Actionable Insights and New Opportunities

ACE 2026 was the place for the latest in automotive retailing

From October 14-16, the Fallsivew Casino Resort in Niagara Falls, once again played host to the Automotive Conference & Expo (ACE). Hosted by the Motor Vehicle Retailers of Ontario, in conjunction with Consolidated Dealers, this event has become a staple on the automotive retail calendar. Not only does it provide an opportunity to sample the latest in products and solutions for dealers in Canada, but also powerful insights and workshops that enable dealers to take actionable steps upon return to their businesses.

This year’s event was no exception. The formal proceedings kicked off on October 15 with an introduction from John Scholes, a well-known Toronto radio and TV host, who served as emcee during the course of the event.

“ACE 2026 was not only a sold out event, but one which really delivered in terms of true top-tier content, plus unparalleled networking and product/solution sampling/vendor interaction.”

Exceptional achievement

The first session of the day was the 2026 Women Driven Awards. These recognize exceptional achievements from women in the industry and this year, the winners were: Marlinda Philips from Don Jackson Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram North ( Executive Leadership Award); Grace Stein, from Leavens Automotive Group (Young Leader Award); Tanya Van Dongen from Victory Ford Lincoln (Community Leadership Award), and Pamela Graham, from Acura of Hamilton (Fix Operations Leadership Award).

A highly anticipated session came next. Tom Van Dillen, Managing Partner at Greenkern has spend the last 27 years living in China and brought some incredible insights into how the country views business and technology. In order to understand modern China, Van Dillen said there are two key milestones in the country’s history to bear in mind. The first was the communist revolution under the leadership of Mao Tse-Tung in 1949. The second was the creation of China’s socialist market economy, begun under the leadership of Den Xiaoping in 1978. This model, which saw China’s economic power and influence grow during the 1980s and 1990s was the foundation for the country’s strategy today.

Higher quality

Today, said Van Dillen, the country is undergoing another shift, with the “cheap goods” model no longer existing. Instead, the focus is on higher-quality products and R&D with products being designed and engineered in China, not just manufactured there. Van Dillen also talked about China’s five-year plans, which have been a key part around attracting investment into the country. These plans, which tend to come to fruition have essentially created a “sure bet,” for capital investment, one reason why China has seen such staggering growth over the last 25 years.

To put that into context, Van Dillen said, that China has lifted 700 million people out of poverty and that construction projects have been so vast in scale, that the country used more concrete between 2011 and 2013 than the United States did during the whole 20th century.

Competition and collaboration

On the automotive side, China’s approach has been unique. Van Dillen explained that competition is extremely fierce, driven by consumer demand, which puts pressure on businesses to continue innovating and creating the kind of partnerships we simply haven’t seen in the west. For example, Van Dillen said that in China, while a vehicle might be a BMW, the technology inside it comes from Hauwei. “New partnerships are being developed and competitors work with each other,” explained Van Dillen. Additionally, consumers in China tend to look at brands in a different way, with convenience and experience being the key drivers, as opposed to quality, safety, price and brand reputation which are often common in the west.

Van Dillen noted that China’s automotive industry has an annual production capacity 55.5 million units, but the domestic market can only support around 28.8 million of that, meaning the rest is idle capacity. The intense competition within China’s domestic auto industry, the speed of innovation required, and that huge idle capacity means essential one thing: Aggressive exports are key to the sector’s long term future, one reason why Chinese automakers have made significant inroads in places like Australia and Europe. In fact, in Australia, five of the top-selling vehicles in the country are now from Chinese brands.

Rapid results

China’s speed of innovation means that automakers there can solve complex tech problems via software updates in just hours, whereas in Europe it can take weeks. The way the economy is geared also means that Chinese firms can build fully-automated dark factories and build an entire assembly plant in just 11 months. What they can’t do however, is manufacture decades of local trust. And with much hype centred around the entry of Chinese OEMs into the Canadian marketplace, Van Dillen says dealers have significant leverage here and it’s something they need to consider when entering negotiations with Chinese automakers. “Don’t trade the one thing they cannot build for the price of a free dinner,” said Van Dillen. Instead, he encouraged dealers to weaponize the trust they’ve built over the years within their communities and with their customers and to think of the vehicle more as an ecosystem—a service to connect to other things. “Solidify your position to go beyond just selling cars. You are part of the social fabric and leverage that in your communities.”

Next on the agenda was the Demo Theatre, in which vendors displaying at the expo hall had just two minutes to explain their product or service in front of a captive audience. This year, we saw elevator pitches from the likes of Auto Verify, BoostCX, CADA 360, CarDoor, , CARFAX, CarRX, FliteHouse, Hunter Engineering Company, Route One and SiriusXM.

Canada’s place in the world

Following a networking break came another highly anticipated session of the event. In A Global Perspective on Canada’s Place in the World, renowned automotive journalist Petrina Gentile sat down with the Honourable Bob Rae, former Premier of Ontario and Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations for a fireside chat.

In it, Rae talked about the current situation regarding Canada—U.S. trade relations, and that maintaining Canada’s position as a major manufacturing hub is critical. He noted that the current U.S. policy of America first only and being on the offensive, until a deal is struck has the potential to be problematic, particularly within the greater context of North American economic growth and responding to threats from other nations, notably China.

