SEMA News - November 2009 

With Steve Campbell

A Conversation With the SEMA Chairman and the PWA President-Elect

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) was established in 1963. It serves the industry with market research, as a legislative watchdog, as an educational outlet and as an advocate for the opening of international markets. Its membership has grown to include more than 7,300 companies, including manufacturers, warehouse distributors (WDs), jobbers and retailers serving every automotive niche.

The Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) was founded in 1971 with goals very similar to those of SEMA. Its membership includes specialty automotive parts wholesalers who have banded together to deal with management, financial and legislative issues. It has also expanded its reach to offer premier jobber/retailer support programs. The association’s mission statement reflects the PWA’s total outreach to industry segments: “To assist the specialty automotive WDs in their efforts to expand, maintain and promote the profitable distribution of specialty automotive products through the manufacturer/warehouse distributor/retailer/consumer channel.” 

The associations also offer two of the most widely attended and beneficial events available to the automotive industry, the SEMA Show, held annually in Las Vegas, and the annual PWA Conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each of the associations has either just installed or is about to install new leadership. Rick Rollins has assumed the chairmanship of the SEMA Board of Directors, and Donnie Eatherly will take the reins of PWA as its new president beginning in January. Both are industry veterans who share the unique perspective of years of volunteer experience in both associations.

Rick Rollins is the president of Rollins Performance Marketing/Consulting, director of sales and marketing for Percy’s High Performance and vice president of sales and marketing for Parts-Grabber.com and also serves on the board of directors for Arrington Engines. His 39 years in the automotive aftermarket include stints as a mechanic, a store counterman, a WD buyer, a regional and national sales manager, and sales and marketing vice presidencies for two manufacturers. His industry honors include induction into the SEMA Hall of Fame in 2006, PWA Person of the Year twice, Manufacturer of the Year with Superchips and the Vanguard Award from the Young Executives Network.

Donnie Eatherly is the president and co-owner of P&E Distributors Inc., a Tennessee warehouse distributor with three locations. Eatherly grew up in the WD business that his father started in the mid-’50s. He is the president-elect and a three-term board member of the PWA, but he is also in his second term as a member of the SEMA Board of Directors and has worked on a number of committees and task forces. He is one of the first graduates of the SEMA Best Board Practices Education Program and is currently working on the SEMA Data Pool initiative. Eatherly was recently appointed to the SEMA Executive Committee.

Recently, SEMA News had the opportunity to speak with the two executives about how SEMA and PWA might work together.

SEMA News: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the automotive specialty-equipment industry, especially the challenges that overlap for members of both SEMA and PWA?

Rick Rollins: Right now, it’s the fight for the consumer’s discretionary dollar. Everyone is spending less and only on what they really must have. Down the road, it will be more negative regulation and legislation, which both associations need to stay vigilant about. 

Donnie Eatherly: Other than the economy getting back up to speed, I also see three things that overlap: education, legislation and technology. Each of us as business leaders and owners need to get our heads around those three things, because they affect our daily lives all the way down to the counter level. We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members in those areas because we can’t afford to do these things individually.


SN: How can the two organizations work together to improve the industry in general and the role of WDs specifically?

Rick Rollins: It’s funny you asked, because at the last SEMA Board of Directors meeting, we decided to put together a task force to do just that—look at how the two associations can work together for the betterment of the industry as a whole. We also talked about other opportunities for the two boards and the two associations to
work together.

Donnie Eatherly: PWA and its leadership are very excited about SEMA’s formation of a task force to work more closely together. I believe that the two organizations have proven over the years that they bring tremendous value to the industry. With the economy the way it is, it’s important to look at what each organization provides for its membership and see what we can do to energize the base to not only get involved—which, by the way, is very important—but to utilize the programs that are in place, such as the SEMA Educational Institute (SEI), PWA University (PWAU) and other programs that most members may not be aware of. As far as the role of warehouse distribution, the memberships overlap a great deal, and the core of PWA member warehouses are companies that have been in business for many years.

	”We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members.”   - Donnie Eatherly

PWA has been slow to react to changes in the distribution network over the years and becoming a member has become difficult. That is starting to affect the PWA Conference.

With consolidation and some warehouses failing, we needed to look to the future and open up the Conference and bring more value back to our manufacturer members. An organization as large as SEMA—the councils, in particular—could work with PWA in making members aware of the Conference program, especially opening the 2010 Conference for non-members, which will bring in more meeting partners and help the manufacturers and SEMA council members grow their businesses.

The role of warehouse distribution in the industry is as strong as it’s ever been, and we as distributors need to embrace the educational programs, SEI and PWAU, to educate our employees to make them better and more knowledgeable sales people. We need to work together on industry-standardized data so that we can wring out more efficiencies up and down the distribution channel, which will help with such things as websites, B2B, B2C, electronic cataloging, current pricing, lost sales and on and on. I think that there is a tremendous opportunity for the warehouses to work with SEMA when the official rollout of the ProPledge program is ready. I can see immediate results from the warehouses going to their installers and expediters and getting folks signed up.


SN: As you pointed out, both organizations have placed greater emphasis on education in the past few years—PWA with PWAU and SEMA with SEI. Can those efforts be combined or otherwise offer cooperative curricula?

Rick Rollins: I think that we can work together and/or offer cooperative curricula. Again, we don’t know what will come out of the task force that might allow us to work together. Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.

Donnie Eatherly: Being on the Board of SEMA and president-elect of PWA, seeing how PWA and SEMA could work more closely together on issues such as these has been one of my main missions in life. You have to keep in mind that both organizations are creating and producing programs that they feel bring value back to their members. That being said, I think that PWA felt its role in the education process was to bring comprehensive product training to its membership so that it could educate the warehouse phone staffs and then bring education down to the jobber, speed shop, truck accessory and mass retailer levels.

If there was a way to let SEI continue to build its very robust business training suite with all aspects of running a profitable and successful business and somehow link it to PWAU, members could go to either site and reap the benefits of what both organizations have so painstakingly put together.


SN: Some manufacturers have begun to sell directly to consumers. Is there a way for WDs to offer services that might help to reclaim that part of the business or otherwise offer a solution that allows those manufacturers to continue doing business using traditional distribution methods?

Donnie Eatherly: Wow, that is a great question, and the answer, without a shadow of a doubt, is yes. Let’s face it: The Internet came along at a time when most long-standing traditional WDs had grown their businesses to the point where we could not move fast enough and implement this revolutionary way of doing business. It was very easy for people to create websites at home or at small shops that focused on a category, such as diesel, or one product and market it to the world. Therefore, the channel shifted. We needed to figure out how we as warehouses could harness the power of the Internet for our complex inventory and business-management software. It’s a very expensive and complex proposition, depending on the size of your company.

Most warehouses have resolved these problems, and the next step as an industry is to figure out the data problem to make it easier to shift it back through traditional distribution and not make UPS and other carriers rich shipping products across the country when, in most cases, they’re already in the consumers’ or their local retail outlet’s backyard. It is more efficient for a manufacturer to make one big shipment to an area for distribution than it is to make many, many shipments every day all over the country. Distribution groups have stepped up to the challenges and have put fulfillment systems in place for wholesale customers and retail customers alike. I don’t know of any other industry where you can get a product for a vehicle as complex as a car or truck, where the part the customer is inquiring about might be for a 30-year-old vehicle and get it within one day, in most cases. That’s phenomenal! Look at how many different parts are produced in the aftermarket and how quickly and efficiently distribution gets them into the consumer’s hands.

Rick Rollins: Some WDs have also begun to sell directly to consumers! Look, distribution is changing, and it will be different five years from now from what it is today. Exactly how different, I wish I knew because I could make a whole lot more money than I’m making today if I could tell you now. But as I see it, warehouses stock parts so that the manufacturer doesn’t have to, and the WD gets those parts to the businesses that make the final sales. There are two things that will never change: the manufacturer who makes the part and the consumer who puts it—or has it put—on his car. Everything in between will change, and the distribution chain needs to be on top of those changes and how they can be effective with whatever the changes may be.


SN: PWA has its yearly Conference a few weeks prior to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Do you foresee any greater linkage between the two events? Could there be benefits to linking them somehow?

Rick Rollins: Again I’ll bring up the task force. PWA has already proposed some changes for the 2010 Conference and more changes for beyond 2010. I think the proposed changes are very good for the industry, and we’ll have every opportunity for both associations to work together along with some of the SEMA councils. I think some of the ideas I’m hearing are great opportunities for SEMA council programs to work alongside of PWA membership, and it will be good for all concerned. But I don’t think actually “linking” them would work—maybe better synchronization of some fashion.

	”Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.”       —Rick Rollins

Donnie Eatherly: I’m not sure if you want to link those two in particular together, but I am very excited about discussing with the new task force the possibility of putting something together with SEMA and PWA, about some type of educational function and installation seminars in conjunction with the PWA Conference.

With this new open Conference format in 2010, the possibilities open up for new categories, such as tire and wheels, 12-volt and more to attend and have meetings. It also brings new opportunities to extend the Conference for those categories, to maybe do meetings in the first half and educational seminars and installation seminars in the second. In discussing these ideas with the PWA board and some of the SEMA council leadership and Board members, both seem to agree that it’s just a matter of the timing. You have one of the best industry one-on-one business functions happening, so why not take that opportunity when you have the manufacturers already there to do some hands-on training and education at the same time?


SN: Is there any limitation on who can take part in the PWA Conference?

Rick Rollins: Today, yes, the WD must be a PWA member. But what is being proposed for the future is where SEMA participation comes in. If you are registered as a SEMA-member distributor and a SEMA council member, you would be able to participate. The first step is that being a SEMA council member now qualifies you to go to the Conference. PWA is also looking at what the different SEMA councils represent within the industry that PWA isn’t presently getting to.

Donnie Eatherly: You are correct, Rick. The only thing I can add is that you can also be sponsored by three PWA manufacturer members. In the past, the only way that you could attend the Conference was to be a member of the PWA, whether as a manufacturer or as a warehouse distributor. We decided that it would be better for the future of the PWA and Conference to allow non-members to attend because the manufacturer members needed more meeting partners. This was a way to open it up and get them some opportunities to meet with new people in the industry.

SN: What should SEMA members know about PWA and what should PWA members know about SEMA regarding how the two associations might collaborate for the good of both associations?

Rick Rollins: We’re all in this together. There’s no bad guy, good guy or 800-lb. gorilla in the room. This industry has enough to worry about with the economy, harmful legislation, fuel prices and so on. We need to work together and pull in the same direction. We all need to make money. Our businesses and our associations won’t continue to exist without making money. It’s what puts food on our tables and what pays for all of the good programs that both SEMA and PWA offer. That’s what PWA and SEMA members need to know about each other: We’re all in this together.

Donnie Eatherly: In PWA’s case, I think that the board has heard the members’ voices, and we are making big strides in making this organization a more relevant trade association for our industry. As is the case with SEMA, PWA needs more membership participation at the board and leadership levels to bring in fresh ideas for the board to deliberate and act on. I have personally been blessed with a hard-working, dedicated staff and family at P&E that have allowed me to get involved in the industry, and there’s nothing as rewarding as being able to give back to this industry that I love and was raised in. Through the cross-pollinating of the SEMA councils and the PWA membership, we have great opportunities to bring new business, leadership and direction for both SEMA and PWA.

