LAS VEGAS – AASA has announced a special offer for non-member, full-service suppliers exhibiting at AAPEX 2009: one free Vision Conference registration (a $295 value) for companies that qualify and join the association by Thursday, Dec. 31. The AASA Vision Conference 2010 is scheduled for Wednesday, March 17, 2010, at the InterContinental Chicago O’Hare in Rosemont, Ill.

“The AASA Vision Conference 2010 is our annual membership meeting, the chance for full-service aftermarket suppliers to gather and discuss the issues impacting the aftermarket industry and their businesses,” said Steve Handschuh, president and COO of AASA. “We urge all qualifying AAPEX non-member exhibitors to join us for our 2010 event, which will be concentrated again into one, information-packed day. Participants will gain the valuable insights from peers and industry leaders with minimal time away from their businesses,” he explained.

Exhibitors can learn more about AASA membership by visiting the association’s Member Center, Sands 104-106, or contacting Theresa Spera at tspera@mema.org.

Eric Hurst, professor of economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and the top-rated speaker from the AASA Vision Conference in 2009, will make a return appearance as a keynote speaker next year.

“We are very pleased to welcome Dr. Hurst back for another insightful presentation on economic trends at the AASA Vision Conference 2010,” said Handschuh. “His riveting presentation at our conference this year was one of the factors that contributed to the event’s popularity with our attendees. The AASA Vision Conference 2009 was well received, with 99 percent of the attendees rating it ‘good,’  ‘very good’ or ‘excellent,’” he added.

Hurst is the V. Duane Rath Professor of Economics and Neubauer Family Faculty Fellow at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He studies macroeconomic policy, consumption, time use, entrepreneurship and household financial behavior. Hurst's research includes "Life Cycle Prices and Production" forthcoming in the American Economic Review; "Social Security and Unsecured Debt" forthcoming in the Journal of Public Economics; "Liquidity Constraints, Household Wealth and Entrepreneurship," which appeared in the Journal of Political Economy (2004); "The Correlation in Wealth Across Generations," which also appeared in Journal of Political Economy (2003); and "Home is Where the Equity Is: Mortgage Refinancing and Household Consumption," which was published in the Journal of Money, Credit and Banking (2002).

AASA Vision Conference 2010, exclusive to AASA member companies, will kick-off with a Welcome Reception on the evening of Tuesday, March 16, following meetings of the AASA Board of Governors and AASA councils.

The program will begin on Wednesday morning. In addition to Hurst’s presentation, the agenda will include keynote addresses by aftermarket leaders, best practice presentations by members and panel discussions of trends and challenges affecting automotive aftermarket suppliers.

Details about the conference, including early bird registration forms, are available at the AASA Member Center, Sands rooms 104-106. The Conference Web site, www.aasavision.org, also includes 2010 event information as well as the 2009 conference agenda with select presentations from the event available for download.