SEMA News—February 2015

BUSINESS
By Steve Campbell

2015 Tire & Wheel Trends

Market Forces and Technology May Change the Shape of the Industry

The wheel and tire market has improved over the past year, according to a widely held consensus among professionals in the automotive specialty-equipment industry. New offerings, technology and an improving economy bode well for sales in 2015, but there are also impediments that may deflate some of the optimism.

CAFE and Tire Tariffs

The tire and wheel industry has recovered from the recession, according to many industry sources. It’s still a very competitive marketplace, but innovations abound.

“Tire performance has definitely improved,” said Bob Ulrich, editor of Modern Tire Dealer magazine. “That applies not only to broad-market tires but also to growing niche market segments such as mud-terrain tires for light trucks. Tire development is evolutionary, not revolutionary, but 2014 was a breakout year in tire design and compounding.”

Part of that development has come from the federal government’s push for higher Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, Ulrich said, and fellow tire journalist David Zielasko, editor and vice president/publisher of Tire Business, concurred with that assessment.

“The federal government’s drive for higher CAFE standards has led automakers to demand tires that aid in fuel economy,” Zielasko said. “As a result, tire makers have been designing and building tires with less rolling resistance, which improves vehicle gas mileage but can lead to a tradeoff in performance capabilities. Specifically, there have been some customer complaints that these tires exhibit less road grip and wear out more quickly.”

Of even greater consequence from an overall market standpoint, however, is the imposition of duties on Chinese tire imports. Elevated tariffs on imports enacted under Section 421 of the Trade Act ended in September 2012, and Chinese importers made significant gains in the U.S. tire market since then. Zielasko said that the tariffs caused tire makers, importers and private-brand companies to move molds and production to other countries and, many people believe, contributed to higher tire prices that made a particular impact on consumers who sought less-expensive, entry-level tires.

“Since the tariffs came off, imported passenger tires from China to the United States rebounded to a record 46 million units in 2013 from 29.3 million units a year earlier,” Zielasko reported. This increase led the United Steelworkers union in June to again petition Commerce for relief, this time in the form of countervailing and anti-dumping duties, leading the Department to open another investigation into Chinese consumer tire imports.

“As it stands today, Chinese tires exceed 20% of the U.S. consumer tire replacement market, and the International Trade Commission (ITC) determined that the U.S. tire industry has, in fact, been materially injured by the influx of Chinese passenger and light-truck tire imports. As of December 1, 2014, the ITC started assessing countervailing duties for most companies of 15.69% on top of the prevailing 4% rate. The Commerce Department continues to weigh whether to assess anti-dumping duties in addition to the countervailing duties. A final determination is due by April 6, 2015.”

That action is likely to cause disruption to the domestic tire market, Zielasko said. It will open opportunities for some companies while creating a negative impact on others.

Hank Feldman, president of international retail and e-commerce company Performance Plus Tire and Automotive Superstore, said that many of the large-diameter ultra-high-performance tires sold in the United States are made only in China.

“They’re designed to cater to custom-wheel purchasers,” he said. “People want the wheels and need the tires to complete the package. They are after a specific look more than ultimate performance. The large tire tariffs could therefore also have an impact on those segments of the wheel industry.”

Tires from companies such as Michelin (shown) and Goodyear now feature sipe designs (the thin slits that are cut across the tread surface) that get wider and therefore work better to channel water away from the tire as the tread wears down.

Kevin Rohlwing, senior vice president of training for the Tire Industry Association (TIA), said that the prospect of countervailing and anti-dumping duties on Chinese import tires will definitely have an impact on retailers in 2015.

“With the Department of Commerce currently studying anti-dumping duties, the total import duties could be high as 50%,” he said. “For retailers in markets that are sensitive to price, the availability of low-cost tires could become limited if Commerce decides to impose the duties on Chinese imported tires.”

Hot Tire Products and Innovations

Hybrid tires—what some are calling “tweeners”—are among the sharpest product trends in the tire industry. Ulrich said that the most significant trend in passenger-car tires is the ultra-high-performance (UHP) touring tire, which combines the ride comfort and all-season capability of a touring tire—including improved snow traction—with the speed rating and handling of a UHP or summer tire.

“Unlike with UHP tires, the tire manufacturers are backing the new offerings with a limited tread-wear warranty and are making them available in many popular sizes,” Ulrich said. “It’s the next generation of broad-market tire—kind of a super tire, really. Every manufacturer is jumping on this technological bandwagon, and many of them showcased these tires at the 2014 SEMA Show.”

Jim Smith, editor of Tire Review magazine, said that tire makers need to also spend time educating their customers about the benefits of such higher-end tires.

“Even in the HP and UHP segments, consumers have been choosing less-known brands and options primarily based on price,” he said. “This indicates that tire companies are not doing a very good job of explaining the true technological and performance values of their products or of modern radial tires as a whole. Tire makers don’t seem to see the reality of today’s consumers and their views of the world. I think they need to stop pretending that nothing has changed following the recession.”