The current leadership in both associations is more motivated than ever to work closer than before. There have been numerous conversations in the past about PWA needing to merge with SEMA or become a SEMA council, but as I said previously, each association has its strengths, and one of the PWA’s is the fact that it can move much quicker than SEMA on its own agenda. Right now, PWA enjoys its autonomy and freedom to act independently too much for something like a merge to happen. But that should not get in the way of both associations working with this new task force to bring benefits and initiatives that continue to help the industry thrive and prosper. I am very excited about serving in the capacities that I am in both SEMA and PWA, and I look forward to discussing and implementing some of the ideas that we have talked about today.  

SEMA News - November 2009 

With Steve Campbell

A Conversation With the SEMA Chairman and the PWA President-Elect

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) was established in 1963. It serves the industry with market research, as a legislative watchdog, as an educational outlet and as an advocate for the opening of international markets. Its membership has grown to include more than 7,300 companies, including manufacturers, warehouse distributors (WDs), jobbers and retailers serving every automotive niche.

The Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) was founded in 1971 with goals very similar to those of SEMA. Its membership includes specialty automotive parts wholesalers who have banded together to deal with management, financial and legislative issues. It has also expanded its reach to offer premier jobber/retailer support programs. The association’s mission statement reflects the PWA’s total outreach to industry segments: “To assist the specialty automotive WDs in their efforts to expand, maintain and promote the profitable distribution of specialty automotive products through the manufacturer/warehouse distributor/retailer/consumer channel.” 

The associations also offer two of the most widely attended and beneficial events available to the automotive industry, the SEMA Show, held annually in Las Vegas, and the annual PWA Conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each of the associations has either just installed or is about to install new leadership. Rick Rollins has assumed the chairmanship of the SEMA Board of Directors, and Donnie Eatherly will take the reins of PWA as its new president beginning in January. Both are industry veterans who share the unique perspective of years of volunteer experience in both associations.

Rick Rollins is the president of Rollins Performance Marketing/Consulting, director of sales and marketing for Percy’s High Performance and vice president of sales and marketing for Parts-Grabber.com and also serves on the board of directors for Arrington Engines. His 39 years in the automotive aftermarket include stints as a mechanic, a store counterman, a WD buyer, a regional and national sales manager, and sales and marketing vice presidencies for two manufacturers. His industry honors include induction into the SEMA Hall of Fame in 2006, PWA Person of the Year twice, Manufacturer of the Year with Superchips and the Vanguard Award from the Young Executives Network.

Donnie Eatherly is the president and co-owner of P&E Distributors Inc., a Tennessee warehouse distributor with three locations. Eatherly grew up in the WD business that his father started in the mid-’50s. He is the president-elect and a three-term board member of the PWA, but he is also in his second term as a member of the SEMA Board of Directors and has worked on a number of committees and task forces. He is one of the first graduates of the SEMA Best Board Practices Education Program and is currently working on the SEMA Data Pool initiative. Eatherly was recently appointed to the SEMA Executive Committee.

Recently, SEMA News had the opportunity to speak with the two executives about how SEMA and PWA might work together.

SEMA News: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the automotive specialty-equipment industry, especially the challenges that overlap for members of both SEMA and PWA?

Rick Rollins: Right now, it’s the fight for the consumer’s discretionary dollar. Everyone is spending less and only on what they really must have. Down the road, it will be more negative regulation and legislation, which both associations need to stay vigilant about. 

Donnie Eatherly: Other than the economy getting back up to speed, I also see three things that overlap: education, legislation and technology. Each of us as business leaders and owners need to get our heads around those three things, because they affect our daily lives all the way down to the counter level. We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members in those areas because we can’t afford to do these things individually.


SN: How can the two organizations work together to improve the industry in general and the role of WDs specifically?

Rick Rollins: It’s funny you asked, because at the last SEMA Board of Directors meeting, we decided to put together a task force to do just that—look at how the two associations can work together for the betterment of the industry as a whole. We also talked about other opportunities for the two boards and the two associations to
work together.

Donnie Eatherly: PWA and its leadership are very excited about SEMA’s formation of a task force to work more closely together. I believe that the two organizations have proven over the years that they bring tremendous value to the industry. With the economy the way it is, it’s important to look at what each organization provides for its membership and see what we can do to energize the base to not only get involved—which, by the way, is very important—but to utilize the programs that are in place, such as the SEMA Educational Institute (SEI), PWA University (PWAU) and other programs that most members may not be aware of. As far as the role of warehouse distribution, the memberships overlap a great deal, and the core of PWA member warehouses are companies that have been in business for many years.

	”We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members.”   - Donnie Eatherly

PWA has been slow to react to changes in the distribution network over the years and becoming a member has become difficult. That is starting to affect the PWA Conference.

With consolidation and some warehouses failing, we needed to look to the future and open up the Conference and bring more value back to our manufacturer members. An organization as large as SEMA—the councils, in particular—could work with PWA in making members aware of the Conference program, especially opening the 2010 Conference for non-members, which will bring in more meeting partners and help the manufacturers and SEMA council members grow their businesses.

The role of warehouse distribution in the industry is as strong as it’s ever been, and we as distributors need to embrace the educational programs, SEI and PWAU, to educate our employees to make them better and more knowledgeable sales people. We need to work together on industry-standardized data so that we can wring out more efficiencies up and down the distribution channel, which will help with such things as websites, B2B, B2C, electronic cataloging, current pricing, lost sales and on and on. I think that there is a tremendous opportunity for the warehouses to work with SEMA when the official rollout of the ProPledge program is ready. I can see immediate results from the warehouses going to their installers and expediters and getting folks signed up.


SN: As you pointed out, both organizations have placed greater emphasis on education in the past few years—PWA with PWAU and SEMA with SEI. Can those efforts be combined or otherwise offer cooperative curricula?

Rick Rollins: I think that we can work together and/or offer cooperative curricula. Again, we don’t know what will come out of the task force that might allow us to work together. Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.

Donnie Eatherly: Being on the Board of SEMA and president-elect of PWA, seeing how PWA and SEMA could work more closely together on issues such as these has been one of my main missions in life. You have to keep in mind that both organizations are creating and producing programs that they feel bring value back to their members. That being said, I think that PWA felt its role in the education process was to bring comprehensive product training to its membership so that it could educate the warehouse phone staffs and then bring education down to the jobber, speed shop, truck accessory and mass retailer levels.

If there was a way to let SEI continue to build its very robust business training suite with all aspects of running a profitable and successful business and somehow link it to PWAU, members could go to either site and reap the benefits of what both organizations have so painstakingly put together.


SN: Some manufacturers have begun to sell directly to consumers. Is there a way for WDs to offer services that might help to reclaim that part of the business or otherwise offer a solution that allows those manufacturers to continue doing business using traditional distribution methods?

Donnie Eatherly: Wow, that is a great question, and the answer, without a shadow of a doubt, is yes. Let’s face it: The Internet came along at a time when most long-standing traditional WDs had grown their businesses to the point where we could not move fast enough and implement this revolutionary way of doing business. It was very easy for people to create websites at home or at small shops that focused on a category, such as diesel, or one product and market it to the world. Therefore, the channel shifted. We needed to figure out how we as warehouses could harness the power of the Internet for our complex inventory and business-management software. It’s a very expensive and complex proposition, depending on the size of your company.

Most warehouses have resolved these problems, and the next step as an industry is to figure out the data problem to make it easier to shift it back through traditional distribution and not make UPS and other carriers rich shipping products across the country when, in most cases, they’re already in the consumers’ or their local retail outlet’s backyard. It is more efficient for a manufacturer to make one big shipment to an area for distribution than it is to make many, many shipments every day all over the country. Distribution groups have stepped up to the challenges and have put fulfillment systems in place for wholesale customers and retail customers alike. I don’t know of any other industry where you can get a product for a vehicle as complex as a car or truck, where the part the customer is inquiring about might be for a 30-year-old vehicle and get it within one day, in most cases. That’s phenomenal! Look at how many different parts are produced in the aftermarket and how quickly and efficiently distribution gets them into the consumer’s hands.

Rick Rollins: Some WDs have also begun to sell directly to consumers! Look, distribution is changing, and it will be different five years from now from what it is today. Exactly how different, I wish I knew because I could make a whole lot more money than I’m making today if I could tell you now. But as I see it, warehouses stock parts so that the manufacturer doesn’t have to, and the WD gets those parts to the businesses that make the final sales. There are two things that will never change: the manufacturer who makes the part and the consumer who puts it—or has it put—on his car. Everything in between will change, and the distribution chain needs to be on top of those changes and how they can be effective with whatever the changes may be.


SN: PWA has its yearly Conference a few weeks prior to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Do you foresee any greater linkage between the two events? Could there be benefits to linking them somehow?

Rick Rollins: Again I’ll bring up the task force. PWA has already proposed some changes for the 2010 Conference and more changes for beyond 2010. I think the proposed changes are very good for the industry, and we’ll have every opportunity for both associations to work together along with some of the SEMA councils. I think some of the ideas I’m hearing are great opportunities for SEMA council programs to work alongside of PWA membership, and it will be good for all concerned. But I don’t think actually “linking” them would work—maybe better synchronization of some fashion.

	”Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.”       —Rick Rollins

Donnie Eatherly: I’m not sure if you want to link those two in particular together, but I am very excited about discussing with the new task force the possibility of putting something together with SEMA and PWA, about some type of educational function and installation seminars in conjunction with the PWA Conference.

With this new open Conference format in 2010, the possibilities open up for new categories, such as tire and wheels, 12-volt and more to attend and have meetings. It also brings new opportunities to extend the Conference for those categories, to maybe do meetings in the first half and educational seminars and installation seminars in the second. In discussing these ideas with the PWA board and some of the SEMA council leadership and Board members, both seem to agree that it’s just a matter of the timing. You have one of the best industry one-on-one business functions happening, so why not take that opportunity when you have the manufacturers already there to do some hands-on training and education at the same time?


SN: Is there any limitation on who can take part in the PWA Conference?

Rick Rollins: Today, yes, the WD must be a PWA member. But what is being proposed for the future is where SEMA participation comes in. If you are registered as a SEMA-member distributor and a SEMA council member, you would be able to participate. The first step is that being a SEMA council member now qualifies you to go to the Conference. PWA is also looking at what the different SEMA councils represent within the industry that PWA isn’t presently getting to.

Donnie Eatherly: You are correct, Rick. The only thing I can add is that you can also be sponsored by three PWA manufacturer members. In the past, the only way that you could attend the Conference was to be a member of the PWA, whether as a manufacturer or as a warehouse distributor. We decided that it would be better for the future of the PWA and Conference to allow non-members to attend because the manufacturer members needed more meeting partners. This was a way to open it up and get them some opportunities to meet with new people in the industry.

SN: What should SEMA members know about PWA and what should PWA members know about SEMA regarding how the two associations might collaborate for the good of both associations?

Rick Rollins: We’re all in this together. There’s no bad guy, good guy or 800-lb. gorilla in the room. This industry has enough to worry about with the economy, harmful legislation, fuel prices and so on. We need to work together and pull in the same direction. We all need to make money. Our businesses and our associations won’t continue to exist without making money. It’s what puts food on our tables and what pays for all of the good programs that both SEMA and PWA offer. That’s what PWA and SEMA members need to know about each other: We’re all in this together.

Donnie Eatherly: In PWA’s case, I think that the board has heard the members’ voices, and we are making big strides in making this organization a more relevant trade association for our industry. As is the case with SEMA, PWA needs more membership participation at the board and leadership levels to bring in fresh ideas for the board to deliberate and act on. I have personally been blessed with a hard-working, dedicated staff and family at P&E that have allowed me to get involved in the industry, and there’s nothing as rewarding as being able to give back to this industry that I love and was raised in. Through the cross-pollinating of the SEMA councils and the PWA membership, we have great opportunities to bring new business, leadership and direction for both SEMA and PWA.

