2001 E+ Show at Indy: New Twist Will Really Add Value By Traci Matt Polly Ferree, publisher of the Elec- trical Rebuilder’s Exchange and pro- moter of the all-electrical E+ Show, announced at the August 5 planning meeting that next year’s show will be held in Indianapolis, IN. “Rebuilder’s Rally” will convene at the Indianapolis State Fairgrounds April 20 through 22. “Our database shows about 2,650 shops in a 250-mile radius of India- napolis,” said Ferree. “That type of concentration is bound to turn up lots of rebuilders who want to learn how to do business better. The rebuilders and suppliers who attended the plan- ning meeting have made sure the week- end will be well worth the drive. They have proven that group brainstorming is the way to keep the show current and able to meet legitimate needs rebuilders have.” Eighteen people attended last month’s meeting, held in Chicago, and hammered out details of the three-day event. Through some lively discussion of what rebuilders will be looking for next spring, this advisory committee decided that an unprecedented “How to Save Your Business” seminar will precede the opening of the show floor on Saturday. “The industry needs some imme- diate attention of a pretty profound kind,” said Ferree. “The business semi- nar will be very focused as far as how it can help rebuilders, and not in just a technical way. That type of an aggres- sive presentation is exactly what’s needed and one of the reasons we come together to discuss our vision of the show during the planning meetings.” Concern was expressed by com- mittee members that this not become a “marketing” or “economics” presen- tation, but rather a very practical dis- cussion of how to improve rebuilders’ bottom lines in a hurry. “This has got to be down-to-earth. We’ ve got to get their attention and convince them that price cutting is not what it’s all about,” said Ronnie Charnes of ACC Rebuilders in Mem- phis, TN. Charnes offered an invalu- able perspective as a representative for the rebuilder during the planning meet- ing. “We’ve got to get the small to medium rebuilders’ attention by assist- ing him,” said Juan Grube of JIMCO, Raymore, MO. Grube said that the idea of taking technical presentation time from the show to introduce busi- ness strategies is important because “cash flow covers all mistakes.” The seminar will be followed Sun- day by around table wrap-up discus- sion. “This will be a key time of the weekend after attendees have had a day to discuss and ruminate on the Saturday presentation,” said Ferree. Specific topics and presenters have yet to be determined, but the seminar promises to be the kind of ground- breaking component of the show that the hands-on training stations were two years ago, she said. Training stations will also figure prominently into the weekend, taking the 8 to 10 am time slot on Saturday. Committee members also decided on an updated twist to this aspect of the show. With the amount of information available to rebuilders in cyberspace growing every day, members felt it was time to do some training in Internet usage. Ron Carlson of Applied Sys- tems Research in St. Paul, MN, will SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER, 2000 head up this training station. It will in- clude a demonstration of how to surf the net, as well as a number of com- puters on-the-spot instruction. “There’s really nothing to it. In many cases we can set them up so they can get to a site with just a few clicks,” said Carlson. Other training station topics will include “‘On-Vehicle Troubleshooting,” manned by Grube; “Solenoids and Drives” headed up by Mitch Levy of East Coast Automotive Industries, Pompano Beach, FL; and “Regula- tors” with Alan Melton of Northwest Regulator Supply, Portland, OR, as instructor. The technical demonstra- tions will incorporate cleaning and re- building techniques, said Ferree. The weekend will actually start on Friday with a plant tour or tours, or possibly a progressive tour of anum- ber of rebuilding shops in the India- napolis area. John Jervelund, owner of Brantford Starter Alternator, Brantford, Ontario, and past show coordinator for the Canadian associa- tion, said the small plant tours were well received by Canadian rebuilders in the past. In order to accommodate the “Save Your Business” seminar, the E+ Show floor will be open from noon to 8 pm on Saturday, rather than the tra- ditional late-morning to early evening time slot. Committee members agreed that a one-day format for the show floor was the most desirable for rebuilders and suppliers alike. A vendor-sponsored reception will be held at the fairgrounds after the show closes with no cost to attend- ees. “This is just one more example of the ‘plus’ in E+. The vendors and I try to make this as affordable a weekend for the small business owner as we Page 1 of 2