The Automotive Parts Services Group (The Group) will hold a virtual national membership conference and expo Aug. 18-20. With a theme of “Together Towards Tomorrow,” the meeting will bring together members of Federated Auto Parts and National Pronto Association, as well as supplier partners and associates in an online forum.
“Although our in-person national meeting scheduled for earlier this year had to be postponed, we believe in the value of collaboration and have been planning an informative event to connect members and suppliers virtually this summer,” said Larry Pavey, CEO of the Automotive Parts Services Group. “Our goal is to make this virtual event as close to our annual meeting as possible and provide an opportunity for Pronto and Federated members to involve more of their staff in the national meeting. We plan to highlight our valued suppliers and thank them for their support during these unprecedented times. We expect that this cyber experience will be an informative and special three days.”
Registration information and the agenda will be sent to members of The Group in the coming weeks. The virtual conference will include sessions for both members and suppliers. A virtual expo will be conducted where suppliers may host a virtual booth and select suppliers will present to the entire membership. The last day of the conference will be filled with live one-on-one sessions between suppliers and members, with an expected 700 one-on-one sessions to take place. In addition, the event will feature an auto care industry update, a keynote speaker from the industry and an awards presentation.
“The primary focus of our online conference is to learn from each other by sharing best practices and identifying ways to enhance programs where possible, including in such areas as quality, service, communications, inventory selection, training, personnel and processes,” added Pavey. “We plan to discuss how we can improve the automation of many of our business intelligence tools and create more opportunities for our members and suppliers to collaborate. Although we can’t be together, we can work together towards tomorrow.”