The current leadership in both associations is more motivated than ever to work closer than before. There have been numerous conversations in the past about PWA needing to merge with SEMA or become a SEMA council, but as I said previously, each association has its strengths, and one of the PWA’s is the fact that it can move much quicker than SEMA on its own agenda. Right now, PWA enjoys its autonomy and freedom to act independently too much for something like a merge to happen. But that should not get in the way of both associations working with this new task force to bring benefits and initiatives that continue to help the industry thrive and prosper. I am very excited about serving in the capacities that I am in both SEMA and PWA, and I look forward to discussing and implementing some of the ideas that we have talked about today.  

SEMA News - November 2009 

With Steve Campbell

A Conversation With the SEMA Chairman and the PWA President-Elect

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) was established in 1963. It serves the industry with market research, as a legislative watchdog, as an educational outlet and as an advocate for the opening of international markets. Its membership has grown to include more than 7,300 companies, including manufacturers, warehouse distributors (WDs), jobbers and retailers serving every automotive niche.

The Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) was founded in 1971 with goals very similar to those of SEMA. Its membership includes specialty automotive parts wholesalers who have banded together to deal with management, financial and legislative issues. It has also expanded its reach to offer premier jobber/retailer support programs. The association’s mission statement reflects the PWA’s total outreach to industry segments: “To assist the specialty automotive WDs in their efforts to expand, maintain and promote the profitable distribution of specialty automotive products through the manufacturer/warehouse distributor/retailer/consumer channel.” 

The associations also offer two of the most widely attended and beneficial events available to the automotive industry, the SEMA Show, held annually in Las Vegas, and the annual PWA Conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each of the associations has either just installed or is about to install new leadership. Rick Rollins has assumed the chairmanship of the SEMA Board of Directors, and Donnie Eatherly will take the reins of PWA as its new president beginning in January. Both are industry veterans who share the unique perspective of years of volunteer experience in both associations.

Rick Rollins is the president of Rollins Performance Marketing/Consulting, director of sales and marketing for Percy’s High Performance and vice president of sales and marketing for Parts-Grabber.com and also serves on the board of directors for Arrington Engines. His 39 years in the automotive aftermarket include stints as a mechanic, a store counterman, a WD buyer, a regional and national sales manager, and sales and marketing vice presidencies for two manufacturers. His industry honors include induction into the SEMA Hall of Fame in 2006, PWA Person of the Year twice, Manufacturer of the Year with Superchips and the Vanguard Award from the Young Executives Network.

Donnie Eatherly is the president and co-owner of P&E Distributors Inc., a Tennessee warehouse distributor with three locations. Eatherly grew up in the WD business that his father started in the mid-’50s. He is the president-elect and a three-term board member of the PWA, but he is also in his second term as a member of the SEMA Board of Directors and has worked on a number of committees and task forces. He is one of the first graduates of the SEMA Best Board Practices Education Program and is currently working on the SEMA Data Pool initiative. Eatherly was recently appointed to the SEMA Executive Committee.

Recently, SEMA News had the opportunity to speak with the two executives about how SEMA and PWA might work together.

SEMA News: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the automotive specialty-equipment industry, especially the challenges that overlap for members of both SEMA and PWA?

Rick Rollins: Right now, it’s the fight for the consumer’s discretionary dollar. Everyone is spending less and only on what they really must have. Down the road, it will be more negative regulation and legislation, which both associations need to stay vigilant about. 

Donnie Eatherly: Other than the economy getting back up to speed, I also see three things that overlap: education, legislation and technology. Each of us as business leaders and owners need to get our heads around those three things, because they affect our daily lives all the way down to the counter level. We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members in those areas because we can’t afford to do these things individually.


SN: How can the two organizations work together to improve the industry in general and the role of WDs specifically?

Rick Rollins: It’s funny you asked, because at the last SEMA Board of Directors meeting, we decided to put together a task force to do just that—look at how the two associations can work together for the betterment of the industry as a whole. We also talked about other opportunities for the two boards and the two associations to
work together.

Donnie Eatherly: PWA and its leadership are very excited about SEMA’s formation of a task force to work more closely together. I believe that the two organizations have proven over the years that they bring tremendous value to the industry. With the economy the way it is, it’s important to look at what each organization provides for its membership and see what we can do to energize the base to not only get involved—which, by the way, is very important—but to utilize the programs that are in place, such as the SEMA Educational Institute (SEI), PWA University (PWAU) and other programs that most members may not be aware of. As far as the role of warehouse distribution, the memberships overlap a great deal, and the core of PWA member warehouses are companies that have been in business for many years.

	”We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members.”   - Donnie Eatherly

PWA has been slow to react to changes in the distribution network over the years and becoming a member has become difficult. That is starting to affect the PWA Conference.

With consolidation and some warehouses failing, we needed to look to the future and open up the Conference and bring more value back to our manufacturer members. An organization as large as SEMA—the councils, in particular—could work with PWA in making members aware of the Conference program, especially opening the 2010 Conference for non-members, which will bring in more meeting partners and help the manufacturers and SEMA council members grow their businesses.

The role of warehouse distribution in the industry is as strong as it’s ever been, and we as distributors need to embrace the educational programs, SEI and PWAU, to educate our employees to make them better and more knowledgeable sales people. We need to work together on industry-standardized data so that we can wring out more efficiencies up and down the distribution channel, which will help with such things as websites, B2B, B2C, electronic cataloging, current pricing, lost sales and on and on. I think that there is a tremendous opportunity for the warehouses to work with SEMA when the official rollout of the ProPledge program is ready. I can see immediate results from the warehouses going to their installers and expediters and getting folks signed up.


SN: As you pointed out, both organizations have placed greater emphasis on education in the past few years—PWA with PWAU and SEMA with SEI. Can those efforts be combined or otherwise offer cooperative curricula?

Rick Rollins: I think that we can work together and/or offer cooperative curricula. Again, we don’t know what will come out of the task force that might allow us to work together. Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.

Donnie Eatherly: Being on the Board of SEMA and president-elect of PWA, seeing how PWA and SEMA could work more closely together on issues such as these has been one of my main missions in life. You have to keep in mind that both organizations are creating and producing programs that they feel bring value back to their members. That being said, I think that PWA felt its role in the education process was to bring comprehensive product training to its membership so that it could educate the warehouse phone staffs and then bring education down to the jobber, speed shop, truck accessory and mass retailer levels.

If there was a way to let SEI continue to build its very robust business training suite with all aspects of running a profitable and successful business and somehow link it to PWAU, members could go to either site and reap the benefits of what both organizations have so painstakingly put together.


SN: Some manufacturers have begun to sell directly to consumers. Is there a way for WDs to offer services that might help to reclaim that part of the business or otherwise offer a solution that allows those manufacturers to continue doing business using traditional distribution methods?

Donnie Eatherly: Wow, that is a great question, and the answer, without a shadow of a doubt, is yes. Let’s face it: The Internet came along at a time when most long-standing traditional WDs had grown their businesses to the point where we could not move fast enough and implement this revolutionary way of doing business. It was very easy for people to create websites at home or at small shops that focused on a category, such as diesel, or one product and market it to the world. Therefore, the channel shifted. We needed to figure out how we as warehouses could harness the power of the Internet for our complex inventory and business-management software. It’s a very expensive and complex proposition, depending on the size of your company.

Most warehouses have resolved these problems, and the next step as an industry is to figure out the data problem to make it easier to shift it back through traditional distribution and not make UPS and other carriers rich shipping products across the country when, in most cases, they’re already in the consumers’ or their local retail outlet’s backyard. It is more efficient for a manufacturer to make one big shipment to an area for distribution than it is to make many, many shipments every day all over the country. Distribution groups have stepped up to the challenges and have put fulfillment systems in place for wholesale customers and retail customers alike. I don’t know of any other industry where you can get a product for a vehicle as complex as a car or truck, where the part the customer is inquiring about might be for a 30-year-old vehicle and get it within one day, in most cases. That’s phenomenal! Look at how many different parts are produced in the aftermarket and how quickly and efficiently distribution gets them into the consumer’s hands.

Rick Rollins: Some WDs have also begun to sell directly to consumers! Look, distribution is changing, and it will be different five years from now from what it is today. Exactly how different, I wish I knew because I could make a whole lot more money than I’m making today if I could tell you now. But as I see it, warehouses stock parts so that the manufacturer doesn’t have to, and the WD gets those parts to the businesses that make the final sales. There are two things that will never change: the manufacturer who makes the part and the consumer who puts it—or has it put—on his car. Everything in between will change, and the distribution chain needs to be on top of those changes and how they can be effective with whatever the changes may be.


SN: PWA has its yearly Conference a few weeks prior to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Do you foresee any greater linkage between the two events? Could there be benefits to linking them somehow?

Rick Rollins: Again I’ll bring up the task force. PWA has already proposed some changes for the 2010 Conference and more changes for beyond 2010. I think the proposed changes are very good for the industry, and we’ll have every opportunity for both associations to work together along with some of the SEMA councils. I think some of the ideas I’m hearing are great opportunities for SEMA council programs to work alongside of PWA membership, and it will be good for all concerned. But I don’t think actually “linking” them would work—maybe better synchronization of some fashion.

	”Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.”       —Rick Rollins

Donnie Eatherly: I’m not sure if you want to link those two in particular together, but I am very excited about discussing with the new task force the possibility of putting something together with SEMA and PWA, about some type of educational function and installation seminars in conjunction with the PWA Conference.

With this new open Conference format in 2010, the possibilities open up for new categories, such as tire and wheels, 12-volt and more to attend and have meetings. It also brings new opportunities to extend the Conference for those categories, to maybe do meetings in the first half and educational seminars and installation seminars in the second. In discussing these ideas with the PWA board and some of the SEMA council leadership and Board members, both seem to agree that it’s just a matter of the timing. You have one of the best industry one-on-one business functions happening, so why not take that opportunity when you have the manufacturers already there to do some hands-on training and education at the same time?


SN: Is there any limitation on who can take part in the PWA Conference?

Rick Rollins: Today, yes, the WD must be a PWA member. But what is being proposed for the future is where SEMA participation comes in. If you are registered as a SEMA-member distributor and a SEMA council member, you would be able to participate. The first step is that being a SEMA council member now qualifies you to go to the Conference. PWA is also looking at what the different SEMA councils represent within the industry that PWA isn’t presently getting to.

Donnie Eatherly: You are correct, Rick. The only thing I can add is that you can also be sponsored by three PWA manufacturer members. In the past, the only way that you could attend the Conference was to be a member of the PWA, whether as a manufacturer or as a warehouse distributor. We decided that it would be better for the future of the PWA and Conference to allow non-members to attend because the manufacturer members needed more meeting partners. This was a way to open it up and get them some opportunities to meet with new people in the industry.

SN: What should SEMA members know about PWA and what should PWA members know about SEMA regarding how the two associations might collaborate for the good of both associations?

Rick Rollins: We’re all in this together. There’s no bad guy, good guy or 800-lb. gorilla in the room. This industry has enough to worry about with the economy, harmful legislation, fuel prices and so on. We need to work together and pull in the same direction. We all need to make money. Our businesses and our associations won’t continue to exist without making money. It’s what puts food on our tables and what pays for all of the good programs that both SEMA and PWA offer. That’s what PWA and SEMA members need to know about each other: We’re all in this together.

