I was approached a month ago by Ron Dixon. If you haven’t heard of him then you will definitely know his son Scott Dixon, 2 time IZOD IndyCar series champion and the Iceman of the track.
Ron and his wife Glenys have lived in the USA for the 10 years Scott has been driving and run a company called Dixon Promotions. They are passionate Kiwis (as is Scott) and constantly wave the flag for New Zealand and more often for some wonderful Kiwi products.
This year is different. Ron and Glenys have sold their racing team, have spare time and have approached the New Zealand Trade Centre about a joint venture in running a mini Trade Show at the USA IndyCar events.
If you are not familiar with the IZOD IndyCar Series, there are 16 races, the most famous being the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Twelve of the races are in the USA with the others in Brazil, Japan and Canada. Millions of Americans attend the races every year and it is all hype as you can imagine. Check out the video clip below. It is estimated there are 41 million fans in the USA, that is 1 in 5 adults!
So here is the coup. Apex-Brazil which is a little like our NZTE have sponsored a trade show at the IndyCar races for the last 2 years. The companies that have participated have realized over US$500 million in sales as a direct result. http://www.indycar.com/news/show/55-izod-indycar-series/40372-partnership-opens-doors-for-apex-brasil/ . That is pretty spectacular! Click on the link below to see a promotional video, this is how the Brazilians have done it. It is an adrenaline rush! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M09vjHIl2_M
So why is this so amazing for us Kiwi’s. Well Ron, being an innovative Kiwi has negotiated an amazing price for us for the first year roadshow to participate in the IndyCar series. He will take 20 lucky New Zealand companies on a Trade Show tour across the USA, twelve cities and put them in front of millions of racing fans.
I will tell you now that Ron is going to be selective in who participates. It is his reputation on the line as he represents your products and he has told me some horror stories of companies he has informally helped out in the past. You will need to convince him that your quality is strong and you are ready to supply the US market.
Ron is the ultimate networker, here are some of the benefits to being involved in the inaugural IndyCar New Zealand Trade Centre Roadshow:
The trade show will visit 12 cities and Ron spends about 1 week in each city over the next 7 months
During that time he will be canvassing local business contacts, agents, distributors and retailer contacts he has built up in the 10 years he has been there and talking about your product.
There will be a New Zealand Trade Centre trailer at each US race event where your product will be on display.
If you aren’t ready to take direct customer sales through your website we will have a special website set up to do so.
We are looking for expressions of interest from only a couple of companies across a range of sectors. You must be willing to act fast on this event. The first race is in just over a month. The fee for the IndyCar New Zealand Trade Show is probably less than your average single Trade Show in the USA – and you get 12 of them.
Read more in the presshttp://nz.finance.yahoo.com/news/Ron-Dixon-sets-trade-nzpa-3411874084.html?x=0
If you are interested, contact me immediately. There are only 20 places for this first year. Email me by clicking on this link or call him on 09 281 4030.
Wendy Mo
CEO New Zealand Trade Centre
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