By SEMA Editors

Exhibit at the 2021 SEMA Show and shine the spotlight on your company in front of tens of thousands of qualified buyers looking for the best that the automotive specialty-equipment market has to offer.

In addition to buyers, the Show also attracts thousands of traditional media and social-media influencers ready to let the rest of the world know about your products and applications, opening up even more sales opportunities well after the Show concludes.

Access SEMA's worldwide network and create more opportunities to sell. Be there to reconnect at the 2021 SEMA Show, Tuesday-Friday, November 2-5, Las Vegas.

Reserve your spot for 2021 at www.SEMAShow.com/buyabooth.

Below are key dates that SEMA Show exhibitors are encouraged to mark on their calendars.

• The Exhibitor Services Manual (ESM) will be live in May. The ESM contains all of the forms and applications required to prepare for the Show: feature vehicles, new products, booth vehicles, celebrity appearances, etc.
• The Exhibit Space Rental Application and deposit are due May 7.
• Dates for the SEMA Show Space Selection: June 7-23

For additional information about exhibiting at the SEMA Show, visit www.SEMAShow.com/exhibitor.

By Ashley Reyes

Get expert interviewing tips from HR professionals by registering here for “Interview Skills,” a one-hour interactive webinar taking place Tuesday, April 27, at 11:00 a.m. (PDT).

Featuring expert HR professionals, the webinar will include breakout sessions and question-and-answer periods to help participants gain confidence and secure a job offer. In addition to learning tips and tricks that will help applicants stand out from the competition, participants will have the opportunity to network, engage with other peers and gain skills by participating in small group activities.  

Interview Skills is part of a four-part webinar series, “Perfecting Your Job Search,” presented by the SEMA Businesswomen’s Network (SBN). The series covers everything a job seeker needs to know and prepare for to help secure a new job.

View a recording of the first session, “Resume Do’s and Don’ts.”

Details on parts three and four will be posted on the SEMA Virtual Education website.

By SEMA Editors

The following candidates are vying for a seat on the SEMA Board of Directors:

Chairman-elect (one open seat)

• Kyle Fickler – (Incumbent) Director, Driven Racing Oil
• Les Rudd – (Incumbent) President, Bob Cook Sales

Distributors/Retailers (two open seats):

• Larry Montante – Vice President, Keystone Automotive Operations
• Brian Rowland – GM, Parts & Accessories, Walmart
• Steve Whipple – (Incumbent) Director, Jegs High Performance

Manufacturers (two open seats):

• Ian Lehn – Founder, BOOSTane
• Kim Pendergast – (Incumbent) CEO/Owner, Magnuson Superchargers
• Brian Reese – President/CEO, The Retrofit Source

Service (one open seat):

• Lindsay Hubley – Managing Partner, Lodestone Events
• Jim Liaw – President/Co-Founder, Formula Drift Holdings

Voting will take place online between May 11–25, and is open to current SEMA-member companies. Votes must be cast by each company’s primary contact. Details on the upcoming election will be sent to the member company’s designated primary contact beginning April 30. Winners will be announced by May 28.

By SEMA Editors

Dates and locations have been scheduled for several upcoming SEMA-sponsored shows, measuring sessions and activities.

By SEMA Editors

Latest Jobs Added to SEMA Career Center

Are you hunting for a new job? The SEMA Career Center has a comprehensive listing of automotive-related job openings around the country. Here are some of the latest jobs posted to the website.

Engine Builder/R&D Mechanic
Gale Banks Engineering is hiring an engine builder/R&D mechanic to develop improved or new designs for automotive engines or modify existing engines on production vehicles, and direct building, modification and testing of vehicle engines. Candidates must have a minimum of three years tearing down, designing, installing, building and testing automotive engines; an understanding of gas and diesel engines and knowledge of turbocharging and supercharging; and be able to create, read and interpret blueprints.

Wholesale Account Manager
Quadratec is hiring a wholesale account manager responsible for generating new wholesale business and growing existing business in the Jeep aftermarket/parts division by helping to create solutions through constant customer consultation. Additional responsibilities include researching potential leads from various resources and converting leads to active accounts and customer service support for all customer needs. More than five years sales experience within the automotive (or similar) industry is required.

Director of Marketing
Torqued Distribution is seeking its first director of marketing to take the company, its portfolio of brands and e-commerce automation technology to the next level of awareness with its dealers and customers. This role will report to the founder and CEO. Candidates must have a bachelor’s degree in a related field and 8-10 years experience in automotive aftermarket marketing or product management.

Visit the SEMA Career Center for more job opportunities.