There are also hybrid-type “tweener” offerings in the light-truck segment. They are designed to fit between the all-terrain offerings, which have become more like passenger-car tires, and all-out mud-terrain tires that may have noise drawbacks for those not interested in hard-core performance.

“The off-road ‘tweener’ tires are not nearly as aggressive as a mud terrain, but they are far more aggressive than a standard all-terrain,” said Rick Péwé, content director for the Four Wheeler Network of The Enthusiast Network (TEN) media company. “If you are a dedicated mud bugger, you’re not going to get that type of tire. But for a construction worker or a hunter who doesn’t need such an aggressive, sometimes loud tire typified by mud terrains, it is the perfect way to go. They generally utilize open lugs and usually have sidewall enhancements for traction, and they’re also usually more durable, with increased silica content as well as other long-life, anti-chipping agents.”

Bob Riegel, retail education manager for Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, said that his company is participating in advances to create “rubber” from non-petroleum-based sources such as the guayule shrub. With natural rubber availability decreasing and prices rising, Bridgestone is looking to create synthetic alternatives.

“Bridgestone’s DriveGuard has also continued premium touring tire evolution while incorporating run-flat functionality for today’s coupes, sedans and wagons,” Riegel said. “This product will continue to develop as vehicle manufacturers stop offering regular spare tires, and they’re designed specifically for vehicles outfitted with tire-pressure monitoring systems. A version for CUVs and SUVs is due soon.”

TIA’s Rohlwing said that tires are also now available that may work even better as they wear. In those designs, the sipes—the thin slits that are cut across the tread surface to improve traction in wet or icy conditions—get wider as the tread wears down.

“Traditional sipes are narrow at the base and widen as they go out to the edge of the tread, so most tires have optimum wet traction when the tread is new because there is more open space to channel the water from the tire,” Rohlwing explained. “Goodyear and Michelin have developed technology where the sipes are widest at the base, so the ability to channel water from under the tread actually improves as the tire wears down. Michelin’s Premier A/S and Goodyear’s Assurance TripleTred All-Season are setting the newest trend for this tread design.”

Marketing and Selling Tires

The tire and wheel marketplace has always been competitive, but a new force has come into play in the replacement-tire business over the last few years: car dealerships.

“According to the latest market info from Tire Review magazine, the car dealer market share grew from 8% in 2012 to 11% in 2013,” Rohlwing said. “The additional sales came from the mass merchants, who watched their market share fall from 13% to 10% over the same time period.”

Some new offerings in the light-truck segment are designed to fit between all-terrain tires that have evolved toward less aggressive patterns and all-out mud-terrain tires that may have noise drawbacks for those not interested in bogger-type performance.

Independent retail businessman Feldman said that car dealerships are very aggressive and are spending millions of dollars in marketing, adding to his competition from big chains. With that comes pricing pressure, he said, so tire dealers must find niches and be able to out-service their competitors.

“If you have a specialty aspect to your business, leverage social media exposure,” he advised. “We’re doing things that get play in social media, and you can’t buy that kind of advertising.”

Feldman also stressed the importance of e-commerce to his operation. It’s where his company’s greatest growth has come in the last few years.

“The Internet will never totally take away the brick-and-mortar business, because you can’t install a tire on the Internet,” he said. “There is always going to be a need for installation centers, and a lot of people would rather buy and have tires installed from the same dealer. But they use the Internet for research and as a tool to negotiate pricing.”

The result of that ability for consumers to gather information quickly and easily means that tire dealers will have to train their employees to be more knowledgeable in explaining differences between tires to their customers, Zielasko said.

“The demand for tire knowledge is also going to become more pronounced when the new federal tire labeling law takes effect,” he pointed out. “Once that happens, consumers will see stickers pasted on each tire telling them about rolling resistance, tread wear and traction. That will allow them to comparison shop more easily.”

Rohlwing suggested that survival itself for retailers rests in embracing technology in every way possible, including a web presence for generations of tire buyers who conduct most of their research online and mobile platforms that make it easy for consumers with smartphones to get the information they want.

“Tire dealers probably face more challenges than opportunities,” he said, “but if tire dealers can expand their maintenance and repair business, they will be able to compete with the growing number of competitors such as new-car dealers. The greatest opportunities will probably be in the area of economy tires, if the countervailing duties on Chinese imports are imposed. If the tire companies can produce economy-line tires that are competitive with higher-priced imports, there will definitely be some opportunities for growth in their prospective market shares.”

The Bridgestone DriveGuard touring tire offers run-flat functionality and is designed specifically for vehicles outfitted with tire-pressure monitoring systems. With the advent of run-flat tires, vehicle manufacturers may stop offering regular spare tires at some point.

Such changes may provoke fear, but they can also lead to new ways of doing business.

“A re-shuffle of the field means that the best prepared at that moment has a chance to win,” said Kelly Austin, national sales manager for the wheel division of Tireco Inc. “The availability and quality of specialty items is better than ever. New treads for mileage and for special conditions such off-road and winter create opportunities.”

