Houston, Texas – The National Alliance of Buy Here, Pay Here Dealers (NABD) recently announced that it will hold its 10th Annual National Conference on May 6–8, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The newly renovated Las Vegas Hilton will be the site for this upcoming event.
“More than 2,000 dealers, experts and service providers are expected to gather to hear nationally recognized speakers during the expanded 2½-day educational program, exclusively for buy here, pay here,” said Ken Shilson, CPA and Conference Chairman.
The Conference theme will be “Facing New Challenges,” and this year’s agenda includes several new items. The general education sessions begin at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, May 6, 2008. The 2008 agenda includes three nationally recognized speakers: DJ Harrington, Michael York and George Dans, who will present on motivation, leadership, and sales topics, respectively.
“With the difficult economic challenges facing the BHPH industry, this conference will prepare attendees to meet those challenges more successfully,” Shilson said.
The general education sessions will feature a single track, and all vendor presentations have been moved to a concurrent breakout session where attendees can choose their topics of interest. These workshops will include subjects like: capital, software, the Internet, insurance and add-on products, sales and leadership training, payment devices, lead management and more. These presentations will deepen each attendee’s understanding of the topic and help increase their profits and cash flow.
Legal and regulatory compliance issues will be addressed by attorney Tom Hudson, who will answer questions during an interactive session. Terry O’Loughlin, formerly of the Florida Attorney General’s Office, will educate attendees on avoiding AG complaints.
This year’s program features an interactive session on accounting and tax issues with several of the industry’s best financial managers.
“New car franchise dealers and many others now see the buy here, pay here industry as an exceptional profit opportunity,” Shilson said.
In response, NABD will include a session designed for anyone just entering the BHPH industry. This session will focus on participation in twenty groups, ongoing dealer education, and networking.
A capital markets presentation will be made by John Nagy of Stephens, Inc., a leading investment banking firm, who will identify public and private capital market alternatives, and review events which have impacted the capital markets during the last year. Tom Kontos, Adesa’s chief automotive economist, and Ken Shilson will discuss used-vehicle market economics, important industry trends and benchmarks, and what attendees should expect in the months ahead.
“Finding the Right Vehicles and Reconditioning” will be discussed during an interactive panel discussion with industry experts. The best ways operators can increase sales to the unbankable consumers and proven advertising strategies that increase sales will also be covered.
“Operators must find new ways to increase their traffic in the highly competitive environment of today,” Shilson said. The general sessions also will include information on collections, recoveries, designing pay plans, and best practices. In addition, financing sources will discuss ways to find capital.
More than 150 sponsors are expected in an exhibit hall. Two receptions and two luncheons will be held in the exhibit hall during the conference. Shilson indicated that the Las Vegas Hilton has been updated and renovated since last year’s show, and NABD is offering three levels of room upgrades at substantial discounts. Those interested in attending can register online at www.bhphinfo.com. Seating and room availability is limited, so attendees are encouraged to register as soon as possible.