Compiled by SEMA Editors

VP Racing Fuels Powers YouTube With 24 Hours of Fuel

VP Racing Fuels Inc.’s premiere of 24 Hours of Fuel launched April 7 on YouTube. VP is the official fuel of IMSA, and has fueled the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona International Speedway for years. The much-anticipated video will explore what it takes to fuel 50 of the world’s fastest prototypes and GT sports cars 24 hours straight at the historic speedway that hosts the Daytona 500 and AMA Supercross. 

Fans Returning to Irwindale Speedway This Weekend

Irwindale Speedway has announced that fans can return to the grandstands beginning with the April 10 race. The short track will kick off the spectator season with a record night of racing featuring 10 main events. Features include the SPEARS SRL Modifieds, SPEARS Pro Late Models, and the SPEARS Southwest Tour Super Late division. They will be joined by the track’s NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series racers, including INEX Legends, LKQ Pick Your Part Pro Late Models (Twins), YouRaceLA Specs, Tucker Tire Enduros (Twins), and Street Stocks. Following local and state guidelines, officials will reduce grandstand capacity. Face masks will also be required for all in attendance. The track is set to host the NHRA Summit ET Series and Junior Dragsters on April 11. For tickets and more information, visit www.irwindalespeedway.com.

2021 Dates, Stops For HOT ROD Drag Week, Power Tour Announced

MOTORTREND has announced two of its annual events are returning in 2021: the HOT ROD Power Tour (August 23–27) and HOT ROD Drag Week (September 12–17). The combined events are set to host upwards of 6,000 participating vehicles.

The 17th annual HOT ROD Drag Week, presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive, will crown the “Fastest Street Car in America,” which puts competitors to a grueling test over five days of drag racing, requiring racers to drive their vehicles on a specified route upward of 1,000 miles while securing the quickest possible elapsed time on the strip.

Celebrating 27 years, the HOT ROD Power Tour driven by Continental Tire, returns to five cities, including Norwalk, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; Indianapolis; St. Louis; and Champaign, Illinois. Thousands of classic cars and hot rods will travel city to city while HOT ROD editors and photographers follow along. Participants can join for one day or all five days.

HOT ROD Power Tour Schedule:

• Kickoff / Day 1: Monday, August 23 - Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio
• Day 2: Tuesday, August 24 - Montgomery County Fairgrounds, Dayton, Ohio
• Day 3: Wednesday, August 25 - Lucas Oil Raceway, Indianapolis
• Day 4: Thursday, August 26 - World Wide Technology Raceway, St. Louis
• Day 5: Friday, August 27 - State Farm Center, Champaign, Illinois

HOT ROD Drag Week 2021 Schedule:

• Registration, Tech Day, and Test ‘n’ Tune: Sunday, September 12 - US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan
• Racing Day 1: Monday, September 13 - US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan
• Racing Day 2: Tuesday, September 14 - Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio
• Racing Day 3: Wednesday, September 15 - Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis
• Racing Day 4: Thursday, September 16 - Byron Dragway in Byron, Illinois
• Racing Day 5: Friday, September 17 - US 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan

For more information, visit www.hotrod.com/events.

SCCA to Introduce Endurance Racing Program at Sebring

The Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) is launching a new program at Sebring International Raceway—the first-ever SCCA Endurance Team National Championship set for March 31–April 2, 2022. The inaugural event is built around a 20-hour invitational race, broken into segments over two days. National Champions will be crowned when the checkered flag falls under the lights Saturday night, April 2. Additional details on the format and rules package for the event will be forthcoming. The goal is a team competition utilizing modified production-based street vehicles, with technical regulations designed to be inclusive, welcoming cars from existing SCCA classes, as well as those that race with other organizations.

Lucas Oil Sponsors NHRA Southern Nationals

NHRA, Atlanta Dragway and Lucas Oil have teamed up to announce Lucas Oil as the title sponsor of the Lucas Oil NHRA Southern Nationals. As a long-time NHRA partner, Lucas Oil joins the finale of Atlanta Dragway. The 40th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Southern Nationals will serve as the final national NHRA event at the historic track. For more information about the NHRA schedule, visit NHRA.com.

Stan Lester Returns To FASTRAK, Ultimate Series

Stan Lester has resumed his position as the head of FASTRAK International, the parent company for FASTRAK Racing and the Ultimate Super Late Model Series. Lester, the owner and founder of the series, had partially retired in 2019, followed by a full retirement in 2020, due to health issues. The announcement follows FASTRAK Vice President DJ Irvine’s departure from the series to work with VP Racing Fuels. Lester will now focus on the 2021 touring schedule.

For more racing news, visit Performance Racing Industry’s (PRI) website.

