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NEW ORLEANS REVIEW
The show got off to a lively start with an evening concert in The House of Blues
David Stevens of TRIB acted as compere for the Miss Retread Contest
The obligatory New Orleans Jazz Band
Emilio Matteuzzi gives a demonstration on the Central Marketing stand
Gustavo Lima (left) is interviewed by our correspondent Satnam Singh on the Retreading Business stand
Promising Start for North American Tire & Retread Expo
not long enough to keep visitors away from the show floor, there were on-stand machinery demonstrations, training seminars and old favourites that reminded visitors of Louisville, such as the retread beauty contest, this year dubbed the “Miss Retread” contest, there was even a guest appearance from a sports star, the Indy Car driver Helio Castroneves. The acid test of the viability of the New Orleans show will come next year, when we will see whether the show is able to expand on this
show he sent out an open letter to RTA members and to the industry in general. His words are reproduced here;
“To state that I was pleased with the EXPO would be a gross understatement. I have not had such a good time at a tire & retread conference since the old ARA shows at Louisville. Although I would have liked to have seen more attendees, which I am certain will happen next year, I have nothing but raves for the promoters and staff at the show. Three
Those of us who began their careers in the retreading industry during the last century remember with fondness the ARA (latterly ITRA) exhibition in Louisville, Kentucky. At one time this was the premier retreading event worldwide, but the consolidation in the North American retreading industry combined (in my opinion) with a reluctance of the organisers at that time to look beyond their own national boundaries eventually led to the show reducing in size, and in 2003, after three years in Nashville and a last hurrah in downtown Louisville, the show finally closed its doors for the last time. Since then the North American market has had no dedicated tyre show to speak of and anyone wanting to exhibit in that market had to be content with attending the huge and diverse SEMA Show in Las Vegas.
This all changed between April 15-17 at the Ernest N Morial Convention
was also given mixed messages about the viability of such an event. However, credit is due to Lima and show manager Linda Bassitt, because the quality of the show, together with the undoubted support from the retreading industry, not just in the USA, but worldwide, provided a welcome breath of fresh air.
OK, the attendance in terms of footfall could have been better, but this will improve as word gets out, and, it has to be said, the quality of the attendees was very good. Lima, who is the organiser of the Latin American Tire
Expo in Panama, which has grown rapidly to become the premier event in Central America, is not holding back, for during the opening ceremony on 15 April he announced that he had signed a six-year deal to bring the new event back to New Orleans each year.
The difference with the new show, of
promising start. It needs to attract more visitors from North America, more exhibitors from the new tyre sector without it becoming simply
a
cheers for Gus Lima, Linda Bassitt and the rest of the folks who worked so hard to be certain that everyone received the very best service. They all did a great
job to make all of us feel right at home! Since I have been in the retread industry for nearly 40 years, as you can imagine I have attended many tire shows in the U.S. and in many other countries. Many of them have been great and this letter is not to take anything away from them, but I have NEVER been so impressed with the
good service and full attention I received, as did all the other attendees, as I received last week in New Orleans.”
Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, when the North American Tire & Retread Expo made its debut. We have to admit, the publisher of this magazine was as sceptical as the next man about the appetite of the US retreading industry for a new show. I’m guessing organiser Gustavo Lima
course, was that it was not just a retread show, the Chinese tyre manufacturers were also there – but not so many of them as to destroy the balance of the show. There was a conference held away from the show floor, arranged to last just long enough to provide added value, but
market for Chinese importers, and needs to expand into other niche sectors, such as tyre recycling, for example. However, it can be said that on balance, most
visitors to New Orleans agreed that the exhibition showed substantial promise. It’s a while since we gave a new trade
show such a glowing report. However, I’ll leave the final word to Harvey Brodsky, Managing Director of the Retread Tire Association, who has seen more North American tyre exhibitions than most. Following the
it
42 Retreading Business