Recognizing market shifts may be the most crucial factor in incorporating them quickly and efficiently.

“As much as many want to believe that things have not changed, they truly have,” said Tire Review’s Smith. “One need look no further than the declining number of 15- to 18-year-olds taking driver’s licenses and the age-group balance in new-vehicle sales. These demographic shifts will impact the near- and long-term futures of the segment. The biggest thing is to get closer to your customers and have a better understanding of the underlying drivers in their lives. Instead of trying to hit home runs with every sales opportunity, make sure that customers homer with the right products that entirely fit not just their vehicles but also their values and lives.”

Hottest Wheel Products

Many consumers can’t tell the difference between a performance tire for a passenger car and an all-terrain tire for a light truck. But wheels are a different story. From unique finishes to complex design elements, different wheels can completely change the look of a vehicle.

“Designs have become more detail oriented,” said Joseph Schaefer, president of Konig American. “Companies are really producing some of the nicest and cleanest products ever. It was interesting to see how many companies had produced very clean, detailed wheel designs with aggressive but functional fitments at this year’s SEMA Show.”

Feldman said that his company sells several thousand wheels a month in addition to its core tire products, and that part of the market has also come back from the recession years.

“We are seeing growth in black wheels, and PVD [physical vapor deposition] finishes are replacing chrome,” he said. “In fact, I don’t think you’re going to see very many chrome wheels in a few years. The quality and look of PVD is so close that it is going to eliminate chrome.”

Péwé agreed and said that it’s also getting more difficult to find 15- or even 16-in. wheels, which can be a problem for the audiences of his off-road magazines and websites.

“Almost everything is being made for 17- and 18-in. applications,” he said. “If you only want a 33-in.-tall tire, you don’t want an 18-in. rim because of the tread-to-sidewall ratio. You need a substantial sidewall in a good off-road tire, so those smaller-diameter wheels could be a piece of the market that some smart entrepreneur might want to fill.”

Special paints and transparent coatings are being used to create unique appearances with vivid colors.

The prevalence of large-diameter and wide wheels in displays may also create confusion for some consumers, said Gavin Horlick, vice president at Vöxx Products.

“Most consumers don’t understand why a 20x12-in. wheel with a 3-in. lip will not fit on a stock-height truck,” he said. “It’s the job of the installer to inform the consumer of potential problems before they attempt to sell an oversized tire and wheel package. Without modifications, such as a lift kit, the tire may rub on a fender or suspension components.”

From Péwé’s off-roader perspective, weight ratings are also of prime concern. He pointed out that a wheel rated at 2,500 lbs. doesn’t have much use in a market dedicated to far heavier loads.

“If you have a ¾-ton pickup, you’re not going to be running around on wheels that are capable of carrying only a couple thousand pounds. You need a real truck wheel, and some of the manufacturers are realizing that.”

Horlick also noted the prevalence of concave staggered fitment wheels on passenger vehicles at the 2014 SEMA Show. Such wheels are intended to fit flush with the fender or even extend past it, he said, but that that type of “aggressive” design may cause other fitment issues.

Wayne Williams, president of ExSell Marketing, also made note of the trend toward tight fitments and said that they must be properly engineered to sit inside the vehicle fenderwells.

“Using the vehicle fenderwells as a frame, consumers and wheel manufacturers are engineering specific fitments considering specific tires and specific wheels to create a specific look—a ‘master piece,’ if you will,” he said. “The wheel vendor and vehicle owners post the images to social media to draw attention to their capabilities. The manufacturer’s desire is to draw inquires from potential customers who might want to duplicate the look but perhaps with different custom finishes.”

Finishes, Williams said, are the truly hot trend in wheels, and he’s not talking about simple color changes.

“Different treatments to aluminum before applying the finish coats are the hottest trend,” he said. “Brushed finishes are popular, and they’re enhanced with special paints and coatings that are transparent and create unique appearances. It’s all part of the ‘one-off’ trend—using popular designs and constructions but creating specific treatments to the wheels themselves and applying vivid colors using unique coatings.”

Schaefer said that flow-forming technology continues to be another growing trend in the wheel industry. The process uses a combination of heat, pressure and spinning to fabricate a high-strength wheel at less cost than for a forged wheel.

“More companies are turning to flow-forming technology to produce lighter, stronger and more efficient products,”
he said.

Austin also said that the traditional wheel-distribution channels are changing, with many smaller importers skipping the regional distributor route and going directly to retailers.

“That is changing pricing levels and adding delays for freight,” he said. “In order to succeed, retailers have to be prepared and know what their suppliers will and won’t do to help them.”

Marketing and Selling Wheels

In any retail operation, customer service is king. It quickly and distinctly differentiates a well-run business from one that won’t be around long. It is almost undoubtedly the chief marketing tool for sales and customer retention.

Flow-formed technology uses a combination of heat, pressure and spinning to fabricate a high-strength wheel at less cost than for a forged wheel.

