketing initiatives. Bovis started his career with Yokohama Tire Corp. before entering the motorsport industry as a live-event promoter for some of the largest motorsport events in the United States. Prior to joining WELD Racing, he served as vice president of sales and marketing for HiPer Technology, a carbon-fiber wheel and safety manufacturer, culminating in more than 20 years of career experience in the performance and motorsport industries.
Horsepower Wars $10K Drag Shootout 2 Cars Badly Burned in Fire
Power Automedia’s Horsepower Wars $10K Drag Shootout 2 suffered a massive blow as its four race cars cars were recently involved in a fire disaster during transport. The transporter that was hauling the $10K Drag Shootout 2 cars caught fire and the blaze engulfed the vehicles. Three of the four $10K Drag Shootout 2 cars on the rig were damaged, but, most notably, the COMP Cams Dream Team’s Ford Mustang was totally destroyed, while Team Bigun’s Ford Granada wagon’s entire front clip, including the engine and transmission, were scorched. Once the full scope of the extensive damage was assessed, it became clear that it was more practical to push the race forward to Donald Long’s “Lights Out” event in February 2020. Despite being badly burned, it has been confirmed that the teams intend to rebuild. Rather than simply cover the rebuild with a blog or video blog, the goal is to still allow the competitors to showcase their technical talents and determination as originally intended in a full episode. While the scheduled race and final episode will be delayed, the remainder of the build episodes will air every Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. (PST)/8:00 p.m. (EST) as scheduled.
 (L–R): John Gabriel, DEI powersports division manager, and Mike Zenone, DEI inside sales supervisor. |
DEI Hires Mike Zenone as Inside Sales Supervisor and John Gabriel as DEI Powersports Division Manager
DEI has announced two new supervisory positions. Former DEI employee Mike Zenone has been rehired as the company’s inside sales supervisor. John Gabriel has been hired as DEI’s powersports division manager. Zenone previously worked for a decade with DEI as the company’s brand manager and manager of business development where he was responsible for double-digit sales growth prior to taking a position at Flaming River Industries Inc., where he served in a capacity of sales, customer service, technical assistance and media relations roles. In his new position as inside sales supervisor, he will manage activity of inside sales representatives for automotive, and report directly to the Vice President of Sales and Marketing Tom Miller. Zenone has a prior proven track record of successfully managing a team of sales representatives for DEI and handling retail, dealer and wholesale phone sales for Flaming River. Gabriel has two decades of experience in the powersports market, first working with Russell Performance Products as the company’s national motorcycle sales manager where he worked with top brands in the industry—Harley-Davidson, Yamaha, Custom Chrome, LeMans and Tucker. Previously, he worked as a powersports manufacturer’s rep, increasing his sales experience to an expanded brand list of powersports aftermarket companies. Prior to joining DEI he served as an account manager for Progressive Suspension LLC. As powersports division manager, Gabriel will be responsible for driving top-line revenue growth with a strategic plan for this market segment, which includes motorcycle, side-by-side (UTV), ATV and snowmobile. He will work with all product brand managers developing new products, manage inside and outside sales representatives and represent the DEI powersports division at all B2B and B2C shows and events.
S/P2 Partners With WD-40 Co. to Give Students the Opportunity to Earn an Industry Credential
S/P2 has joined forces with WD-40 Co. to offer student technicians across industries an opportunity to gain critical knowledge and boost their resume through a new online training course. In the course “Cleaning, Storage, and Maintenance of Tools and Equipment,” students learn how rust can negatively affect tools, what to look for when cleaning and maintaining tools and how proper maintenance and storage can help extend the life of their tools. WD-40 Company brings industry best practices and a wide breadth of tips, tricks and solutions to the course. The credential is available to career tech schools and post-secondary institutions as part of the S/P2 automotive, heavy-duty/diesel and welding course bundles. After passing the course, students earn a certificate of completion and a third-party industry credential that can be highlighted in their portfolios and used as a differentiator during job interviews. More than 21,000 students have completed the course and earned the WD-40 Co. credential since it debuted in August.
California Tire Dealers, 1-800EveryRim to Host January Luncheon
The eighth annual California Tire Dealers (CTDA)/1-800EveryRim New Year Luncheon will be held January 29, 2020, in Santa Fe Springs, California, and will feature Tire Industry Association (TIA) Vice President Dan Nothdurft of Tires, Tires, Tires and SEMA Wheel & Tire Council Select Committee Member George Finch of The Carlstar Group. In addition, master of ceremonies will be Chris Barry, senior sales director of The Independent Tire Dealer Group (ITDG) and CTDA past president. All tire industry members are welcome to attend, and retail tire dealers are invited free of charge. For sponsorship information, contact CTDA Director Marc Connerly at 916-214-6495. Early RSVPs are now being accepted. Contact Billy Eordekian at 562-351-4840.
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