Saturday, December 27, 2008

The Less Glow Car Show

APEX, NC... Things change so quickly in the car business. This past January, the Detroit Auto Show's economic impact on Detroit was a staggering $450 million. This January, not so much. The fashion parties, the hospitality areas, the beer hall fire house are all scaled back. Nissan will not there, although the local dealers will put vehicles on the floor space. Crazy times. As a former regular at the Show, the only non-fun was finding a parking spot close enough so I would not freeze to death before I got there. A spot that was not filled by a snow bank or two. The glitz and the hype matched the gorgeous models (I mean the cars!). I am too far away this year to attend, but my guess it will be very much toned down.
It is still the best car show in the world. The media comes in January 11 and should roll up some kind of bar and munchie tab that will help the local economy.
But things do change. Last year at this time AIG was at the top of its game. XM and Sirius were competitors, and Land Rovers were Fords...
What will the business be like in late December 2009? No one on this planet has a clue. The one certainty we have is that FAILURE is not an option.

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