“Wheel retailers really should continue to concentrate on customer service and providing an extremely positive experience for their customers,” Schaefer said. “It is the base upon which our industry must stand to ensure a prosperous future.”

As the chair of SEMA’s Wheel & Tire Council, Schaefer pointed to his organization’s “Ride Guide” publication as a major complement to customer service.

“The ‘Ride Guide’ will provide retailers and manufacturers alike with the ability to give customers a tangible idea of how a modification or change in wheel and tire package will effect everything from performance to ride quality,” he said. “This was never available before, and it should ensure that every customer knows what will happen as a result of their purchase.”

Williams also pointed to the use of social media in wheel marketing, especially to showcase modern exotic finishes.

“Vehicle photography has always been a mainstay in the aftermarket, but many wheel companies are taking more care in location selection and vehicle selection as well as more and higher-end video presentations,” he said.

“These well-thought-out image presentations are then posted to social media such as Facebook, Instagram and other social sites. That is intelligent and purposeful marketing.”

Most of the experts we consulted said that technology presents the greatest challenge to the wheel market. Increasing vehicle complexity, including electronically controlled braking and handling systems, present hurdles for engineers of all ancillary products.

“Vehicle systems are becoming so advanced that it will be our job as an industry to put the time in and really understand how every microscopic change can effect a vehicle as well as the customer’s overall safety,” Schaefer said. “That is exactly what SEMA and the SEMA Wheel & Tire Council are working so hard to do for members.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

EVENTS
By Mike Imlay

LIFT-OFF!

YEN Launch Pad Helps Propel Young Entrepreneurs

Within a mere two years, the YEN-presented Launch Pad competition has become a popular vehicle for introducing young, promising entrepreneurs and their innovations to the wider automotive specialty-equipment industry. For 2014, the contest again culminated at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas with a select group of five finalists (stage left) presenting their product and business ideas to an elite panel of industry judges (stage right) before a live audience.

Few automotive specialty-equipment veterans doubt that the industry’s future rests in identifying potential young entrepreneurs and igniting in them the sort of passion and bold innovation that will create a fresh new generation of market leaders. The question is: how? Launching new ideas today is daunting even for large companies with plenty of resources, let alone for young, small-business-minded men and women.

Two years ago, SEMA’s Young Executive Network (YEN) turned considerable attention toward the problem and came up with Launch Pad, a novel program to recruit, support and celebrate entrepreneurs age 40 and younger while giving the best and brightest among them center stage at the annual SEMA Show.

Patterned after television’s reality competition “Shark Tank,” the ambitious program starts each spring with an invitation to YEN-member company owners, presidents or chief-level officers to submit online entry applications along with three-minute videos detailing their new-product or service ideas, which must be fully developed and ready for market. After initial entries pour in, a special YEN task force winnows them down to 10 semi-finalists, posting them on Facebook and YouTube for a summer-long heat in which fans vote for their top five favorite contestants.

Those top finalists are in turn able to personally pitch their innovations to a panel of industry-veteran judges at the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At stake is a grand prize that includes, among other things, a high-profile magazine print-ad package; public relations and social media consultation by Kahn Media; an assortment of other marketing, creative, design, production, inventory and distribution consultations from Taylor Creative Co. and UPS, as well as MAVTV appearances courtesy of Brenton Productions.

Organizers had high hopes for the contest when it debuted in 2013, but no one really knew what to expect. As it turned out, there was no shortage of eager young innovators, making for a lively and extremely successful program. Ultimately, Jonathan Mill, founder of E-Stopp, walked away with the top prize for his inventive pushbutton emergency brake. Although he first developed it for the mobility industry, Mill quickly realized its potential for the custom and hot-rod markets as well. According to Mill, the 2013 Launch Pad competition became a major milestone in introducing his product to the specialty-equipment industry.

“With the [2013] win of the SEMA Launch Pad, I have been fueled with more passion for what I do than ever,” he recently said on his company’s website. “There is a lack of young enthusiasts in this industry, and I see an opportunity for myself to help draw in more. Though I’m not a particular fan of the limelight, I’m hoping it will help launch E-Stopp to a point where it allows me to produce more products and projects I have ideas for.”

BOOSTane developer Ian Lehn (center) took top honors at the 2014 event, winning the accolades of YEN Chair Dan Kahn (left), his fellow onstage finalists (right) and an extremely enthusiastic audience that cheered his innovative racing-fuel octane formulation.

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that Launch Pad may offer some real signs about the future of the industry and who will be among the leaders in innovation.

“Now in its second year, this program is an exciting example of SEMA’s investment in next-generation leadership,” Kersting explained. “With the event becoming a ‘must attend’ for our young professionals at the SEMA Show, we believe that it will be a key element of our efforts to bring in and introduce some of the most talented young people to the industry in Las Vegas each year.”