By SEMA Editors

The September 2021 issue of SEMA News will highlight rising stars in the automotive aftermarket industry who are age 35 and younger. If you know a leader in that age range as of September 1, 2021—whether they are in manufacturing and design, marketing, retail, events and media, or distribution—we would like to hear from you.

Many SEMA members are currently working with creative young professionals who are already industry trailblazers. They may have played key roles in leveraging new and emerging technologies with a traditional automotive aftermarket business to expand company reach, improve product development, energize marketing efforts or upgrade customer interaction.

They could be budding talents at an established company, entrepreneurs building their own brands or innovators who have launched companies that might become big names in the future. What they all will have in common are fresh ideas, enthusiasm, charisma and the drive to succeed.

SEMA News looks for candidates drawn from diverse industry segments who are already making a significant impact through their leadership within their organizations or businesses. Entrepreneurship, commitment, insight, innovation, integrity, responsibility, demonstrated skill, involvement and success within the marketplace weigh heavily in the decision-making process. We’ll honor the winners in the September issue of SEMA News and on www.sema.org.

Nominate a candidate now for the 2021 SEMA News 35 Under 35. Nominations are due May 31.

By SEMA Editors

SEMA eNews highlights SEMA-member companies’ websites weekly through the Hot Links to Cool Sites section. SEMA members: To be included in Hot Links to Cool Sites, email your company name and website to enews@sema.org. Note: Make sure to include “Hot Links” in the subject line of the email.

• Advanced Clutch Technology
• Airaid
• Backrack
• CargoGlide
• Diode Dynamics
• Fuelab
• HUBB Filters
• JP Performance
• Leed Brakes
• Turn 14 Distribution

By SEMA Washington, D.C., Staff

SEMA members are urged to take advantage of a COVID-19 economic relief program enacted in 2020 and expanded in 2021—the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC). The ERTC is meant to help employers that suffer significant financial losses or that were fully or partially closed due to a government order but continue to pay workers who are unable to perform their duties.

• 2020: The tax credit is equal to 50% of up to $10,000 in qualified wages paid between March 12–December 31, 2020. The total credit is capped at $5,000 per employee and applies against employment taxes on wages paid to all employees. There is a 100-employee limitation. Credit available if:

1. Employer had a fully or partially suspended operation during any calendar quarter in 2020 due to orders from an appropriate governmental authority due to COVID-19; or
2. Employer experienced a significant decline (more than 50%) in gross receipts during the calendar quarter.

• 2021: The tax credit applies to all four quarters of 2021. The credit is now equal to 70% of up to $10,000 in qualified wages per quarter (including health plan expenses). This means the tax credit is potentially $28,000 per employee ($7,000 for each quarter). Employers who have experienced a 20% or more decline of gross receipts in a quarter compared to the same quarter in 2019 can apply. For 2021, the size limitation was increased to employers with 500 or fewer employees (up from 100 workers).

Employers claim the ERTC by withholding payroll taxes for qualified employee wages. Because the tax credit is refundable, if the withholdings do not cover the entire tax credit, the IRS will send you a check for the remaining amount.

Under the expanded ERTC program, a business that obtained a PPP loan can claim the ERTC provided that wages paid with PPP funds are excluded for the purpose of calculating the ERTC.  

The IRS issued new guidance for employers on the rules that will apply to the ERTC for the first two quarters of 2021: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-21-23.pdf.  

Additional IRS coronavirus relief information is available at the IRS website.  

By SEMA Washington, D.C., Staff

California Assembly Member Tim Grayson (D-Concord) introduced SEMA-supported legislation (AB 904) that would create a new tax credit designed to stimulate long-term capital investments in manufacturing. SEMA members are encouraged to register their support for the bill by clicking here.

If enacted, AB 904 would provide Golden State manufacturers with more than 100 employees with a 5% credit against taxes imposed for the purchase of qualified tangible personal property, such as equipment, machinery, computers or computing software involved in the manufacturing process. Small manufacturers with fewer than 100 employees would be eligible for a 6% tax credit. This is especially important to SEMA’s member companies, of which 92% employ less than 100 individuals. In both cases, the tax credit covers up to $1 million in qualified investments and may be carried over for up to five years beginning in 2022.

Assembly Member Grayson is a member of the SEMA State Automotive Enthusiast Leadership Caucus and was the 2019 winner of SEMA’s Stephen B. McDonald Legislator of the Year award. In addition to being a lawmaker, Assembly Member Grayson, along with his wife Tammy, is also an enthusiast. Included in the Grayson’s collection are two classic Ford Mustangs.

For more information, please contact Christian Robinson at christianr@sema.org.