Donnie Eatherly: In PWA’s case, I think that the board has heard the members’ voices, and we are making big strides in making this organization a more relevant trade association for our industry. As is the case with SEMA, PWA needs more membership participation at the board and leadership levels to bring in fresh ideas for the board to deliberate and act on. I have personally been blessed with a hard-working, dedicated staff and family at P&E that have allowed me to get involved in the industry, and there’s nothing as rewarding as being able to give back to this industry that I love and was raised in. Through the cross-pollinating of the SEMA councils and the PWA membership, we have great opportunities to bring new business, leadership and direction for both SEMA and PWA.

The current leadership in both associations is more motivated than ever to work closer than before. There have been numerous conversations in the past about PWA needing to merge with SEMA or become a SEMA council, but as I said previously, each association has its strengths, and one of the PWA’s is the fact that it can move much quicker than SEMA on its own agenda. Right now, PWA enjoys its autonomy and freedom to act independently too much for something like a merge to happen. But that should not get in the way of both associations working with this new task force to bring benefits and initiatives that continue to help the industry thrive and prosper. I am very excited about serving in the capacities that I am in both SEMA and PWA, and I look forward to discussing and implementing some of the ideas that we have talked about today.  

SEMA News - November 2009 

With Steve Campbell

A Conversation With the SEMA Chairman and the PWA President-Elect

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) was established in 1963. It serves the industry with market research, as a legislative watchdog, as an educational outlet and as an advocate for the opening of international markets. Its membership has grown to include more than 7,300 companies, including manufacturers, warehouse distributors (WDs), jobbers and retailers serving every automotive niche.

The Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) was founded in 1971 with goals very similar to those of SEMA. Its membership includes specialty automotive parts wholesalers who have banded together to deal with management, financial and legislative issues. It has also expanded its reach to offer premier jobber/retailer support programs. The association’s mission statement reflects the PWA’s total outreach to industry segments: “To assist the specialty automotive WDs in their efforts to expand, maintain and promote the profitable distribution of specialty automotive products through the manufacturer/warehouse distributor/retailer/consumer channel.” 

The associations also offer two of the most widely attended and beneficial events available to the automotive industry, the SEMA Show, held annually in Las Vegas, and the annual PWA Conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each of the associations has either just installed or is about to install new leadership. Rick Rollins has assumed the chairmanship of the SEMA Board of Directors, and Donnie Eatherly will take the reins of PWA as its new president beginning in January. Both are industry veterans who share the unique perspective of years of volunteer experience in both associations.

Rick Rollins is the president of Rollins Performance Marketing/Consulting, director of sales and marketing for Percy’s High Performance and vice president of sales and marketing for Parts-Grabber.com and also serves on the board of directors for Arrington Engines. His 39 years in the automotive aftermarket include stints as a mechanic, a store counterman, a WD buyer, a regional and national sales manager, and sales and marketing vice presidencies for two manufacturers. His industry honors include induction into the SEMA Hall of Fame in 2006, PWA Person of the Year twice, Manufacturer of the Year with Superchips and the Vanguard Award from the Young Executives Network.

Donnie Eatherly is the president and co-owner of P&E Distributors Inc., a Tennessee warehouse distributor with three locations. Eatherly grew up in the WD business that his father started in the mid-’50s. He is the president-elect and a three-term board member of the PWA, but he is also in his second term as a member of the SEMA Board of Directors and has worked on a number of committees and task forces. He is one of the first graduates of the SEMA Best Board Practices Education Program and is currently working on the SEMA Data Pool initiative. Eatherly was recently appointed to the SEMA Executive Committee.

Recently, SEMA News had the opportunity to speak with the two executives about how SEMA and PWA might work together.

SEMA News: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the automotive specialty-equipment industry, especially the challenges that overlap for members of both SEMA and PWA?

Rick Rollins: Right now, it’s the fight for the consumer’s discretionary dollar. Everyone is spending less and only on what they really must have. Down the road, it will be more negative regulation and legislation, which both associations need to stay vigilant about. 

Donnie Eatherly: Other than the economy getting back up to speed, I also see three things that overlap: education, legislation and technology. Each of us as business leaders and owners need to get our heads around those three things, because they affect our daily lives all the way down to the counter level. We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members in those areas because we can’t afford to do these things individually.


SN: How can the two organizations work together to improve the industry in general and the role of WDs specifically?

Rick Rollins: It’s funny you asked, because at the last SEMA Board of Directors meeting, we decided to put together a task force to do just that—look at how the two associations can work together for the betterment of the industry as a whole. We also talked about other opportunities for the two boards and the two associations to
work together.

Donnie Eatherly: PWA and its leadership are very excited about SEMA’s formation of a task force to work more closely together. I believe that the two organizations have proven over the years that they bring tremendous value to the industry. With the economy the way it is, it’s important to look at what each organization provides for its membership and see what we can do to energize the base to not only get involved—which, by the way, is very important—but to utilize the programs that are in place, such as the SEMA Educational Institute (SEI), PWA University (PWAU) and other programs that most members may not be aware of. As far as the role of warehouse distribution, the memberships overlap a great deal, and the core of PWA member warehouses are companies that have been in business for many years.

	”We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members.”   - Donnie Eatherly

PWA has been slow to react to changes in the distribution network over the years and becoming a member has become difficult. That is starting to affect the PWA Conference.

With consolidation and some warehouses failing, we needed to look to the future and open up the Conference and bring more value back to our manufacturer members. An organization as large as SEMA—the councils, in particular—could work with PWA in making members aware of the Conference program, especially opening the 2010 Conference for non-members, which will bring in more meeting partners and help the manufacturers and SEMA council members grow their businesses.

The role of warehouse distribution in the industry is as strong as it’s ever been, and we as distributors need to embrace the educational programs, SEI and PWAU, to educate our employees to make them better and more knowledgeable sales people. We need to work together on industry-standardized data so that we can wring out more efficiencies up and down the distribution channel, which will help with such things as websites, B2B, B2C, electronic cataloging, current pricing, lost sales and on and on. I think that there is a tremendous opportunity for the warehouses to work with SEMA when the official rollout of the ProPledge program is ready. I can see immediate results from the warehouses going to their installers and expediters and getting folks signed up.


SN: As you pointed out, both organizations have placed greater emphasis on education in the past few years—PWA with PWAU and SEMA with SEI. Can those efforts be combined or otherwise offer cooperative curricula?

Rick Rollins: I think that we can work together and/or offer cooperative curricula. Again, we don’t know what will come out of the task force that might allow us to work together. Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.

Donnie Eatherly: Being on the Board of SEMA and president-elect of PWA, seeing how PWA and SEMA could work more closely together on issues such as these has been one of my main missions in life. You have to keep in mind that both organizations are creating and producing programs that they feel bring value back to their members. That being said, I think that PWA felt its role in the education process was to bring comprehensive product training to its membership so that it could educate the warehouse phone staffs and then bring education down to the jobber, speed shop, truck accessory and mass retailer levels.

If there was a way to let SEI continue to build its very robust business training suite with all aspects of running a profitable and successful business and somehow link it to PWAU, members could go to either site and reap the benefits of what both organizations have so painstakingly put together.


SN: Some manufacturers have begun to sell directly to consumers. Is there a way for WDs to offer services that might help to reclaim that part of the business or otherwise offer a solution that allows those manufacturers to continue doing business using traditional distribution methods?

Donnie Eatherly: Wow, that is a great question, and the answer, without a shadow of a doubt, is yes. Let’s face it: The Internet came along at a time when most long-standing traditional WDs had grown their businesses to the point where we could not move fast enough and implement this revolutionary way of doing business. It was very easy for people to create websites at home or at small shops that focused on a category, such as diesel, or one product and market it to the world. Therefore, the channel shifted. We needed to figure out how we as warehouses could harness the power of the Internet for our complex inventory and business-management software. It’s a very expensive and complex proposition, depending on the size of your company.

Most warehouses have resolved these problems, and the next step as an industry is to figure out the data problem to make it easier to shift it back through traditional distribution and not make UPS and other carriers rich shipping products across the country when, in most cases, they’re already in the consumers’ or their local retail outlet’s backyard. It is more efficient for a manufacturer to make one big shipment to an area for distribution than it is to make many, many shipments every day all over the country. Distribution groups have stepped up to the challenges and have put fulfillment systems in place for wholesale customers and retail customers alike. I don’t know of any other industry where you can get a product for a vehicle as complex as a car or truck, where the part the customer is inquiring about might be for a 30-year-old vehicle and get it within one day, in most cases. That’s phenomenal! Look at how many different parts are produced in the aftermarket and how quickly and efficiently distribution gets them into the consumer’s hands.

Rick Rollins: Some WDs have also begun to sell directly to consumers! Look, distribution is changing, and it will be different five years from now from what it is today. Exactly how different, I wish I knew because I could make a whole lot more money than I’m making today if I could tell you now. But as I see it, warehouses stock parts so that the manufacturer doesn’t have to, and the WD gets those parts to the businesses that make the final sales. There are two things that will never change: the manufacturer who makes the part and the consumer who puts it—or has it put—on his car. Everything in between will change, and the distribution chain needs to be on top of those changes and how they can be effective with whatever the changes may be.


SN: PWA has its yearly Conference a few weeks prior to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Do you foresee any greater linkage between the two events? Could there be benefits to linking them somehow?

Rick Rollins: Again I’ll bring up the task force. PWA has already proposed some changes for the 2010 Conference and more changes for beyond 2010. I think the proposed changes are very good for the industry, and we’ll have every opportunity for both associations to work together along with some of the SEMA councils. I think some of the ideas I’m hearing are great opportunities for SEMA council programs to work alongside of PWA membership, and it will be good for all concerned. But I don’t think actually “linking” them would work—maybe better synchronization of some fashion.

	”Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.”       —Rick Rollins

Donnie Eatherly: I’m not sure if you want to link those two in particular together, but I am very excited about discussing with the new task force the possibility of putting something together with SEMA and PWA, about some type of educational function and installation seminars in conjunction with the PWA Conference.

With this new open Conference format in 2010, the possibilities open up for new categories, such as tire and wheels, 12-volt and more to attend and have meetings. It also brings new opportunities to extend the Conference for those categories, to maybe do meetings in the first half and educational seminars and installation seminars in the second. In discussing these ideas with the PWA board and some of the SEMA council leadership and Board members, both seem to agree that it’s just a matter of the timing. You have one of the best industry one-on-one business functions happening, so why not take that opportunity when you have the manufacturers already there to do some hands-on training and education at the same time?


SN: Is there any limitation on who can take part in the PWA Conference?

Rick Rollins: Today, yes, the WD must be a PWA member. But what is being proposed for the future is where SEMA participation comes in. If you are registered as a SEMA-member distributor and a SEMA council member, you would be able to participate. The first step is that being a SEMA council member now qualifies you to go to the Conference. PWA is also looking at what the different SEMA councils represent within the industry that PWA isn’t presently getting to.

Donnie Eatherly: You are correct, Rick. The only thing I can add is that you can also be sponsored by three PWA manufacturer members. In the past, the only way that you could attend the Conference was to be a member of the PWA, whether as a manufacturer or as a warehouse distributor. We decided that it would be better for the future of the PWA and Conference to allow non-members to attend because the manufacturer members needed more meeting partners. This was a way to open it up and get them some opportunities to meet with new people in the industry.

SN: What should SEMA members know about PWA and what should PWA members know about SEMA regarding how the two associations might collaborate for the good of both associations?

Rick Rollins: We’re all in this together. There’s no bad guy, good guy or 800-lb. gorilla in the room. This industry has enough to worry about with the economy, harmful legislation, fuel prices and so on. We need to work together and pull in the same direction. We all need to make money. Our businesses and our associations won’t continue to exist without making money. It’s what puts food on our tables and what pays for all of the good programs that both SEMA and PWA offer. That’s what PWA and SEMA members need to know about each other: We’re all in this together.