Indeed, after its successful 2013 debut, Launch Pad delivered another impressive roster of contestants and innovations for 2014. When the social media votes were tallied, the finalists came down to (in alphabetical order) Samuel Giles, Ian Lehn, Sarah Park, Roger Peterson and Jack Zampolin—each of whom represented the wide variety of backgrounds and tremendously fresh ideas that young entrepreneurs are bringing to the industry.

Giles is the managing director of Intellectual Capital Consulting Ltd. and a registered U.S. patent agent. With technical training in physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he also carries a bachelor’s degree in information systems and an MBA from the University of Toledo. Drawing on those various experiences allowed him to create and market the Blackhawk RES, a smart-watch remote engine starter, which he calls an “elegant connected-car solution for auto enthusiasts.”

President of BOOSTane Octane Engineering, Lehn picked up his passion for the automotive aftermarket from his stepfather. Taking this passion to Georgia Tech, Lehn became an innovator in its mechanical engineering classrooms, winning the school’s most prestigious design competition three years in a row. In his final school year, Lehn focused his attention on problems associated with fuel-octane reliability, race fuel accessibility and the general effectiveness of octane boosters. The result was the development of BOOSTane, an affordable alternative to racing fuel for individuals who want to restore lost octane points and stabilize the effects of ethanol for engine protection.

Park’s entry to Launch Pad was The Hybrid Haven business model, which she hopes to franchise with her business partner and EV technician Edward Rueda. As co-founder and president of the company, she envisions offering independent repair shop owners unprecedented access to hybrid/EV services, diagnostics, national parts and supply networks and marketing exposure. Park studied the cognitive sciences at the University of California Irvine before starting a career in business development and brand marketing at Nippon Oil Co.

	Launch Pad’s inaugural winner in 2013 was Jonathan Mill (left), inventor of E-Stopp, a novel pushbutton electronic parking brake with vast implications for the mobility, hot rod and custom markets.

As founder and CEO of MG Research LLC, a company focused on marketing channel research and analytics, Peterson has developed The Enthusiast App, a proprietary mobile app offering end users the world’s first mobile specialty-parts search engine, which matches parts to users, their vehicles and their customization preferences. He believes that his company’s product will contribute significantly to the growth of the specialty-equipment industry.

Meanwhile, RightPSI Vice President of Business Development Zampolin made the final Launch Pad cut with his company’s patented tire cap, which alerts consumers to over- and under-inflation. The product also allows users to fill tires directly through the cap, using it as an air gauge and eliminating the need for a separate, traditional tire gauge. A newcomer to the automotive aftermarket, Zampolin said he’s passionate about the product and excited to expose it to a wider audience of consumers.

For 2014, the SEMA Show Launch Pad competition was hosted by Matt D’Andria, CEO of Motorator.com and currently the co-host of the top-rated podcast “CarCast” with Adam Carolla. D’Andria was joined by a panel of five equally well-known industry judges, including Mark Arcenal, creative director of Illest Brand & Fatlace LLC; Ronald L. Coleman, ownership partner, president and CEO of Comp Performance Group; off-road racer and automotive television personality Jessi Combs of “All Girls Garage,” “Mythbusters” and “Overhaulin’” fame; Doug Evans, executive vice president of aftermarket media for TEN: The Enthusiast Network; and Glenn Rogers, former CEO of Hot Import Nights and CarDomain Network Inc. and currently with Cascadia Capital LLC.

Throughout the program, the judges questioned contestants at length, rating them in three categories: business clarity, product analysis and overall presentation. The 2014 competition was tight all around, and when the judges’ scores were tallied, mere tenths of points separated each presenter. However, Lehn and his BOOSTane formulation were able to inch ahead with just enough percentage points to land in the winner’s circle.

“I’ll tell you the truth, I don’t think [winning] has really sunk in yet,” said Lehn soon after the event. “It’s an honor and privilege to win the SEMA Launch Pad of the year. Unbelievable competition! I think Launch Pad is going to open a whole bunch of doors for us. Our product has only been out since January. We’ve been a part of SEMA for only about a year, and it’s been a whirlwind. I can only thank SEMA that we’ve gotten this far.”

Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media and chair of YEN, spoke for the panel: “The SEMA Launch Pad is a program created by YEN to highlight and support the next generation of entrepreneurs in our industry, and we couldn’t be happier with the results, connecting young talent with established industry professionals. For the past two years, this event has offered a unique opportunity for industry icons to be positioned alongside the best and brightest young talent in an event where everyone leaves a winner. We’re especially excited for Ian Lehn and look forward to helping him take advantage of the benefits of being the top 2014 SEMA Launch Pad innovator.”

As Kahn noted, Launch Pad is built around an “everyone is a winner” philosophy—a fact not lost on finalists such as Peterson, who says the competition came at exactly the right moment to give him and The Enthusiast App the lift-off they needed. Last summer he faced the seemingly insurmountable task of organizing a marketing strategy ahead of his new app’s launch. Seeking assistance, he turned to the business incubator program at the University of Central Florida (UCF), an experience that only underscored the hurdles he’d face in bringing his idea to fruition.