He said it was important for Canada to have a strong relationship with the United States and, that by focusing on the idea of an integrated North American marketplace, the result will be both strength and prosperity for both countries, Rae said, that the more that Canada steps up as a serious country and the more we contribute both in a North American and global context, the better position we will be in when it comes to both negotiating trade deals and the opportunities we will have to do business on a global scale. Focusing on the automotive sector, he said that China does not have the right to swamp our market and that it is essential that we maintain a significant manufacturing presence, since cars are a huge part of Canada’s economy, prosperity and way of life. For dealers, he stressed the need to stay close to their customers and that credibility and strength of customer and business relationships are extremely important, especially in times like these when volatility and uncertainty is the order of the day.

Outside the box

In the afternoon, came an inspiring session entitled Full Throttle Through Touch, Sound and Emotion. For this one, Petrina Gentile was joined on stage by Kolby Garrison and her service dog Max. Garrison was born with visual impairment and has learned to use her other senses to lead an inspiring life. An avid NASCAR fan, she said she was drawn to the sport after hearing commentary on the radio. In 2013, she realized a lifelong dream and was given the opportunity to sing the national anthem at Charlotte Motor Speedway, prior to the running of the History 300 race. An Accessibility Consulting & Compliant Services Coordinator for the American Council of the Blind, Garrison said that when it comes to automotive retail, and for dealers who face hiring challenges, thinking outside of the box and looking at people with disabilities can make all the difference when to comes to bringing in top talent to an organization. She noted that in today’s world, technology provides support to people with disabilities in ways previously not possible, enhancing their skills and abilities. She said one of the biggest mistakes businesses can make is not hiring somebody because they assumed something about them or didn’t ask the right questions. 

AI and creating value

AI is the hot topic in just about every facet of business these days, and in AI at the Dealership: What Actually Matters, Digital Strategist Mathew “Growdy” Growden provided insight into how artificial intelligence is changing the concept of buying a vehicle and how dealers can leverage AI to their advantage when it comes to providing maximum value for their customers.

On the purchase journey side, Growden said that consumers today are using AI to narrow down the type of vehicle they’re going to buy and in some cases, he noted the questions consumers ask can lead to one or two specific vehicle choices. If dealers are not prepared, this can cause problems in that the vehicle the consumer seeks may not be in stock at their local dealership. He said the key for AI on the retail side is getting it to understand the business and how it operates, plus recognizing it as an intelligence layer that can be added to data flows, streamlining processes and elevating the experience between consumer and dealer and dealer and vendor. Growden said that when inputing words and information into AI, it was critical understand that using the “right” words is key. “You can get vastly different outputs from AI if you use slightly different words.”

He noted that AI has already revolutionized the way businesses are created and operated. Today, one individual and AI can create an entire company where it used to take multiple people to do so in the past. In summarizing, he left the audience with a quote from entrepreneur Mark Cuban: “There are going to be two types of companies in this world—those that are great using AI and those that are out of business.”

Driving performance

Brandon Roy, from NCM Associates was next and in NCM Dealer Playbook: 20 Monday Morning Moves that Drive Performance, he provided 20 proven strategies from which dealers can take actionable steps to improve operations, increase accountability, bolster leadership and drive growth within their organizations.

The final session of day one came from Russell Richardson of Russ Flips Whips and this was a fascinating one. Richardson, who started his career at a family owned Lincoln store, illustrated the power of video in building brands via social media and how that translates into business opportunity and growth.

In his own case, Richardson went from selling seven vehicles a month to more than 30, by generating videos on social media that were educational, entertaining and personal. Richardson said that even in today’s marketplace where people are constantly bombarded with information, a personalized video message is often both powerful and hard to ignore.

He stressed that it was critical to maintain a consistent approach when generating and posting content, and create one video and post it to multiple platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. Richardson said that when putting these videos together batching content is often an efficient and effective way to do it, setting aside one hour and doing 5-6 videos at a time. He also said, that doing specific videos around specific subjects such as an introduction to the dealership and sales team, follow ups, vehicle delivery and service are often highly effective. “If it works in sales, then why not in service,” he said.

Richardson’s own path in harnessing the power of video not only saw him quadrupling his own vehicle sales at the dealership, but also building a globally recognized individual brand, so much so, that he now trains others to apply the techniques he’s learned retailing vehicles.

Celebrities, networking and workshops

Following the formal conclusion of the first day of the conference, there was a networking session, where attendees got to tour the Expo hall and meet and great celebrities, including hockey legends Wendel Clark and John Scott. 

In the evening, attendees got a chance to attend the Official ACE 2026 Kick-Off Party, with opportunities to network against the backdrop of live music from Classic Elton, Canada’s leading Elton John tribute experience.

Day two of the conference opened with a range of workshop sessions. These were divided into three different batches, separated by networking breaks. Attendees got a chance to take in a whole range of valuable and relevant topics, ranging from security strategies to prevent theft and cyber crime; effective ways in understanding car buyers and elevating the customer journey, as well as actionable insights to turn AI into a truly competitive edge for your dealership.

In summarizing, ACE 2026 was not only a sold out event, but one which really delivered in terms of true top-tier content, plus unparalleled networking and product/solution sampling/vendor interaction. From attending, it was clear to see why this expo has grown into Canada’s leading automotive retailing event and we can’t wait to attend the next one. For more details, visit this site.