Donnie Eatherly: In PWA’s case, I think that the board has heard the members’ voices, and we are making big strides in making this organization a more relevant trade association for our industry. As is the case with SEMA, PWA needs more membership participation at the board and leadership levels to bring in fresh ideas for the board to deliberate and act on. I have personally been blessed with a hard-working, dedicated staff and family at P&E that have allowed me to get involved in the industry, and there’s nothing as rewarding as being able to give back to this industry that I love and was raised in. Through the cross-pollinating of the SEMA councils and the PWA membership, we have great opportunities to bring new business, leadership and direction for both SEMA and PWA.

The current leadership in both associations is more motivated than ever to work closer than before. There have been numerous conversations in the past about PWA needing to merge with SEMA or become a SEMA council, but as I said previously, each association has its strengths, and one of the PWA’s is the fact that it can move much quicker than SEMA on its own agenda. Right now, PWA enjoys its autonomy and freedom to act independently too much for something like a merge to happen. But that should not get in the way of both associations working with this new task force to bring benefits and initiatives that continue to help the industry thrive and prosper. I am very excited about serving in the capacities that I am in both SEMA and PWA, and I look forward to discussing and implementing some of the ideas that we have talked about today.  

SEMA News - November 2009 

With Steve Campbell

A Conversation With the SEMA Chairman and the PWA President-Elect

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) was established in 1963. It serves the industry with market research, as a legislative watchdog, as an educational outlet and as an advocate for the opening of international markets. Its membership has grown to include more than 7,300 companies, including manufacturers, warehouse distributors (WDs), jobbers and retailers serving every automotive niche.

The Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) was founded in 1971 with goals very similar to those of SEMA. Its membership includes specialty automotive parts wholesalers who have banded together to deal with management, financial and legislative issues. It has also expanded its reach to offer premier jobber/retailer support programs. The association’s mission statement reflects the PWA’s total outreach to industry segments: “To assist the specialty automotive WDs in their efforts to expand, maintain and promote the profitable distribution of specialty automotive products through the manufacturer/warehouse distributor/retailer/consumer channel.” 

The associations also offer two of the most widely attended and beneficial events available to the automotive industry, the SEMA Show, held annually in Las Vegas, and the annual PWA Conference, which takes place in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each of the associations has either just installed or is about to install new leadership. Rick Rollins has assumed the chairmanship of the SEMA Board of Directors, and Donnie Eatherly will take the reins of PWA as its new president beginning in January. Both are industry veterans who share the unique perspective of years of volunteer experience in both associations.

Rick Rollins is the president of Rollins Performance Marketing/Consulting, director of sales and marketing for Percy’s High Performance and vice president of sales and marketing for Parts-Grabber.com and also serves on the board of directors for Arrington Engines. His 39 years in the automotive aftermarket include stints as a mechanic, a store counterman, a WD buyer, a regional and national sales manager, and sales and marketing vice presidencies for two manufacturers. His industry honors include induction into the SEMA Hall of Fame in 2006, PWA Person of the Year twice, Manufacturer of the Year with Superchips and the Vanguard Award from the Young Executives Network.

Donnie Eatherly is the president and co-owner of P&E Distributors Inc., a Tennessee warehouse distributor with three locations. Eatherly grew up in the WD business that his father started in the mid-’50s. He is the president-elect and a three-term board member of the PWA, but he is also in his second term as a member of the SEMA Board of Directors and has worked on a number of committees and task forces. He is one of the first graduates of the SEMA Best Board Practices Education Program and is currently working on the SEMA Data Pool initiative. Eatherly was recently appointed to the SEMA Executive Committee.

Recently, SEMA News had the opportunity to speak with the two executives about how SEMA and PWA might work together.

SEMA News: What do you see as the greatest challenges for the automotive specialty-equipment industry, especially the challenges that overlap for members of both SEMA and PWA?

Rick Rollins: Right now, it’s the fight for the consumer’s discretionary dollar. Everyone is spending less and only on what they really must have. Down the road, it will be more negative regulation and legislation, which both associations need to stay vigilant about. 

Donnie Eatherly: Other than the economy getting back up to speed, I also see three things that overlap: education, legislation and technology. Each of us as business leaders and owners need to get our heads around those three things, because they affect our daily lives all the way down to the counter level. We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members in those areas because we can’t afford to do these things individually.


SN: How can the two organizations work together to improve the industry in general and the role of WDs specifically?

Rick Rollins: It’s funny you asked, because at the last SEMA Board of Directors meeting, we decided to put together a task force to do just that—look at how the two associations can work together for the betterment of the industry as a whole. We also talked about other opportunities for the two boards and the two associations to
work together.

Donnie Eatherly: PWA and its leadership are very excited about SEMA’s formation of a task force to work more closely together. I believe that the two organizations have proven over the years that they bring tremendous value to the industry. With the economy the way it is, it’s important to look at what each organization provides for its membership and see what we can do to energize the base to not only get involved—which, by the way, is very important—but to utilize the programs that are in place, such as the SEMA Educational Institute (SEI), PWA University (PWAU) and other programs that most members may not be aware of. As far as the role of warehouse distribution, the memberships overlap a great deal, and the core of PWA member warehouses are companies that have been in business for many years.

	”We need organizations, such as PWA and SEMA, to work together on far-reaching programs to help our members.”   - Donnie Eatherly

PWA has been slow to react to changes in the distribution network over the years and becoming a member has become difficult. That is starting to affect the PWA Conference.

With consolidation and some warehouses failing, we needed to look to the future and open up the Conference and bring more value back to our manufacturer members. An organization as large as SEMA—the councils, in particular—could work with PWA in making members aware of the Conference program, especially opening the 2010 Conference for non-members, which will bring in more meeting partners and help the manufacturers and SEMA council members grow their businesses.

The role of warehouse distribution in the industry is as strong as it’s ever been, and we as distributors need to embrace the educational programs, SEI and PWAU, to educate our employees to make them better and more knowledgeable sales people. We need to work together on industry-standardized data so that we can wring out more efficiencies up and down the distribution channel, which will help with such things as websites, B2B, B2C, electronic cataloging, current pricing, lost sales and on and on. I think that there is a tremendous opportunity for the warehouses to work with SEMA when the official rollout of the ProPledge program is ready. I can see immediate results from the warehouses going to their installers and expediters and getting folks signed up.


SN: As you pointed out, both organizations have placed greater emphasis on education in the past few years—PWA with PWAU and SEMA with SEI. Can those efforts be combined or otherwise offer cooperative curricula?

Rick Rollins: I think that we can work together and/or offer cooperative curricula. Again, we don’t know what will come out of the task force that might allow us to work together. Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.

Donnie Eatherly: Being on the Board of SEMA and president-elect of PWA, seeing how PWA and SEMA could work more closely together on issues such as these has been one of my main missions in life. You have to keep in mind that both organizations are creating and producing programs that they feel bring value back to their members. That being said, I think that PWA felt its role in the education process was to bring comprehensive product training to its membership so that it could educate the warehouse phone staffs and then bring education down to the jobber, speed shop, truck accessory and mass retailer levels.

If there was a way to let SEI continue to build its very robust business training suite with all aspects of running a profitable and successful business and somehow link it to PWAU, members could go to either site and reap the benefits of what both organizations have so painstakingly put together.


SN: Some manufacturers have begun to sell directly to consumers. Is there a way for WDs to offer services that might help to reclaim that part of the business or otherwise offer a solution that allows those manufacturers to continue doing business using traditional distribution methods?

Donnie Eatherly: Wow, that is a great question, and the answer, without a shadow of a doubt, is yes. Let’s face it: The Internet came along at a time when most long-standing traditional WDs had grown their businesses to the point where we could not move fast enough and implement this revolutionary way of doing business. It was very easy for people to create websites at home or at small shops that focused on a category, such as diesel, or one product and market it to the world. Therefore, the channel shifted. We needed to figure out how we as warehouses could harness the power of the Internet for our complex inventory and business-management software. It’s a very expensive and complex proposition, depending on the size of your company.

Most warehouses have resolved these problems, and the next step as an industry is to figure out the data problem to make it easier to shift it back through traditional distribution and not make UPS and other carriers rich shipping products across the country when, in most cases, they’re already in the consumers’ or their local retail outlet’s backyard. It is more efficient for a manufacturer to make one big shipment to an area for distribution than it is to make many, many shipments every day all over the country. Distribution groups have stepped up to the challenges and have put fulfillment systems in place for wholesale customers and retail customers alike. I don’t know of any other industry where you can get a product for a vehicle as complex as a car or truck, where the part the customer is inquiring about might be for a 30-year-old vehicle and get it within one day, in most cases. That’s phenomenal! Look at how many different parts are produced in the aftermarket and how quickly and efficiently distribution gets them into the consumer’s hands.

Rick Rollins: Some WDs have also begun to sell directly to consumers! Look, distribution is changing, and it will be different five years from now from what it is today. Exactly how different, I wish I knew because I could make a whole lot more money than I’m making today if I could tell you now. But as I see it, warehouses stock parts so that the manufacturer doesn’t have to, and the WD gets those parts to the businesses that make the final sales. There are two things that will never change: the manufacturer who makes the part and the consumer who puts it—or has it put—on his car. Everything in between will change, and the distribution chain needs to be on top of those changes and how they can be effective with whatever the changes may be.


SN: PWA has its yearly Conference a few weeks prior to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Do you foresee any greater linkage between the two events? Could there be benefits to linking them somehow?

Rick Rollins: Again I’ll bring up the task force. PWA has already proposed some changes for the 2010 Conference and more changes for beyond 2010. I think the proposed changes are very good for the industry, and we’ll have every opportunity for both associations to work together along with some of the SEMA councils. I think some of the ideas I’m hearing are great opportunities for SEMA council programs to work alongside of PWA membership, and it will be good for all concerned. But I don’t think actually “linking” them would work—maybe better synchronization of some fashion.

	”Education has been a big topic for more years than I want to remember and working together on it should do nothing but make it better for all of our industry and maybe even other industries.”       —Rick Rollins

Donnie Eatherly: I’m not sure if you want to link those two in particular together, but I am very excited about discussing with the new task force the possibility of putting something together with SEMA and PWA, about some type of educational function and installation seminars in conjunction with the PWA Conference.

With this new open Conference format in 2010, the possibilities open up for new categories, such as tire and wheels, 12-volt and more to attend and have meetings. It also brings new opportunities to extend the Conference for those categories, to maybe do meetings in the first half and educational seminars and installation seminars in the second. In discussing these ideas with the PWA board and some of the SEMA council leadership and Board members, both seem to agree that it’s just a matter of the timing. You have one of the best industry one-on-one business functions happening, so why not take that opportunity when you have the manufacturers already there to do some hands-on training and education at the same time?


SN: Is there any limitation on who can take part in the PWA Conference?

Rick Rollins: Today, yes, the WD must be a PWA member. But what is being proposed for the future is where SEMA participation comes in. If you are registered as a SEMA-member distributor and a SEMA council member, you would be able to participate. The first step is that being a SEMA council member now qualifies you to go to the Conference. PWA is also looking at what the different SEMA councils represent within the industry that PWA isn’t presently getting to.

Donnie Eatherly: You are correct, Rick. The only thing I can add is that you can also be sponsored by three PWA manufacturer members. In the past, the only way that you could attend the Conference was to be a member of the PWA, whether as a manufacturer or as a warehouse distributor. We decided that it would be better for the future of the PWA and Conference to allow non-members to attend because the manufacturer members needed more meeting partners. This was a way to open it up and get them some opportunities to meet with new people in the industry.