	MG Research LLC founder and CEO Roger Peterson pitched his proprietary mobile app at the 2014 Launch Pad. He later said, “I saw participants benefit in so many ways, from sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it.”

“I was specifically told that I needed more market validation and [should] address this challenge,” Peterson recalled. “As I drove back home from the meeting, I really felt like pulling off my first marketing campaign was going to be an uphill battled. As I pondered what to do next, within 10 minutes of leaving the UCF campus, I received a blast e-mail from YEN asking if any entrepreneurs had innovative ideas they would like to submit for the SEMA Launch Pad program. It was divine intervention!”

Even though he didn’t win the competition, Peterson called his Launch Pad experience “magical” from beginning to end.

“SEMA saw our [company’s] potential, and being qualified as having one of 10 top innovative ideas was all the validation one could ask for,” he said. “As someone who left a career in engineering 10 years ago to pursue this dream, I deal with anxiety from uncertainty every step of the way. The entire Launch Pad experience provided my team and me with a lot of momentum and a great deal of confidence in our goal. The SEMA Launch Pad officials were, and continue to be, very helpful. This has made the sleepless nights easier to bear.”

RightPSI’s Zampolin agreed that just participating in Launch Pad can be a major boost for the development and marketing of products created by young entrepreneurs.

“We are coming to market in the next couple of months, so this was a great opportunity to get some exposure,” he said. “It also introduced me to a number of people who are very interested in our product. The experience was fantastic. I really enjoyed making our video. Our Kickstarter backers gave us a lot of support and pushed us through to the finals, which were exciting and challenging. It’s not every day that you get to get up in front of that many people. The contestants all had great ideas and were awesome competitors.”

Like Peterson, the competition left Zampolin with a lofty view of Launch Pad’s ability to both promote and support young business starters.

“If you are in the auto industry and launching a new product, there are not any other similar places I know of where you can get in front of industry veterans and ask for advice,” he said.

Bryan Harrison, SEMA senior manager of councils, credits Launch Pad not only with raising industry awareness of young entrepreneurs but advancing their mentorship and inclusion in company leadership and succession plans.

“It’s easy to identify a topic such as young entrepreneurship as a priority,” he said. “It’s far harder to execute a meaningful deliverable to support such an initiative. Launch Pad represents a genuine action to improve business conditions for young leaders and is a solid sign that, as an association, we really do care.”

Chalk Peterson up as a true believer as well.

“I saw participants benefit in so many ways,” he said. “From sales opportunities to deal offers, prizes, elite networking opportunities, publicity—you name it, Launch Pad offers it all. What will it do for the next entrepreneur? I don’t know, but I do know that the experience is transformational and one worth having.”

SEMA News—February 2015

GLOBAL TIRE EXPO NEW PRODUCTS
By Mike Imlay

TIA’s Global Tire Expo Shows Its Traction

A Wave of New Tire Products Hits the 2014 SEMA Show

Held in conjunction with the recent 2014 SEMA Show, the annual Global Tire Expo (GTE)—Powered by the Tire Industry Association (TIA)—continued its reputation as a world-class “show within a show,” highlighting the tire niche’s tremendous significance within the automotive specialty-equipment marketplace.

Designed to serve the unique needs of dealers and businesses representing every sector of the tire industry, the GTE provided attendees with countless opportunities to see, learn about and discuss the latest advancements in tires through exhibitor displays, hands-on demonstrations and conferences. In fact, with its product offerings ranging from light-duty to off-road to heavy-duty tires, the 2014 Expo saw a 30% increase in event registrations over the prior year.

“I am excited that the Global Tire Expo continues to experience growth and am pleased to have welcomed many new exhibitors,” said TIA Vice President Roy Littlefield. “TIA worked closely with our visible partner, SEMA, to ensure that this year’s Show was a tremendous success. Industry professionals know that there is great value in exhibiting and attending GTE, and we’re confident that it will continue to be a success in the years to come.”

SEMA President and CEO Chris Kersting said that TIA has been a valued partner in a strong GTE at the SEMA Show each year.

“The Global Tire Expo is a perfect enhancement for the SEMA Show, delivering valuable product introductions, education and business connections to members of both our trade associations,” Kersting said. “We are obviously proud of this partnership.”

TIA traditionally launches its annual GTE with pre-Show events, which took place at Caesars Palace on Monday, November 3, 2014. The day included TIA’s annual meeting, a cocktail hour, a tire-industry awards ceremony and a welcome reception.

In advance of the official GTE opening, Michelin North America and TIA also announced recipients of the Michelin/TIA Scholarship Awards for the academic school year. A total of $6,250 was awarded toward college educations for Alexa Swingle of Omaha, Nebraska; Zachary Tayor of Mt. Olive, Illinois; and Kaitly Wade of Stevensville, Michigan.

