The world’s largest racing trade show, the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show, will remain in Orlando through the year 2016.
Attended by 45,000 racing industry entrepreneurs from 50 countries, and featuring exhibits of the latest advances in motorsports technology by 1,450 companies, the PRI Trade Show’s first event in Orlando was in 2005. This year, the 21st Annual PRI Trade Show will be held in the North/South Building of the Orange County Convention Center, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, December 11–13, 2008.
Previously, the PRI Trade Show had contracted to hold the event in Orlando through 2010.
“After holding the PRI Trade Show in Orlando for three very successful years, it is now viewed by exhibitors and attendees as the place to be for the future,” said Steve Lewis, show producer. “Exhibitors appreciate the strong annual domestic and international buyer attendance in Orlando. Buyers appreciate shopping the 1,000,000-square-foot exhibit hall featuring displays of all the latest product lines in motorsports.”
In Orlando, the entire PRI Trade Show is located in one hall, on one floor. “Orlando provides the PRI Trade Show with all the attributes of a great host city, including a spectacular convention center, and this has been proven by the enormous volume of business transactions concluded every year at the Show,” continued Lewis.
“Orlando becomes the center of the racing universe for three days each December,” said Bob Davis, global communications manager for Sunnen Products Company, St. Louis, Missouri, “and we look forward to it every year. We could not be any happier with the Convention Center, the number of attendees or all that Orlando has to offer in the way of hotels, restaurants and entertainment.”
“Certainly, the serious business is the main reason and the justification (or even the excuse) which always ‘drove’ us to all the PRI Trade Shows,” said Wilfried Eibach, chairman and CEO of Eibach Springs, an international manufacturer of racing springs based in the US in Corona, California. He added that he very much enjoys the social aspects of the PRI Trade Show as well. “The facilities and the climate in Orlando are just so pleasant and inviting, for the whole family. The decision for Orlando will cement even more the PRI role of being the biggest and most important motor show around the world.”
In addition to the excellent roster of hotels currently meeting the needs of exhibitors and attendees, the added convenience of hotel rooms adjacent to the Convention Center will improve dramatically in the next few years with the completion of two major brand name hotels. The Hilton Orlando opens in 2009 offering our PRI guests 1,200 rooms, and a new Hyatt Regency, located along Universal Boulevard next to the Convention Center, will add 1,000 more rooms in 2012. Plus, several other hotel chains popular for their affordability will be opening facilities adjacent to the Orange County Convention Center during this period. Altogether, there will be up to 4,000 hotel rooms added in the coming years. So, the final result will be exhibitors and attendees enjoying the opportunity to stay within walking distance of the Convention Center, thereby creating a true PRI Trade Show community in Orlando.
“The Orange County Convention Center is honored to be chosen as a long-term partner for the prestigious PRI Trade Show,” said Jessie Allen, general manager of the Convention Center. “We have enjoyed an outstanding relationship with PRI and are excited to continue to provide their Show’s exhibitors and attendees with all of the amenities that our Convention Center and community have to offer.”
“We are thrilled to enter into this long-term partnership with the PRI Trade Show management team and are honored by the confidence they have placed in Orlando,” said Gary Sain, president and CEO of the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Orlando’s dynamic growth in accommodations, amenities and attractions combined with our unparalleled service will ensure a uniquely compelling and successful show for PRI and its trade show attendees for many, many years to come.”
The PRI Trade Show is timed to provide racing retailers, warehouse distributors, race engine builders, professional race teams, motorsports engineers and race car fabricators the opportunity to preview the latest racing product lines, make purchase decisions and have new parts in stock for the start of next year’s racing season. It includes components for all forms of auto racing, including stock car, drag, open wheel, off-road, rally and road racing.
“The PRI Trade Show is the number one place in the world to find the products and gather the information that lead to victories. Our engineering and purchasing staff take full advantage of the three days of contact with our current and possible new suppliers. The growing international aspect is also proving beneficial,” said Spenny Clendenen, business manager, Richard Childress Racing Engine Department.
Louisville, Kentucky, was the site of the first PRI Trade Show in 1988. Since then, the PRI Trade Show has also been held in the cities of Nashville, Tennessee; Cincinnati, Ohio; Columbus, Ohio; and Indianapolis, Indiana. The heritage of the PRI Trade Show has been to outgrow the facility, resulting in moving the event to larger facilities. The PRI Trade Show moved to Orlando when it had sold out all available space in the Indiana Convention Center.
