Two Roscommon businesses have been shortlisted for the prestigious Irish Auto Trade Awards 2017, taking place in Citywest Hotel in Dublin on Saturday, October 22nd.
The awards are a celebration of excellence in the Irish auto trade in Ireland, a sector that accounts for over 35,000 jobs.
Kelly Trucks, Strokestown are nominated for the HCV Aftersales Main Dealer of the Year award, while PJ Fallon & Son Roscommon town are shortlisted for no fewer than three awards: Hand Tools Manufacturer Of The Year (Pichler), Tyre Tools & Equipment Supplier Of The Year and Workshop Tools & Equipment Supplier Of The Year.
Retail auto businesses undergo a rigorous selection process that includes phone and personal mystery shops before being finally adjudicated on. Manufacturer and distributor companies were shortlisted based on votes received by readers of Irish Auto Trade Journal earlier this year.
With Bobby Kerr as MC, the gala event attracts in excess of 700 leading figures from the motor industry in Ireland and coincides with the Auto Trade EXPO, also in the nearby Citywest Exhibition Centre and Arena, where over 5,000 visitors will visit nearly 200 trade exhibitor stands from the aftersales, parts, tools and equipment and services sectors on Saturday the 22nd. and Sunday, 23rd. of October.
Local exhibitors
Among the exhibitors from throughout Ireland, the UK and from Europe at the 2016 Auto Trade EXPO are Roscommon businesses LED Global in Bealnamulla, PJ Fallon & Son and Service Matters, Roscommon town. This is the third year in-a-row that the Auto Trade EXPO has taken place and it has grown in size and visitor numbers year-on-year. From this year on, the Auto Trade EXPO will be a biennial exhibition (taking place next in 2018), so a very large attendance is expected in Citywest on October 22 and 23 for the largest ever auto trade exhibition every held in Ireland.
According to organiser Padraic Deane of Automotive Publications, the Irish Auto Trade Awards are a timely recognition of excellence in a sector that is too often overlooked. “The aftermarket provides employment in every town in Ireland and is made up in the main of independent local small and medium sized businesses. The Auto Trade Awards are about acknowledging these unsung heroes, who have shown great resilience throughout a testing economic period and who – through hard work, innovation and a commitment to high standards, have now bounced back stronger than ever.”