Throughout Show week, the GTE also focused on the latest trends in recycling, retreading and high-tech tools and equipment. Educational sessions led by top industry experts ran from Tuesday, November 4, through Thursday, November 6. And, perhaps most important of all, there were new innovations galore to excite the entire specialty-equipment industry.

The following pages provide a look at the fresh new GTE tire products that were unveiled in the 2014 SEMA Show New Products Showcase.

  View all 100 Global Tire Expo New Products (PDF) 

 

 

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. Mastercraft SRT Touring 419-423-1321 www.coopertire.com PN: 90000022312 The Mastercraft SRT features a modern touring compound and stability-control siping that improves handling capabilities and all-season performance throughout the life of the tire.		Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. Discoverer SRX 419-423-1321 www.coopertire.com PN: 90000022312 The Cooper Discoverer SRX brings tread technology innovations, such as Stabiledge and advance silica compounding to deliver precise handling and all-season performance for CUVs and SUVs.
Achilles Tire Desert Hawk XMT 818-715-7080 www.achillestireusa.com PN: MAO331220 Achilles’ unique mud tire is designed with a three-step tread block pattern for all-terrain performance and a specialized X-Protection sidewall for durability.		Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. CS5 Ultra 419-423-1321 www.coopertire.com PN: 90000020881 The Cooper CS5 Ultra Touring is crafted with advanced technology for superior wet control and innovations such as Wear Square that provide confidence of tread-wear feedback.
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. Discoverer ATW 419-423-1321 www.coopertire.com PN: 90000021383 The Cooper Discoverer A/TW combines unique tread design features and an optimized silica tread compound for uncompromised performance in all four seasons and all terrains.		RightPSI Inc. RightPSI 406-219-3290 www.rightpsi.com PN: RPSI XXX RightPSI is a tire cap that turns orange when tire pressure is low, black when not and yellow when overfilled. It also acts as a gauge while filling.
Zafco Tire International Armstrong Tires Made in Thailand 305-406-3811 www.zafco.com Armstrong tires are made in Thailand in a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant using the latest technology.		Tire Profiles-TreadSpec Groove Glove Mobile Tire Laser Diagnostics 847-798-8043 www.tireprofiles.com The Groove Glove mobile tire diagnostic tool is a laser-powered tire tread-depth and alignment measurement instrument utilizing cloud-based software developed by Tire Profiles Inc.
Myers Tire Supply Flip Sockets 800-998-9897 www.myerstiresupply.com PN: 01684, 01683 MTS flip sockets. Thin wall sockets. Large, easy-to-read markings. Part number 01683 is 19x19 mm. Part number 01684 is 3/4 x 3/4 in.		Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels Deegan 38 Pro 2 330-928-9092 www.mickeythompsontires.com PN: 90000024749 The Deegan 38 Pro 2 wheel from Mickey Thompson features an eight-spoke design with a two-stage matte-black finish and a pop-top center cap; 15- to 20-in. fitments.
E-Lead Electronic Co. Ltd. Tire-Pressure Monitoring System +8-864-7977277 www.e-lead.com PN: EL-403 Reinforced rubber sensor, OE sensor, universal sensor—light as rubber, strong as aluminum. The best solution for the faults of aluminum valves and rubber valves. Safety: No risk of leakage under high-speed driving or rubber deformation. Anti corrosion: Salt usage in snow season spilled to an aluminum valve can cause corrosion.		Tire Profiles-TreadSpec Groove Glove Mobile Tire Laser Diagnostics 847-798-8043 www.tireprofiles.com The Groove Glove mobile tire diagnostic tool is a laser-powered tire tread-depth and alignment measurement instrument utilizing cloud-based software developed by Tire Profiles Inc.
Ken-Tool Heavy-Duty Universal Wheel-Weight Hammer 330-535-7177 www.kentool.com PN: 35359 Designed for installing and removing clip-on-style wheel weights on light- to heavy-duty trucks. The 28-ounce cast-steel head with anti-marring replaceable hammer face is safe for use on steel, aluminum and chrome. It offers a 34% larger strike area than typical wheel-weight hammers.		Qingdao Hwi Li Hwa Auto Parts Co. Ltd. Labor-Saving Wrench/ Torque Multiplier +86-138-64873995 www.hwilihwa.com PN: HLH-68 This wrench will give a torque of 4,800 newton meters. It makes nut-loosening work ever easier. The kit includes a torque multiplier and two optional sockets. Any adaptor is available upon request.
MobiusOne Technology Corp. KnowMyTires Bluetooth TPMS +886-2-25212610 www.knowmytires.com PN: TP1012 Read tire pressure on a phone. Do-it-yourself TPMS solution. No installation cost. Simple and intuitive user interface. Receiver generates visual and audio alerts. Ruggedized tire pressure sensors. Receive tire problem alerts without opening app. Install sensors by hand; no tire technician needed.		Gaither Tool Co. Winntec Wheel Lifter 217-245-0545 www.gaithertool.com PN: Y472260 The Winntec Wheel Lifter allows a technician to safely remove or replace tire/wheel assemblies from and onto a vehicle without physical strain, no matter the vehicle’s position on jack stands or post lift. Move from the vehicle to changer to balancer and back without ever lifting the tire/wheel assembly. Travels from floor to post lift height.
