By Caitlin Choi
San Antonio, Texas — August 2, 2012 — Municipal contracts can be lucrative, but getting and servicing those contracts requires first class business skills. That’s the idea behind the American Towman Municipal Towing Conference taking place at Tow Expo International.
The Expo is set to run from August 2 to 4, 2012 on the River Walk in San Antonio, Texas. The annual three-day event features a mix of hands-on training, classroom sessions and social events tailored to towing operators.
This year, the Municipal Towing Conference kicks-off Day Two of the Expo with a session titled “Video, Rate Increases & Police Contracts,” given by 2011 Towman of the Year Frank Sanchez and co-producer of American Towman TV Mike Rappaport. Sanchez, author of the Sanchez Paper and keynote speaker at the conference, will touch on critical elements of his own experience. The two will talk about how to prepare a winning presentation for municipal bids.
This is the first among a series of discussions promising to tackle topics such as securing and managing town towing contracts and increasing profitability for towers.
Guest speakers include Jim Taylor, Autodata Direct; John Borowski, Amber Energy Services; Dan Messina; Jim Shellhaas, RangerSST, Service Solutions Technology; Todd Althouse, Beacon Software and NOPARK, LLC; Brandon Richard, TowLot.com; and Mark Hull, attorney for Southwest Tow Operators.
Lessons in the line-up range from: how to maximize profits on police authorized tows and how to turn impound lot auctions into the most lucrative sector of your business to a seminar on negotiating exclusive City contracts and tips on branching into specialized areas of cleanup.
Passports to attend all the sessions cost $75 in advance and $125 on-site. The fee also includes breakfast both mornings and drink tickets to the Expo’s various evening events.
Other educational slots at the Expo include CE and IM Training courses on Friday, and a CE Hybrid course on Saturday. The themes for all exhibitions involve safety and technique skills, management procedures and systems, topical interests in new laws and licensing, and/or the importance of a national ratings system.
Each year the Expo also hosts a myriad of festivities. The USA Wrecker Pageant will take place inside the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center on Friday morning, where attendees will judge a clash of vintage and supped-up trucks in the colourful display of designs. After that, a live demonstration of the latest tow truck technology will take place on the show floor at The Recovery Show. The show is designed to showcase real-life scenarios, taking viewers step-by-step through professional towing techniques.
On Friday evening the Convention Center will play host to a Vegas-style Casino Night, followed by The Big Smoke event across the street at the Merger Hotel – where cigar aficionados can snag a complimentary premium cigar. Finally, the Exhibit Hall officially closes Saturday evening with a sizzle, as towers grill-up to compete in the third Annual Southwest Chili Cook-off between 5 and 8 p.m.
