Detail Fest 2019 - BIG NEWS!

If that is true that there will not be any car show for Autogeek and you have to pay 40 bucks to get in,sounds like a come on for BJ.I have been going to the detail fest since 2008 but i think i'll have to pass,it's a shame.
I went today to Detail Fest. It is not Detail Fest as I know it. I even went last year at the convention center. AG barely has a presence. I was very disappointed to say the least. I still enjoyed the auction and seeing all of the cars but that is a separate event for me. I attend DF every year and I have even participated in the pre-event
detailing contest. I'm sorry to see that things have changed so much. AG, if you are listening I think most of your fans will like the old way better.
 
I would love to see you guys at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut in June. Last year I visited the Meguiars, Adams and Mother's booths. I scored a free Meguiars bucket.
 
I went today to Detail Fest. It is not Detail Fest as I know it. I even went last year at the convention center. AG barely has a presence. I was very disappointed to say the least. I still enjoyed the auction and seeing all of the cars but that is a separate event for me. I attend DF every year and I have even participated in the pre-event
detailing contest. I'm sorry to see that things have changed so much. AG, if you are listening I think most of your fans will like the old way better.

It's a new day, new ownership, different agenda. It's about getting a return on your investment and growing your business. And the way you do that is targeting new markets and new customers. More people will walk through that show in 4 days than walked through the first 5-8 detail fests. That's just the reality of it. Just like when Bob sold the business. He started McKee's and most likely had a deal in the contract for few years that AG would carry and distribute his private label products. Once that time frame is up they will most likely be gone from AG.

Why else would he be building a whole new facility:

New Home for McKee's 37, Coming Soon!
 
It's a new day, new ownership, different agenda. It's about getting a return on your investment and growing your business. And the way you do that is targeting new markets and new customers. More people will walk through that show in 4 days than walked through the first 5-8 detail fests. That's just the reality of it. Just like when Bob sold the business. He started McKee's and most likely had a deal in the contract for few years that AG would carry and distribute his private label products. Once that time frame is up they will most likely be gone from AG.

Why else would he be building a whole new facility:

New Home for McKee's 37, Coming Soon!

What you said is true but it doesn't mean i have to like it.Don't get me wrong,i hope their business does well but as the above poster said,AG had barely a presence there.I want to see a car show not an auction.I'm a member of Mecum,if i want to see an auction,i'll watch it live on the internet for free.As i mentioned before,the Cars and Coffee at the Palm Beach Outlet Mall is one heck of a car show and it's free.It's more of what AG use to be.Next one is May 5th.

Cars & Coffee Palm Beach
 
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I agree. I learned about Detailfest on Competition Ready and it looked amazing! I decided to attend Detailfest last year and it was a disappointment, very little cars. There were some good product manufactures there with knowledgeable staff, but nothing compared to what was portrayed on TV. Hopefully the new ownership is reading this and starts to respect the hard earned money of their customers, since some customers come from all over the country, and world, to attend and support AG.

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As a Detail Fest veteran from the 6th Annual, yeah a lot has changed. What started out as a casual gathering among detail enthusiasts grew into a huge event. At the time, Autogeek was fortunate to have a huge grass lot and lots of open space near its facility to handle the crowds and a car show. That green lot and much of the land around Autogeek has now been or is being developed which made the move to an alternate venue a requirement. While it wasnt totally the same at the convention center, it still had most of the elements of the original detail fest. Obviously this year was completely different.

It was a cool event as many of Autogeeks top brands were there, and it gave many of us who have made friends from these events a chance to hang out, talk shop, and just have a good time once a year. But times change and the priorities of the company do as well.

As far as Bob building a new location for Mckee's...well, he owns the space Mckees is currently in and still owns the space Autogeek is in. They are his tenants. I think there is only limited space to grow in the current Mckees location, and the new building will give them more space and a parking lot to have events and such. Autogeek might also need that space to continue to expand :)
 
As a Detail Fest veteran from the 6th Annual, yeah a lot has changed. What started out as a casual gathering among detail enthusiasts grew into a huge event. At the time, Autogeek was fortunate to have a huge grass lot and lots of open space near its facility to handle the crowds and a car show. That green lot and much of the land around Autogeek has now been or is being developed which made the move to an alternate venue a requirement. While it wasnt totally the same at the convention center, it still had most of the elements of the original detail fest. Obviously this year was completely different.

It was a cool event as many of Autogeeks top brands were there, and it gave many of us who have made friends from these events a chance to hang out, talk shop, and just have a good time once a year. But times change and the priorities of the company do as well.

As far as Bob building a new location for Mckee's...well, he owns the space Mckees is currently in and still owns the space Autogeek is in. They are his tenants. I think there is only limited space to grow in the current Mckees location, and the new building will give them more space and a parking lot to have events and such. Autogeek might also need that space to continue to expand :)

I have been attending DF for about that long too. For the interactions with the vendors, I would now recommend Mobile Tech Expo. Auto Geek has a booth there, along with most of the vendors that attend DF (Rupes, Meguiars, Lake Country, Buff & Shine, etc.).
 