Qingdao Sentury Tire Co. Ltd. Landsail LSV88 Commercial Van Tire 305-621-5101 www.landsailtires.com PN: 195/70R17 Euro-metric commercial tires for eurovans. Landsail LSV88 C-designated tires are manufactured for a broad range of commercial vehicles with higher load-carrying capacities.		Ken-Tool Valvecapperpro 330-535-7177 www.kentool.com PN: 29999 and 29999M A four-in-one cap and core remover/installer. At 113/4 in., it has enough reach to check the inside of dual tires. A longer valve-cap grip works on flow through, double-seal valve caps. No more dropped caps; holds onto caps and valve cores for removing and replacing. Unbreakable under normal use.
Hercules Tire Terra Trac Cross-V 800-677-3573 www.herculestire.com PN: 88339 Premium SUV-LT/CUV tire offers a unique mix of wear resistance, all-weather traction, low rolling resistance and outstanding value. Available in 32 sizes with 16-20-in. rim diameters. Features up to 70,000 mile/112,000 km limited mileage warranty and road hazard protection.		Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels Metal Series MM164M 330-928-9092 www.mickeythompsontires.com PN: 90000022533 M/T Metal Series MM164M features an eight-spoke design with diamond-cut accents, a piano-black finish with clear coat and a pop-top center cap; 18- to 20-in. fitments.
Standard Motor Products Inc. Qwik-Sensor Multi-Coverage TPMS Sensors 718-392-0200 www.qwiksensor.com PN: QS101R Qwik-Sensor packaging is full color, illustrating all sensor configurations in the smallest box size. Main panels alternate positions for clear messaging regardless of shelf placement. Trilingual and color coded to match product application colors.		Nitto Tire U.S.A. Inc. Exo Grappler AWT 714-252-0007 www.nittotire.com The Exo Grappler AWT is built to meet the all-weather demands of off-road truck enthusiasts. The Exo Grappler AWT is built for four seasons of four-wheeling. Featuring an all-new, chip-resistant, all-weather compound, three-ply sidewall construction and large, thick sidewall lugs, the Exo Grappler AWT provides armor for the elements.
Bartec USA LLC Tech500 TPMS Tool With the Cub Programmer Accessory 855-877-9732 www.bartecusa.com PN: WRT500CPF-002 Tech500 Cubelec programming fixture. The first integrated programming solution for cub-style aftermarket sensors. Technicians can easily program and validate any cub-style sensor on the Tech500 TPMS tool.		Standard Motor Products Inc. Qwik-Sensor Multi-Coverage TPMS Sensors 718-392-0200 www.qwiksensor.com PN: QS101M Qwik-Sensor is an innovative multi-coverage TPMS sensor program featuring ease of programming, advanced technology and complete coverage.
Quick Pressure High-Pressure Tire Monitors 425-298-8452 www.tireqp.com PN: Qp-000145 Quick Pressure tire monitor is a mechanical device that replaces the valve-stem cap on any vehicle. The decorative unit remains on the valve stem. If tire PSI is correct, monitor will show green; 10% loss of air, monitor will start to show red. These units are made from brass and are chrome plated. Each unit is displayed with the PSI on top of cap.		Bartec USA LLC Tech500 Wall-Mounted Charging Cradle and Bluetooth Printer 855-877-9732 www.bartecusa.com PN: WRT500WMCC The Tech500 wall-mounted charging cradle and Bluetooth printer were custom made for the market-leading TPMS tool. The wall-mounted cradle will protect and charge the tool wirelessly, all in one. Print a TPMS audit report directly to a Tech500 Bluetooth printer anywhere in the shop.
Zafco Tire International Accelera Tires Made in Indonesia 305-406-3811 www.zafco.com Accelera tires are made in Indonesia in a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant using the latest technology.		Vee Rubber Vitron ZR 909-287-3424 www.veerubberusa.com PN: V34301 All-season ultra-high performance with innovative dual-nature asymmetrical tread design. Enables user to mount either side out to maximize performance in dry or wet conditions. Massive tread rubber blocks. Multiple pitch variation shoulder blocks for low noise. Four large circumferential grooves for efficient water evacuation.
Tech International UL6 Uni-Seal Ultra Tire Repair 800-433-8324 www.techtirerepairs.com PN: 250UL One-piece tire repair designed for 6mm; additional sizes available. For tubeless or tube-type radial and bias tires. Built-in lead wire for simple installation.		Josn Electronic Co. Ltd. Universal In-Dash Tire-Pressure Monitoring System 886-999-3820 www.josn.com.tw PN: TD6100 A 100% wireless TPMS with three-minute instant installation. Improve fuel savings up to 10%. Extend tire life up to 13%. Increase driving safety. Universal external-type sensor.

  View all 100 Global Tire Expo New Products (PDF)