SN: What should SEMA members know about PWA and what should PWA members know about SEMA regarding how the two associations might collaborate for the good of both associations?

Rick Rollins: We’re all in this together. There’s no bad guy, good guy or 800-lb. gorilla in the room. This industry has enough to worry about with the economy, harmful legislation, fuel prices and so on. We need to work together and pull in the same direction. We all need to make money. Our businesses and our associations won’t continue to exist without making money. It’s what puts food on our tables and what pays for all of the good programs that both SEMA and PWA offer. That’s what PWA and SEMA members need to know about each other: We’re all in this together.

Donnie Eatherly: In PWA’s case, I think that the board has heard the members’ voices, and we are making big strides in making this organization a more relevant trade association for our industry. As is the case with SEMA, PWA needs more membership participation at the board and leadership levels to bring in fresh ideas for the board to deliberate and act on. I have personally been blessed with a hard-working, dedicated staff and family at P&E that have allowed me to get involved in the industry, and there’s nothing as rewarding as being able to give back to this industry that I love and was raised in. Through the cross-pollinating of the SEMA councils and the PWA membership, we have great opportunities to bring new business, leadership and direction for both SEMA and PWA.

The current leadership in both associations is more motivated than ever to work closer than before. There have been numerous conversations in the past about PWA needing to merge with SEMA or become a SEMA council, but as I said previously, each association has its strengths, and one of the PWA’s is the fact that it can move much quicker than SEMA on its own agenda. Right now, PWA enjoys its autonomy and freedom to act independently too much for something like a merge to happen. But that should not get in the way of both associations working with this new task force to bring benefits and initiatives that continue to help the industry thrive and prosper. I am very excited about serving in the capacities that I am in both SEMA and PWA, and I look forward to discussing and implementing some of the ideas that we have talked about today.  

SEMA News - November 2009 

By Joe Dysart

Quick on the Draw

Google's Chrome broweser has garnered kudos as the world's fastest browser.

Business web users looking to speed up their web-browsing experience—and perhaps do it a bit more securely—may want to check out the latest offering of Google’s free Chrome browser. Now in its third iteration (the beta 3.0 version hit the web this past August), Google Chrome garnered kudos early on as a faster alternative to some of its more bloated competitors, and it’s clear with this latest release that the company is looking to keep that reputation intact. The Chrome browser is also turning heads because it offers a first glimpse at a much more comprehensive project under development at Google: a new operating system known as Chrome OS that is being designed to compete directly with Microsoft Windows.

“I would have to say that it is probably the fastest browser I have used,” said Ben Becker, president of Becker Solutions, an IT consulting firm. “As with everything Google does, there isn’t a lot of fluff. Simplicity is king when it comes to their solutions.”

Jason Correia, director of marketing at web-design firm DreamCo Design agrees: “Google Chrome can load webpages faster than essentially any major browser.”

Considered more secure than bigger competitors, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari, Chrome is expected to enjoy that distinction for some time simply because it has such a relatively small market share at this point—only 2.8% as of August, according to Net Applications.

“Most hackers write for the masses,” Becker said. “They don’t spend time wreaking havoc on tools that do not have large market share. So right now, Google Chrome is a very secure browser.”

Plus, Chrome 3.0 has added a new feature considered extremely important to heavy users of the web: the ability to store all bookmarks in a central location on the web. Essentially, the feature enables users to instantly access all of their web bookmarks, no matter what device they’re using and no matter where they’re logging on to the web, whether it be from the office, a home PC or on a netbook on the way to the gym.

For people who like to change the colors and shapes of their software interfaces, Google has also included a theme gallery with the 3.0 version, which offers a few dozen variations on the standard-issue look of Chrome. And the browser interfaces seamlessly with a number of other software applications also offered by Google on the web for free, including Gmail, Google Talk, Google Calendar, Google Docs and Google Sites—known collectively as Google Apps.

Many users also greatly appreciate Chrome’s extremely proactive advanced-warning system, which quickly ferrets out malicious websites sporting spyware, malware or other destructive code. Chrome’s screen flashes bright red during such incidents and leaves no doubt that the user should hightail it out of there. And, as with all of the other major browsers, Google has restated its commitment to ensure that Chrome operates under W3C standards as well as the forthcoming HTML5 standard, which will make it easier for websites to appear the same in all browsers.

Despite all the praise, however, there is a continuing criticism of Google Chrome for its lack of customization features. Competing browsers, such as Firefox, offer many more plug-ins, which enable users to thoroughly tweak and personalize their web-browsing experience. Indeed, many Firefox users could not conceive of using a stripped-down browser like Chrome.

“The biggest limitation at this point is the lack of customization with the browser,” Becker said. “With the other, more-prominent browsers, there are add-ins and plug-ins that extend functionality. Being a relatively new and not widely adopted browser, this is one of the things currently lacking.”

Even so, the trade-off with installing such plug-ins is that the browser often runs a bit slower. Ultimately, each user will need to make a personal choice between the two. Users with older or less powerful technology, for example, may decide that fewer frills but significantly more speed is a fair trade-off.

“If you have a netbook, an aging laptop or a PC, this is the browser for you,” Becker said. “The speed and efficiency—particularly on older hardware—is unmatched.”

DreamCo’s Correia also saw wisdom in the less-is-more approach.

“This may be beneficial for a user who is heavily multitasking with browser-based applications and webpages loaded up all at once,” he said. “If there is a lot going on, it may run a bit quicker with Chrome.”

Unlike Google Chrome, Firefox offers a wide array of customization features.

Bottom line: The speed of Google Chrome and the addition of some important new features may be enough to tempt you away from your current browser. But even if you decide to stick with another browser, getting some experience with the look and feel of the Chrome browser will at least give you an indication of what Google’s more far-reaching project—the Chrome operating system—will be like. Although details on Chrome OS are sketchy, there are a few tasty morsels. Most encouraging is that the new operating system will be open-source software, meaning that its code will not be owned and dominated by one company as in the case of Microsoft Windows. Instead, independent developers will be able to make ongoing enhancements to the operating system in a community drive toward an ever-more-improved, globally shared OS.

Plus, Google said that it is taking great pains to design Chrome OS the same way it created its browser namesake: lean, mean and, decidedly, anti-bloat. Such a design will ensure that Chrome OS runs as quickly as possible on a wide array of devices, according to the company.

“We’re designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds,” said Sundar Pichai, Google’s vice president of product management. “The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way. And most of the user experience takes place on the web. As we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don’t have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates.
It should just work.”

While details about Chrome OS are few, there is palpable excitement among digerati types over the prospect of a formidable challenger to the Microsoft Windows empire. For decades, casual and serious computer users alike have yearned for such a champion, which would seriously take on what is essentially a Microsoft global monopoly and, quite frankly, ensure that both companies would continually best one another in a never-ending quest to create the ultimate operating system. For decades, no company has possessed the modicum of muscle needed to make even a yawn of a challenge at Microsoft.

But this time around, it’s different. This time around, it’s Google.  

Joe Dysart is an Internet speaker and business consultant based in Manhattan, New York.
Voice: 646/233-4089
E-mail: joe@joedysart.com
Website: www.joedysart.com  

SEMA News - November 2009 

By Joe Dysart

Quick on the Draw

Google's Chrome broweser has garnered kudos as the world's fastest browser.

Business web users looking to speed up their web-browsing experience—and perhaps do it a bit more securely—may want to check out the latest offering of Google’s free Chrome browser. Now in its third iteration (the beta 3.0 version hit the web this past August), Google Chrome garnered kudos early on as a faster alternative to some of its more bloated competitors, and it’s clear with this latest release that the company is looking to keep that reputation intact. The Chrome browser is also turning heads because it offers a first glimpse at a much more comprehensive project under development at Google: a new operating system known as Chrome OS that is being designed to compete directly with Microsoft Windows.

“I would have to say that it is probably the fastest browser I have used,” said Ben Becker, president of Becker Solutions, an IT consulting firm. “As with everything Google does, there isn’t a lot of fluff. Simplicity is king when it comes to their solutions.”

Jason Correia, director of marketing at web-design firm DreamCo Design agrees: “Google Chrome can load webpages faster than essentially any major browser.”

Considered more secure than bigger competitors, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari, Chrome is expected to enjoy that distinction for some time simply because it has such a relatively small market share at this point—only 2.8% as of August, according to Net Applications.

“Most hackers write for the masses,” Becker said. “They don’t spend time wreaking havoc on tools that do not have large market share. So right now, Google Chrome is a very secure browser.”

Plus, Chrome 3.0 has added a new feature considered extremely important to heavy users of the web: the ability to store all bookmarks in a central location on the web. Essentially, the feature enables users to instantly access all of their web bookmarks, no matter what device they’re using and no matter where they’re logging on to the web, whether it be from the office, a home PC or on a netbook on the way to the gym.

For people who like to change the colors and shapes of their software interfaces, Google has also included a theme gallery with the 3.0 version, which offers a few dozen variations on the standard-issue look of Chrome. And the browser interfaces seamlessly with a number of other software applications also offered by Google on the web for free, including Gmail, Google Talk, Google Calendar, Google Docs and Google Sites—known collectively as Google Apps.

Many users also greatly appreciate Chrome’s extremely proactive advanced-warning system, which quickly ferrets out malicious websites sporting spyware, malware or other destructive code. Chrome’s screen flashes bright red during such incidents and leaves no doubt that the user should hightail it out of there. And, as with all of the other major browsers, Google has restated its commitment to ensure that Chrome operates under W3C standards as well as the forthcoming HTML5 standard, which will make it easier for websites to appear the same in all browsers.

Despite all the praise, however, there is a continuing criticism of Google Chrome for its lack of customization features. Competing browsers, such as Firefox, offer many more plug-ins, which enable users to thoroughly tweak and personalize their web-browsing experience. Indeed, many Firefox users could not conceive of using a stripped-down browser like Chrome.

“The biggest limitation at this point is the lack of customization with the browser,” Becker said. “With the other, more-prominent browsers, there are add-ins and plug-ins that extend functionality. Being a relatively new and not widely adopted browser, this is one of the things currently lacking.”

Even so, the trade-off with installing such plug-ins is that the browser often runs a bit slower. Ultimately, each user will need to make a personal choice between the two. Users with older or less powerful technology, for example, may decide that fewer frills but significantly more speed is a fair trade-off.

“If you have a netbook, an aging laptop or a PC, this is the browser for you,” Becker said. “The speed and efficiency—particularly on older hardware—is unmatched.”

DreamCo’s Correia also saw wisdom in the less-is-more approach.

“This may be beneficial for a user who is heavily multitasking with browser-based applications and webpages loaded up all at once,” he said. “If there is a lot going on, it may run a bit quicker with Chrome.”

Unlike Google Chrome, Firefox offers a wide array of customization features.

Bottom line: The speed of Google Chrome and the addition of some important new features may be enough to tempt you away from your current browser. But even if you decide to stick with another browser, getting some experience with the look and feel of the Chrome browser will at least give you an indication of what Google’s more far-reaching project—the Chrome operating system—will be like. Although details on Chrome OS are sketchy, there are a few tasty morsels. Most encouraging is that the new operating system will be open-source software, meaning that its code will not be owned and dominated by one company as in the case of Microsoft Windows. Instead, independent developers will be able to make ongoing enhancements to the operating system in a community drive toward an ever-more-improved, globally shared OS.

Plus, Google said that it is taking great pains to design Chrome OS the same way it created its browser namesake: lean, mean and, decidedly, anti-bloat. Such a design will ensure that Chrome OS runs as quickly as possible on a wide array of devices, according to the company.