I have been away too long. No more Detail Fest. That's a shame.
I used to love attending them back in 06 and next 5 after.
I just bought I new Hemi truck, I thought I would be back again. Oh well, A.G. was fun while it lasted. Now it's just another storefront,
albeit, does contain a great forum, which I am now heading to.
 
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I've never been to a Detail Fest but it seems the previous ones were enjoyed by all, so how did this new version end up doing because the above guy seems pretty bummed out about it and I bet he speaks for many out there.

I do appreciate the forum greatly as it's my only social media outlet and I've met a couple people here and enjoy going back and forth with them about cars and detailing. One member has actually become apart of yearly Tail of the Dragon run and he's a great person that I'm glad I've crossed paths with in life.

I never knew alot about DF but when I'd see pics in the past it was lines to meet people on TV, buying products from vendors which is great and also the classes, certainly some enjoy this as well. I always wondered if there was a section where you'd clean your own car and help others out, kinda like a way to bond with your peers.

Thoughts

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
I hate to be a party pooper, but I miss the old Autogeek. While I am still a loyal customer, it just isn’t the same anymore. It used to be about that one on one type of place where you felt like you really knew the people you were doing business with and got to share your passion with your peers. Yes times change, but I fear the almighty dollar has taken the throne. I haven’t got the slightest idea who works at Autogeek anymore, other than Mike and Meghan. Is Jason still there? Dwayne, Nick, Yancy, Bob, and others have moved on to other ventures. Who am I dealing with? Packer #xxxxxxxx. Whoopty doo. I suppose Detail Fest is dead. Unfortunate, because I loved the ones I got to go to. Meeting guys like Joe Fernandez, Renny Doyle, Todd Helme, Bob Eichelberg, David Ghodoussi, Richard from Solution Finish, PJ from Dodo Juice, and so many others was an absolute blast. Heck, winning a trip to Autogeek back in 2010 (Win a trip to Autogeek and Show Car Garage!) was an experience I’ll never forget. Anybody else feel the same way, or am I just a sentimental sap?
 
I've never been to a Detail Fest but back in the day I was part of an online forum called CEG Contour Enthusiast Group and we had a yearly show called Spring Zing. There were activities, autoX or road coarse racing and sometimes guest speakers. That said, the best part of these weekends were THE PEOPLE! No offense to those who bust their butts to put on a show like Detail Fest but the only thing I'd care about would be putting a face to a screen name and talking shop with them. I know if I ever go to one of these things that's my main objective, well maybe to buy some products and maybe even help clean someone's car even

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Detail Fest was the best! Such a great time! Hopefully it will return again!
 
I hate to be a party pooper, but I miss the old Autogeek. While I am still a loyal customer, it just isn’t the same anymore. It used to be about that one on one type of place where you felt like you really knew the people you were doing business with and got to share your passion with your peers. Yes times change, but I fear the almighty dollar has taken the throne. I haven’t got the slightest idea who works at Autogeek anymore, other than Mike and Meghan. Is Jason still there? Dwayne, Nick, Yancy, Bob, and others have moved on to other ventures. Who am I dealing with? Packer #xxxxxxxx. Whoopty doo. I suppose Detail Fest is dead. Unfortunate, because I loved the ones I got to go to. Meeting guys like Joe Fernandez, Renny Doyle, Todd Helme, Bob Eichelberg, David Ghodoussi, Richard from Solution Finish, PJ from Dodo Juice, and so many others was an absolute blast. Heck, winning a trip to Autogeek back in 2010 (Win a trip to Autogeek and Show Car Garage!) was an experience I’ll never forget. Anybody else feel the same way, or am I just a sentimental sap?

I feel the same way.I went to them from 2008 to 2018 and enjoyed them all but the people i talked to,that went to the 2019 DF was disappointed.Well i sold my Corvette recently and purchased a motorcycle,so i guess it won't matter much to me anymore either way.
 
I hate to be a party pooper, but I miss the old Autogeek.

I suppose Detail Fest is dead.


I don't know if Detail Fest is 100% dead, it's just we lost use of the HUGE grass field out in front of the Autogeek building where we used to hold Detail Fest.


For those that had never been to a Detail Fest show AT Autogeek, here's an arial view photos showing the huge grass field to the right of the Autogeek building.

OldDetailFest_01.JPG



Here's two aerial views from a drone Yancy took pictures of a Saturday Cars & Coffee car show. You can see how far the grass field extended in width and depth. It as huge and empty and worked PERFECT for a car show.

OldDetailFest_02.JPG


OldDetailFest_03.JPG






And here's a picture I just stepped outside and took. There's a BUILDING where the field used to be and this is why we had to move Detail Fest.

OldDetailFest.JPG




Autogeek tried holding Detail Fest at the Palm Beach Convention Center and after that the Palm Beach Fairgrounds (timed with the Barrett-Jackson auction) and neither were a good fit or worked well for Autogeek, our vendors, our car owners nor the attendees.


But there's always the future.



:)
 
Also just to note, when I saw this thread brought back from the dead my first suspicion was a Spammer had posted to it.

So glad to see that wasn't the case.


:cheers:
 
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