Postscript from SEMA Part I: No laughing matter

Las Vegas, NV - This year, laugh-master Frank Caliendo launched into a comic parody of Bill Clinton, George Bush and John Madden, ready to rev up car lovers at the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas. The annual banquet is like the auto-prom of the after-market business; the booze flows freely, the top-tier party favor is usually a collectible die-cast and the entertainment is always one of the best comedians of the moment.

But Frank Caliendo's jokes barely registered a few snickers and giggles. Aware something was amiss, the comedian paused, slyly accusing the audience of being too slow to understand his humor. He then flew into an imitation of Madden doing NFL-style play-by-play for a NASCAR race, "Ah, the cars are turning left. Next they turn left. Now they are turning left again."

Finally, a few laughs.

What Caliendo didn't know – and couldn't have known as a first-timer walking through the show earlier in the day - attendance had slipped. Exhibits were less opulent. Freebies were harder to come by. Tough times have hit the after-market business.

It's hard to laugh when your bed is on fire.

Or when your fingers get squeezed in a vice grip.

SEMA is usually a celebration of all gizmos for your ride; everything you need to pimp, polish and perfect. It's the great stuff you don't need, but you want because it is car candy. Original. Unique. Custom.

Some cash-strapped businesses were not prepared for the downturn and have closed or cut-back; others have been forced to absorb losses from partner bankruptcies. For example, two well known warehouse distributors went out of business earlier this year leaving dozens of unpaid creditors.

Many of these companies are small and medium size businesses; some are Mom and Pop operations with small profit margins.

SEMA CEO Chris Kersting encouraged the audience to remain hopeful, and gave them an example of why the industry will remain viable over the long term. He told the audience about a youngster named Ben - the son of one of his friends. Kersting showed a video of Ben walking through the SEMA show, pontificating on the nuances of tail lights, seating configurations and stick shift positioning on several exotic cars. The kid was a neophyte car guy; passionate about wheels and destined to pursue his love for the automobile.

However, as a critical observer keeping score on which cars captured the attention of the young Ben, I couldn't help but notice which cars he pointed out.

They were cars of foreign pedigree.

American, it appears, is not aspirational.

I wondered if Ben knew the story of Henry Ford or Louis Chevrolet as well as that of Enzo Ferrari. It's kind of like learning about Yuri Gagarin and not John Glenn or Neil Armstrong. Hmm.

Still to come… Part II: Does SEMA really understand "Green"?