“We’re designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds,” said Sundar Pichai, Google’s vice president of product management. “The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way. And most of the user experience takes place on the web. As we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don’t have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates.
It should just work.”

While details about Chrome OS are few, there is palpable excitement among digerati types over the prospect of a formidable challenger to the Microsoft Windows empire. For decades, casual and serious computer users alike have yearned for such a champion, which would seriously take on what is essentially a Microsoft global monopoly and, quite frankly, ensure that both companies would continually best one another in a never-ending quest to create the ultimate operating system. For decades, no company has possessed the modicum of muscle needed to make even a yawn of a challenge at Microsoft.

But this time around, it’s different. This time around, it’s Google.  

Joe Dysart is an Internet speaker and business consultant based in Manhattan, New York.
Voice: 646/233-4089
E-mail: joe@joedysart.com
Website: www.joedysart.com  

SEMA News - November 2009 

By Joe Dysart

Quick on the Draw

Google's Chrome broweser has garnered kudos as the world's fastest browser.

Business web users looking to speed up their web-browsing experience—and perhaps do it a bit more securely—may want to check out the latest offering of Google’s free Chrome browser. Now in its third iteration (the beta 3.0 version hit the web this past August), Google Chrome garnered kudos early on as a faster alternative to some of its more bloated competitors, and it’s clear with this latest release that the company is looking to keep that reputation intact. The Chrome browser is also turning heads because it offers a first glimpse at a much more comprehensive project under development at Google: a new operating system known as Chrome OS that is being designed to compete directly with Microsoft Windows.

“I would have to say that it is probably the fastest browser I have used,” said Ben Becker, president of Becker Solutions, an IT consulting firm. “As with everything Google does, there isn’t a lot of fluff. Simplicity is king when it comes to their solutions.”

Jason Correia, director of marketing at web-design firm DreamCo Design agrees: “Google Chrome can load webpages faster than essentially any major browser.”

Considered more secure than bigger competitors, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox or Safari, Chrome is expected to enjoy that distinction for some time simply because it has such a relatively small market share at this point—only 2.8% as of August, according to Net Applications.

“Most hackers write for the masses,” Becker said. “They don’t spend time wreaking havoc on tools that do not have large market share. So right now, Google Chrome is a very secure browser.”

Plus, Chrome 3.0 has added a new feature considered extremely important to heavy users of the web: the ability to store all bookmarks in a central location on the web. Essentially, the feature enables users to instantly access all of their web bookmarks, no matter what device they’re using and no matter where they’re logging on to the web, whether it be from the office, a home PC or on a netbook on the way to the gym.

For people who like to change the colors and shapes of their software interfaces, Google has also included a theme gallery with the 3.0 version, which offers a few dozen variations on the standard-issue look of Chrome. And the browser interfaces seamlessly with a number of other software applications also offered by Google on the web for free, including Gmail, Google Talk, Google Calendar, Google Docs and Google Sites—known collectively as Google Apps.

Many users also greatly appreciate Chrome’s extremely proactive advanced-warning system, which quickly ferrets out malicious websites sporting spyware, malware or other destructive code. Chrome’s screen flashes bright red during such incidents and leaves no doubt that the user should hightail it out of there. And, as with all of the other major browsers, Google has restated its commitment to ensure that Chrome operates under W3C standards as well as the forthcoming HTML5 standard, which will make it easier for websites to appear the same in all browsers.

Despite all the praise, however, there is a continuing criticism of Google Chrome for its lack of customization features. Competing browsers, such as Firefox, offer many more plug-ins, which enable users to thoroughly tweak and personalize their web-browsing experience. Indeed, many Firefox users could not conceive of using a stripped-down browser like Chrome.

“The biggest limitation at this point is the lack of customization with the browser,” Becker said. “With the other, more-prominent browsers, there are add-ins and plug-ins that extend functionality. Being a relatively new and not widely adopted browser, this is one of the things currently lacking.”

Even so, the trade-off with installing such plug-ins is that the browser often runs a bit slower. Ultimately, each user will need to make a personal choice between the two. Users with older or less powerful technology, for example, may decide that fewer frills but significantly more speed is a fair trade-off.

“If you have a netbook, an aging laptop or a PC, this is the browser for you,” Becker said. “The speed and efficiency—particularly on older hardware—is unmatched.”

DreamCo’s Correia also saw wisdom in the less-is-more approach.

“This may be beneficial for a user who is heavily multitasking with browser-based applications and webpages loaded up all at once,” he said. “If there is a lot going on, it may run a bit quicker with Chrome.”

Unlike Google Chrome, Firefox offers a wide array of customization features.

Bottom line: The speed of Google Chrome and the addition of some important new features may be enough to tempt you away from your current browser. But even if you decide to stick with another browser, getting some experience with the look and feel of the Chrome browser will at least give you an indication of what Google’s more far-reaching project—the Chrome operating system—will be like. Although details on Chrome OS are sketchy, there are a few tasty morsels. Most encouraging is that the new operating system will be open-source software, meaning that its code will not be owned and dominated by one company as in the case of Microsoft Windows. Instead, independent developers will be able to make ongoing enhancements to the operating system in a community drive toward an ever-more-improved, globally shared OS.

Plus, Google said that it is taking great pains to design Chrome OS the same way it created its browser namesake: lean, mean and, decidedly, anti-bloat. Such a design will ensure that Chrome OS runs as quickly as possible on a wide array of devices, according to the company.

“We’re designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds,” said Sundar Pichai, Google’s vice president of product management. “The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way. And most of the user experience takes place on the web. As we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don’t have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates.
It should just work.”

While details about Chrome OS are few, there is palpable excitement among digerati types over the prospect of a formidable challenger to the Microsoft Windows empire. For decades, casual and serious computer users alike have yearned for such a champion, which would seriously take on what is essentially a Microsoft global monopoly and, quite frankly, ensure that both companies would continually best one another in a never-ending quest to create the ultimate operating system. For decades, no company has possessed the modicum of muscle needed to make even a yawn of a challenge at Microsoft.

But this time around, it’s different. This time around, it’s Google.  

Joe Dysart is an Internet speaker and business consultant based in Manhattan, New York.
Voice: 646/233-4089
E-mail: joe@joedysart.com
Website: www.joedysart.com  

SEMA News - November 2009

 

	Most performance-enhancing aftermarket products can be found under the hood of a vehicle, but they can also come in the form of replacement hoods, body parts and even wheels.

Mainstream consumers are discovering the benefits of vehicle customization through an industry-wide consumer awareness program. Articles educating the public on how the industry’s products could give their older car or truck a new look or increase its performance were developed in June. The articles have attracted media attention throughout the country, resulting in 985 published stories in mainstream newspapers and websites. Notable clips include the Chicago Sun-Times, Southern California’s Orange County Register, Flint Journal in Michigan and the Reading Eagle in Pennsylvania.

Here are the two most recent consumer awareness articles:


“How to Give Your Old Car a New Look”

You don’t have to buy a new car or truck to give it a new look. Through the use of special products and accessories, drivers can transform the appearance of their vehicles quickly, easily and affordably.

According to the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), there are literally thousands of specialty parts that can give an older vehicle a completely new appearance. Whether the goal is to create a one-of-a-kind masterpiece or simply to give a vehicle a fresh, new look, a few simple steps is all it may take.

Start with the interior. There are countless products available to update the inside of a vehicle, including aftermarket control knobs and steering wheels, seat covers, wood grain or carbon-fiber instrument panels and dash kits. It’s easy and inexpensive to get a new cover for a steering wheel, or you can spend a bit more to replace it entirely with a more sporty or luxurious one. Custom steering wheels come in a variety of shapes and styles and are available in different materials, such as wood, leather or high-tech plastics.

Similarly, seat covers are relatively inexpensive, easy to install and one of the most dramatic ways to impact the interior. Best of all, they come in thousands of colors and fabric combinations. Like floor mats, seat covers can be ordered with emblems or logos on them, giving consumers the ability to show off their team spirit or school pride.

For those who want a new look for the outside of their car or truck, consider a new grille, taillight surround, bumper, hitch, ground-effects kit or other exterior product.

Wheels and tires, both of which are among the most popular vehicle accessories, instantly update the look of a car or truck. Prices, styles and finishes vary greatly, so your options really are unlimited.

If your vehicle is a few years old, you may want to consider modernizing with new mobile electronics. Bluetooth integration, navigation systems, video monitors and DVD players can all be installed in just about any car or truck, regardless of its age.

Don’t underestimate the impact that a good cleaning can have as well. Wax and car-care science has progressed to the point that there is a restoring program for almost any type of finish. Car-care companies have even designed power polishing tools that attach to any portable drill, so it takes less elbow-grease than ever to get professional results.

If your paint is damaged beyond hope, automotive paint companies offer a color palette far beyond the bland metallic treatments manufacturers usually use. Another option rapidly becoming popular is vinyl wrap, which looks like paint and applies like vinyl. It comes on rolls in a variety of colors and patterns, and when properly applied, does not damage the original

surface. If you decide you want a change later on, simply peel it off and lay on a different wrap. It costs less than a custom paint job and the possibilities are endless.

Installing many types of restyling parts is designed to be simple and can often be handled by anyone who approaches the job with reasonable care. But for best results, more involved makeovers—such as those that require paint or bodywork, or replacement of components that have safety-related features, such as seat assemblies—should be done by professionals who have the tools and experience for that kind of work.

To locate products or professional installers in your area, check www.enjoythedrive.com, a consumer site produced by SEMA. The site contains information about specific automotive specialty equipment and the latest products, as well as information about how to connect with qualified expert installers.

“Old Car or Truck? Tricks to Boost Its Performance”

	Thousands of aftermarket products can change the appearance of a vehicle, whether the goal is to create a one-of-a-kind master piece or simply to give a vehicle a fresh,new look.

Whether it’s because of the economy or simply because today’s vehicles are more durable, an increasing number of people are driving used cars and trucks longer. A recent study from R.L. Polk & Co. found that the average age of both cars and light trucks is at an all-time record high at 9.4 and 7.5 years, respectively.

Those looking to re-energize these rides with a bit more power may want to consider installing a performance-enhancing aftermarket product. Thousands of such products are available to bring new life to a tired car or truck, and many are designed to elevate the car’s performance beyond what it was capable of in the first place. Here are just a few ideas:

Bolt-on Power: A carefully designed intake system combined with a high-flow air filter can add significant horsepower to any car or truck. Combined with a performance exhaust system, gains can be as high as 25 hp or more on some engines. Because these changes offer a good return for relatively small investment, they are among the most common bolt-on upgrades on an older car or truck.

Lighten Up: Another easy way to improve performance is to replace heavy original parts with lighter ones. Replacement hoods and body parts made from carbon fiber and other lightweight materials are available for almost any vehicle, as are wheels that weigh less than the ones from the factory.

Handling Products: Improving handling is an often-overlooked form of performance. It’s rare to find a car that came with high-performance shocks or struts, and after a few years, the original suspension can wear significantly. By installing new, specially tuned shocks, bushings and springs, a car can handle better than it did when it was new. Another easy way to improve handling is by adding better brakes. These are widely available in bolt-on form, which allow for upgrading older cars to disc brakes, or adding specially designed brake pads, stronger calipers and longer, better vented discs.

Turbochargers and Superchargers: For those who are serious about improving power, turbochargers that force more air into the combustion chamber can add 50 to 100 more hp. It’s possible to replace the original turbo with a bigger or more efficient one or add a turbo where no turbo was offered. Superchargers, another high-performance option, are commonly offered by manufacturers in their specialty high-performance cars and trucks. Most people don’t know that the same parts are available for sale to individuals, often offered by the same companies that supply them to the automakers.

