In February of this year, ICA announced a new partnership with Western Carwash Association (WCA) whereby WCA would no longer sponsor its own independent trade show and instead join in support of The Car Wash Show. The partnership commences at the conclusion of the final Western Carwash Show, being held Oct. 28-30, 2014, in Las Vegas. The first combined tradeshow effort between the two organizations will occur with The Car Wash Show held April 23-25, 2015, in Las Vegas.

For both ICA and WCA, this is an exceptionally significant step — and one that could create a roadmap for additional collaboration between ICA, WCA and possibly other car wash associations.

“We are thrilled about this new relationship with WCA, and we are eager to help advance their exciting new plans,” ICA Presdent Gary Dennis said. “This differentiation allows WCA to improve its value to car wash operators and suppliers in the western states, and for ICA to improve the value of its trade show offering, particularly for suppliers. The decision represents a refreshing and much-needed paradigm shift for car wash associations, and one that we believe is scalable in the future.”

While the most immediate part of the ICA-WCA partnership surrounds The Car Wash Show, the vision is much broader than a trade show. The tradeshow discussion was enabled by a broader strategic analysis that was conducted by the WCA Board of Directors. As part of that work, WCA began evaluating options for becoming more focused on its regional membership (approximately 800 members in 12 western U.S. states) — providing grassroots support to operators and suppliers in their local markets.

“This decision provides our members with an even larger show, and allows the WCA to focus on core benefits to our members. WCA is most impactful at the regional and local level, helping operators with networking, advocacy and learning opportunities,” said WCA President Brad Hooper. “Entering into this agreement with ICA allows us to participate financially in The Car Wash Show, which gives us additional opportunities to expand our focus locally and bring new added value to our members.”

In order to make that strategic shift, WCA needed to redirect resources while at the same time maintaining the revenue stream that the tradeshow had historically provided. Thus began a conversation with International Carwash Association about having WCA participate financially in The Car Wash Show, in exchange for its endorsement, involvement and promotion. In addition, ICA will expand its efforts to promote WCA’s new local offerings to car wash operators in the western half of the United States.

The opportunities and risks of such a move were thoroughly evaluated by the ICA and WCA boards of directors over more than 18 months of study and collaborative work. In the end, both associations saw strong reasons to adopt this new model, including:

• For car wash operators, new opportunities for local events (meetings, table-top display events and road shows).

• For car wash suppliers, a reduction in overall tradeshow costs (from the direct costs of exhibit fees, travel and shipping, to the indirect costs of marketing, promotion and planning).

• For both operators and suppliers, a net expansion in the number of opportunities to interface via The Car Wash Show and new WCA events.

• For participants in The Car Wash Show, a bolstering of its status as the world’s largest car wash event, with new attendees and suppliers expected.