For Trucks and 4x4s: Replacing an easily clogged air filter with a reusable one can save a lot on a truck that sees extreme duty. A wide variety of electric fans and auxiliary coolers allows trucks to pull more and work harder without overheating. For trucks and 4x4s, stronger axles, lower gears and better suspensions are available for models dating all the way back to World War II.

Generally, performance parts come in kit form, with instructions and an 800 phone number to call for advice, so there are a lot of products that can be installed by the average backyard mechanic. That said, most performance upgrades are best handled by a professional installer who has all the right tools, including a lift and service bay, and experience with the type of job at hand
is recommended.

To locate performance parts for almost any kind of vehicle and for information on the latest aftermarket performance parts and installers go to Enjoy The Drive and SEMA's website, or call the Specialty Equipment Market Association at 909/396-0289. The websites contain the latest parts, and links to professional local installers.

 

 

SEMA News - November 2009

 By Annie Kang

Day-Long Event Shows SEMA-Member Companies How to Utilize Free Tools for Website Optimization

Attendees at the recent SEMA Internet Symposium, presented by the Street Performance Council (SPC), left the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, California, equipped with tools for creating and implementing an online marketing strategy that will keep their businesses moving forward in today’s technologically advancing climate.

The SPC Internet Symposium was established in 2007 to emphasize the importance of Internet marketing to SEMA-member companies.

“If the Internet can push the U.S. Postal Service to insolvency, what can it do to your business if you are not properly prepared?” asked SPC Chairman Eric Breslow.

The day-long event included four sessions presented by industry experts. In keeping with today’s lean times, the sessions focused on gaining high-tech results without the requisite high-cost bill.




Search-Engine Optimization: Tech Speak for Helping Your Customers Find You Online
Speaker: Brian Offenberger, CEO, Aftermarketer Club

	Brian Offenberger, CEO, Aftermarketer Club.

In his presentation, Offenberger revealed that search-engine optimization (SEO) is the best way to help your customers find you using online search tools such as Google and Yahoo. Attendees walked away with valuable website tips, the first of which was to index their content.

“Its a little tough for us to achieve maximum results and our objectives if not all of our material is available,” said Offenberger. “Kind of hard if only one-third of my store is online. So make sure your stuff is indexed. There’s an easy way to do it. Go to Google, key in the word ‘site,’ colon and put in your website address. You can do that on Microsoft and AOL and Yahoo. They will show you every page of your website that they are seeing.”

Additional tips included searching friendly web practices, performing frequent content updates, using a blog and social media and ensuring fast site load times.

Offenberger also stressed the importance of tagging content. Tags are short key phrases used to describe content. All audio, video and social media you create should be tagged, since they help search engines display relevant content to searchers.

The value of links to search engines was also highlighted. Links are more likely to boost your rankings if they are one-way (not reciprocal), from a relevant source (website/blog with similar subject matter) and from a quality source (website/blog that is optimized, offers quality content and has inbound links).

 

Your Intellectual Property Rights
Speakers: Sean Chaffin, eBay VERO program manager, eBay Motors; Jeff Van Hoosear, Partner, Knobbe Martens

	Sean Chaffin, eBay VERO Program Manager, eBay Motors.

In this session, Hoosear guided attendees through the process of enforcing their trademarks on popular eCommerce sites, starting with step number one: conducting an internal IP audit. This involves identifying what trademarks, trade names, copyrights, patentable or copyrightable subject matter you possess.

“You have to understand what you have in order to know what you can protect,” said Hoosear.

An internal IP audit includes:

• Domain Name Audit—More than one person is allowed to register domain names or URLs, which can often lead to problems if it isn’t controlled. “I’ve seen estimates as high as one-third where domain names registered go back into the registration pool because they haven’t been properly maintained or registered as they should be, so you need to know what domain names you have,” said Hoosear. 
• Search-Engine Audits—Go to search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN. Look primarily at your product names and trademark names and see what comes back. “See who is using your marks, names, URLs or something very similar to that on the Internet to find out what problems you have because you have to understand your problems to treat them appropriately,” said Hoosear. 
• Marketplace Audit—Many companies are already doing this all the time. You’ve got your sales representatives or customers contacting you or inquiring about you or your packaging or your product or company because they are using a similar name, packaging or URL. A marketplace audit gives you guidance to what is out there.
• Trademark Search Audit (U.S. and International)—Periodically do a trademark search audit to see what other marks are out there that are similar that may be taking advantage of you and your goodwill. Don’t forget to do an international search as well.

 

U.S. Intellectual Property Overview—Myth Busting the ACES and PIES Data Standards
Speaker: Gigi Ho, cofounder, Digital Performance

Ho stressed that updating your catalog is an essential part of keeping up with the times.

	Gigi Ho, Co-founder, Digital Performance.

“The data that we are talking about is electronic now,” said Ho. “We’re not talking about the guy at the counter with the catalog rack behind him anymore. This is where the person is going to be looking up information on a computer screen, and there are certain formats that are going to be needed for that computer to be able to make that product data presentable to the person in front of the computer screen.”

Ho revealed the following 12 steps to synchronicity in creating your electronic catalog:

1. Admit that your data files stink.
2. Realize that industry standards can help create order and profit for your company.
3. Make a decision to do something about it. 
4. Make a searching and fearless inventory of all your data silos.
5. Admit to your business partners, customers and company members the nature of your data’s wrongs.
6. Be company-wide-ready to remove these defects of data.
7. Humbly ask your business partners and customers to remove your data’s shortcomings.
8. Make a list of all persons in your company who will be responsible for data.
9. Make sure those persons know and understand the industry standards and requirements of your customers, and appoint them as Data Lords and Ladies.
10. Continue to take inventory of your data silos.
11. Seek the current and future trends of data requirements and key contacts through seminars, webinars, conferences and trade shows.
12. Having had an awakening as the result of these steps; carry this message forward to others; and continue to practice these principles for even greater profit.

 

Video Killed the Radio Star: It’s Still True Today
Moderator: John Naderi, executive editor, StreetFire.net
Speakers: Famous Rhodes, director of eBay Motors, eBay Motors; Chris Duke, Motorz TV; James Lawrence, PowerTV; Josh
Biggers, Stillen

	From left: Josh Biggers, STILLEN; James Lawrence, PowerTV; Chris Duke, MOTORZ TV; Famous Rhodes, Director of eBay Motors, eBay Motors; John Naderi, Executive Editor, StreetFire.net.

This packed presentation demonstrated how you can create your own killer video to bring your products to life in an entertaining yet affordable way.

Duke revealed strategies on keeping video production costs down. He stated that most of the audience would not need a professional camcorder and that a consumer device would be sufficient.

“Don’t worry about spending $6,000 on a huge camera,” Duke said. “You don’t really need it.”

He advised selecting a camera based on what kind of video you intend to produce.

“Think about where your video is going to go,” Duke said. “It’s probably going to end up on YouTube, streetfire.net or any other video-sharing sites. Do you need the high quality of broadcast television? If you don’t, don’t worry about it. You can use a flip camera or anything really as long as it’s HD. If you are doing product information, you definitely want to go HD.”

Today’s Essential Biz Tools: Sell More, Do More With Less You
Speaker: Luanne Brown, president and CEO, eTool Developers LLC

Brown introduced attendees to the concept and importance of the Web 2.0 revolution.

	Luanne Brown, President & CEO, eTool Developers LLC.

Brown stated that Web 2.0 resulted in the creation of social networking sites, blogs, wikis, chat rooms, Twitter and tagging, all of  which ultimately help you run and market your business on the web. Google, eBay and Amazon are prime examples of Web 2.0 companies.

“The web is like the big equalizer,” said Brown. “You can be as big as anybody on the Internet if you do it right. It’s very easy to use. That’s kind of what changed with Web 2.0. Someone who is not a developer can use these tools without having to have special knowledge.”

Brown also highlighted Google as an essential business tool.

“Google and all the tools that Google has to offer are extremely cost effective,” Brown said. “If you go to Google.com/landing/searchtips, you’ll find all these different search tips and different ways that you can use their search engine. If you click on iGoogle and set up a Gmail e-mail account, you can use most of these tools for free.”

Brown also emphasized the importance of selecting Internet marketing tools based on the nature of your business needs.

“The tool that you need to use is based on who you are and what the function is that you are trying to perform,” she said. She pointed out that you need to ask yourself which of the three categories you fall into: business owner, marketing director or auto technician. If you were a business owner, your research would focus on your customers and competition. If you were an auto technician, your research would focus on new products and installation information.

How to Measure Online Buyer Acquisitions & Sales
Speaker: Allen Horwitz, vice president of sales and marketing, Submit Express

	Allen Horwitz, VP Sales & Marketing, Submit Express.

Horwitz stated that your website needs to have four key elements in order to successfully measure your online buyer acquisitions and sales: 

• Relevant Content—“Whatever you are selling, promoting or whatever the purpose of your website, it has to have content that is relevant to the audience you are trying to address,” said Horwitz.
• Targeted Traffic—“The number of people viewing your site is irrelevant if the people coming to the site arrived looking for something else,” he said. “The traffic that is generated has to be people looking for something that you want to sell or something that you want to promote.”
• Traffic Conversion—“A conversion is defined as having a visitor to your site taking an action that is part of a process that you define. So it doesn’t mean a sale necessarily, but that you bring a user to yoursite through a process that you want them to do. It could be filling out a lead form; it could be purchasing something; it could be referring to another page; it could be filling out a contact form; or it could be picking up a telephone and dialing a number. All of those things could be defined as a conversion, and a conversion is something different for everyone in this room.”
• Customer Retention—“If you can make your website compelling enough that visitors come back again in the future, that they remember you, that they like you and that they potentially even become your fan, that is the difference between being successful and being virally successful and, ultimately, very wealthy.”

Ask the Experts: What Should You Do With a $10,000 Internet Marketing Budget
Moderator: Eric Breslow, Breslow Foundation
Panel: Oliver Rathlein, director sales and marketing, Eibach Springs Inc.; Tyler Tanaka, marketing manager, Turbonetics; Mike Morita, vice president of marketing, Pro-Motion Distributing; Brian Hafer, vice president, US Auto Parts; Justin Choi, president, CIE Studios

	Eric Breslow, Breslow Foundation; Brian Hafer, Vice President, US Auto Parts; Mike Morita, Vice President Marketing, Pro-Motion Distributing; Tyler Tanaka, Marketing Manager, Turbonetics; Oliver Rathlein, Director Sales & Marketing, Eibach Springs Inc.; Justin Choi, President, CIE Studios.

A panel of experts was on hand to share personal business knowledge and to answer questions from the audience.

Tanaka recommended the Hootsuite.com, Cotweet.com and Tweetdeck.com websites to filter and manage Twitter accounts. He also answered an audience question on how his business responds to negative online postings.

“If I find out about it, we try and address it,” he said. “We look at it ,and we evaluate what’s going on. The activity that we get on forums is generally firefighting. People are a thousand times more likely to complain than they are to give praise. We get in and say ‘Hey, this is Tyler from Turbonetics. What can we do? Was it our fault?’ We try and get in right away. We don’t let it sit.”

“This was an amazing final session for the 2009 Internet Symposium,” said Breslow. “A panel of marketing directors from iconic SEMA-member companies sharing their secrets to success on the Internet—it’s this kind of camaraderie, even with potential competitors in the audience, that makes this industry special. The audience was so riveted by the panel that we went almost an hour over.”